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There are plenty of good reasons to host a business event. You can use them as a way to show gratitude to your employees, help promote your brand to new customers, or nurture relationships with other businesses.
In an age when a huge chunk of our business activities take place online, hosting a real-world event can have a huge and positive lasting impact. But of course, it’s not as if hosting a successful business event, a successful one at least, is a complete walk in the park. If it were, then everyone would be doing it.
In this post, we’re going to run through some essential tips that should increase the likelihood that your business event is a roaring success.
Here are twelve tips for hosting a successful business event:
1. Get Started Early
It’s recommended to get to work on your business event as early as you can. How much time you need will depend on the type and scope of the event you plan to host; if it’s a large-scale event aimed at developing relationships with other businesses, then you might need six months or more to get everything in place. If it’s a relatively small event for employees, then a couple of months will probably do fine.
Ultimately, the goal is to avoid having to rush — if you do that, then not only will you be more likely to make an error, but you’ll probably find that you’re pretty stressed about everything, too!
2. Figure Out the Purpose
What do you hope to achieve with your business event? Having an understanding of the overall objective will help considerably when it comes to making other decisions, such as who gets the invite, what activities you’ll include, and so on. There’s no shortage of reasons to host a successful business event — for example, maybe you’re raising money for charity, hosting a party for staff, launching a product, or hosting a conference.
Before you get too far down the line, think of why you’re holding this event. It’ll make the rest of the journey easier.
3. Create a Budget
Unless you’re hosting the event purely for celebratory purposes, your event should help to generate more business and income for your company. However, keep in mind that you’ll need to spend money in order to pull off a successful business event. It’s best to get together with the finance team and see how much to allocate to the event, though keep in mind that the budget should only be a rough estimate — you should always plan for it to cost 10 – 20% more than you anticipated. It’s just the way these things work!
Also, if you crunch the numbers and figure out that you can only spend a small sum on the event, then it’ll probably be best to cancel it altogether or look at alternative options. A low-budget event where you’re forced to cut too many corners could have a negative impact on the perception of your brand.
4. Put Together a Guestlist
The event won’t be successful if no one is there! It’s important to let your prospective attendees know with as much notice as possible so that they can get it into their diaries. A couple of months should be fine. The difficult part might be deciding who will come. In some instances, this decision will be made for you — for instance, if it’s an employee party, then everyone on the payroll should be invited. If you’re trying to connect with other businesses, then you might need to be selective about which ones receive an invite.
5. And a Team
You won’t be able to organize an entire successful business event on your own. In the case of large events, it’ll be best to work with an event planner, though that won’t be necessary for all types of events. If it’s a relatively straightforward event, then you can do it in-house.
There will probably be some members of staff who are happy to help organize the event. If they’re eager to help out and they have the skills to do so, then let them. Be sure to allocate time during the working day for your event team to get together. Also, be open to the ideas that your employees have about the event, especially if they have fun ideas. The goal, after all, is to create an event that’s memorable for all the right reasons.
6. Scope Out Venues
The venue can make or break an event. If you choose correctly, then it’ll help the day go off without a hitch. Choose incorrectly, and you’ll be making your journey towards success more difficult.
You should have a sense of what type of event space is necessary once you’ve figured out the purpose and theme of the successful business event. Note that while it can be tempting to book a place as early as possible, especially if it’s a “cool” or desirable venue, it’s generally best not to. You’ll need to see a few different venues before selecting the right one. Remember, it’s not about booking the trendiest event space, but about booking the one that makes the most sense for your specific event.
7. Invest in Event Essentials
If you’ve chosen the right event space, then you’ll have a space that’s ready to take your event to the next level. However, the venue can’t do all the work. You’ll need to invest in some essentials to help transform the venue into one that’s ready for your event. For instance, it’s recommended to work with a company that offers banner printing, so that you can hang a professional-looking banner outside the venue.
This won’t just help to tell your guests that they’ve arrived at the right place, but it’ll also set the tone for a successful business event. Inside the venue, you may consider adding banners featuring your branding, if necessary. Alternatively, if you’re hosting a celebratory party, then utilizing party staples such as balloons and other decor touches is recommended.
8. Building Hype
You’ll have sent your invitations out early, but don’t let that be the only notification that you give to your attendees. In the weeks leading up to the event, be sure to build excitement. You can send reminder emails containing up-to-date information about the running order of the day along with logistical information, or post regular updates on your social media channels. The goal is to get your attendees excited about the successful business event, which should help to ensure that as few people as possible drop out and that people come genuinely excited about the day.
9. Plan for Things to Go Wrong
It’d be nice if well-laid plans always went off without a hitch, but this is the real world, and as such, there’s always a possibility that things go slightly wrong. That shouldn’t be a disaster unless you haven’t planned for it. It’s best to think about what could go wrong, and then come up with a plan for what you’ll do should it come to pass.
For example, what will you do if you’re hosting an outdoor event and it suddenly starts raining? Is there a backup location you can use instead? Or what if one of your speakers has to cancel at the last minute — will you be able to extend another portion of the day to make up the time?
10. Try to Enjoy It
You’ll be in work mode at the event — or at least, you should be — but remember that, while this may be a serious event, it should also be enjoyable. If you’ve put enough time into planning, then everything will run smoothly. Your attendees will have a lot more fun if you’re relaxed and personable. Remember, guests look to the organizers to gauge the tone of the event. If you want people to have a good time, then you should be having a good time too.
11. Post-Event Analysis
The event should have gone off without a hitch, but it’s unlikely that everything ran perfectly. Once you’re back in the office, it’ll be best to get together with your team and discuss what went well, what didn’t quite work, and the elements that you’d include if you could do it all over again. Write your feedback and analysis down — it’ll come in handy when you come to host your next successful business event.
12. Getting To Work
Depending on the purpose of the event, the real work might begin once you’re back in the office. For instance, if you were hosting an event with the intention of connecting with other businesses, then it’ll be time to begin building on the leads you made during the event. It’s best to send a thank you note to attendees promptly after the event has ended. Remember — unless the event just served as a way to thank staff, then the real value of your efforts will be felt by what comes after the event has ended.
Conclusion
Hosting a successful business event isn’t easy, but it can be valuable, and they’re often a lot of fun, too. By taking the tips that we’ve outlined above, you can create an event that benefits all involved.
