The Ultimate Guide to Planning Corporate Events
Successful corporate events can work wonders for brand awareness, business growth, and enhancing company culture. However, there’s a fine line between event success and a missed opportunity, and ensuring success often comes down to the quality of planning and management.
With this in mind, it’s always a good idea to work with experienced professionals who know the event industry inside and out, with the dedication and creativity required to help you achieve both your vision and business objectives. In this article, we’ll provide a helpful guide by taking you through our approach to planning corporate events with essential insights along the way.
Defining the Purpose
Any successful event has a clear sense of purpose. Of course, we can make a venue look incredible and create experiences to maximise engagement, but without purpose, corporate events lack authenticity. We work closely with our clients to discover why they’re hosting the event and tailor every element to support their goals.
Whether you’re planning an educational conference, a morale-boosting team away day, or a networking reception to bring like-minded experts together, purpose is always an important starting point.
Developing Creative Concepts
Once you have a good idea of why you’re hosting an event and have identified any ‘must haves’ for you or your brand, all the creative and fun parts begin. We like to form collaborative partnerships with our clients to develop proposals full of exciting themes and concepts to boost engagement at corporate events. This is the stage where all ideas or inspirations are encouraged. It is your event, after all, so we want to make sure everything is on-brief and suits your needs.
Creative proposals are designed to bring your vision to life, which can include suggestions about everything from the event’s flow and unique features to tailoring the aesthetic for a more authentic brand experience. Your proposal will also include a pricing summary that matches your budget to accommodate your preferences while ensuring transparent costs.
Finding the Perfect Venue
There aren’t many factors that define the tone of your event more than the venue itself. Word on the Street has planned and delivered a wide range of corporate events, and one aspect is consistent: finding the right venue is essential for creating an immersive experience that makes an impact.
This is where working with an event agency can prove to be worth its weight in gold. Not only do we consider crucial elements such as ideal location, capacity, accessibility, and decor—but you’ll also benefit from our trusted network of venue partners. We’ve worked with some of the UK’s most desirable venues and hidden gems, and these connections ensure we can create an environment that aligns with your event goals and leaves a lasting impression.
Connecting with the Best Suppliers
It doesn’t matter if you’re planning a complex event or a simple, intimate affair—every detail needs to be considered, and all boxes should be ticked. Whether it’s catering and cocktails or audiovisual equipment and entertainment, coordinating with reliable suppliers is vital for seamless and successful corporate events. If this is your first time planning a corporate event, it’s a good idea to research and book suppliers as quickly as possible to get everything you need while avoiding disappointment.
Fortunately for our clients, we’ve spent many years cultivating close relationships with a variety of trusted, leading suppliers. When you work with our team, you instantly gain access to our little black book of suppliers, which allows us to manage every aspect of your event. This approach offers a smoother process and ensures consistency and quality from initial planning through to event day management. Plus, it saves you the time and energy of chasing suppliers as deadlines approach, which is always a bonus.
Enhancing the Attendee Experience
Don’t let the ‘corporate’ in corporate events fool you; there’s plenty of fun to be had. When it’s all said and done, creating a positive and memorable experience for attendees is at the heart of event planning. We focus on the attendee journey, including the moment they walk through the door to the last orders at the bar, making sure that everything enhances the experience and exceeds their expectations.
While the term ‘attendee experience’ may sound as though it’s limited to the event day or specific aspects such as the venue set-up, it actually extends to every decision throughout the planning process. From pre-event RSVPs to boost organisation to unique activities and social environments, every aspect plays an important role in creating a seamless and enjoyable experience.
Ready to Plan Bespoke Corporate Events?
Corporate events provide the perfect platform to boost brand visibility, engage your audience, and network with fellow professionals. All it takes is a dedicated and creative partner like Word on the Street at your side to help you transform a brief into a successful corporate event. Our approach is fuelled by creativity, efficiency, experience, and an unwavering commitment to delivering unforgettable experiences.
Want to know more about our corporate event planning services? Contact us today to discuss your requirements and vision for corporate events!