Over the past two decades, I’ve learned a thing or two about party planning and how to make a successful corporate event. The first and most important part of the event is always the entertainment. Once you get it right, the rest just falls into place.
1 – Have a corporate event plan or strategy and stay focused
When you’re planning a corporate event, there’s always room for ‘something else’ until there’s no more. So what do you cut? Reality check from the beginning, you have an end goal, create a plan, develop a strategy and stay focused. Don’t let all the extra ‘stuff’ that may be part of the concept take over and ruin your continuity of time and space, because if you lose focus, your event can’t be successful.
2 – Know your team and plan for their needs and wants
Entertainment that qualifies as “spectacular” for a group of 20-somethings isn’t going to impress your 45-year-old executive staff. Plan for differences, understand their desires, and schedule entertainment that works for both sets of people and anyone else who may be on your guest list.
3 – Keep in mind the end goal
When the ultimate goal is to train sales reps, generate more sales, and motivate the troops, you’ll want to combine these concepts with your entertainment. Let the animators know their main achievements and encourage them to give a ‘thank you mention’ to encourage and motivate them. It makes a difference, and your goal for this party is motivation. Do what you have to do to make that happen.
4 – Understand prices and stay within budget
Even when you need great entertainment, if your event planner is in good control of the budget, they will be able to bring you great food, find the perfect venue, and provide entertainment, if you have a plan to work with. Always remind them to stay UNDER budget for those last minute extras.
5 – Connect all the pieces to your theme
From the speakers at breakfast in the morning to the food on the lunch menu and the entertainment at dinner time, your pieces need to connect. You’ll need to provide everyone involved with a list of specific targeted needs prior to the event and then check in with them frequently to make sure everyone is on the same wavelength and has coordinated their messaging.
6 – There can only be one event planner
You can have a team of forty people help plan the event, but there can really only be one event planner. Make sure you have one person responsible for ALL the details of your event, and that person should keep track of everything from the appetizers to the music. They’ll want a list of everything, from everyone who’s attending to everyone who’s performing and everyone in between.
7 – Time and schedules matter
A true professional event planner will have this up to the minute. If you don’t have the ability to manage time and schedule, use your best skill set to hire the right person who can manage time and schedules down to the microsecond, and focus on other important details. Let your event planner do the job.