Hosting a corporate party is a great way to engage your staff and connect with them on a more personal level, because who doesn’t love a party?
Planning corporate parties take a good deal of organization and prep work. There are some crucial things to remember if you want to ensure a successful event.
Whether you’re planning your first corporate party or you’re working with a seasoned event planning team, here are a few helpful event planning tips for dealing with corporate parties.
1. Know Your Guests
When planning corporate parties, it can be easy to get swept up in a vision for how you think the event should look or feel, but the best event planners will always put this aside and keep their guests’ needs as the primary focus. The party is for your guests’ enjoyment.
Knowing your guests is key to understanding what will make the party successful and enjoyable for them. Think about their demographics when choosing the food, drinks, and entertainment. If your guests are on average over 40, maybe a DJ playing today’s top hits isn’t the right entertainment option. Similarly, if you’re planning an event for a younger demographic in a major city, you might want to look for a caterer who can provide some exciting food and local beverage options.
2. Choose Your Location Carefully
When selecting the ideal venue for any corporate party, you’ll want to keep location and ease of access in mind to make it as convenient as possible for your guests. Accessibility can be a large factor in how well your event is attended, so don’t overlook this important aspect.
Choosing somewhere that’s transit friendly is a big plus in the GTA, and will also help get your guests to and from your event with ease. Your guests may be coming from various regions, but choosing a venue that’s located close to their regular workplace means that they won’t have to go out of the way to make it to the party. When sending out your party invites, it’s a great idea to provide detailed transit instructions or location details so your guests can easily plan their trip.
3. Provide Entertainment, but Don’t Pack the Program
Some form of entertainment is usually appreciated at most corporate parties since it helps your guests get in the party mood and creates a more fun environment. But don’t go overboard when it comes to packing the program.You want your guests engaged, but not over-stimulated.
When your guests attend a corporate party, they expect to be able to socialize, so make sure they have ample opportunity to mingle and converse without having to talk over blaring music or listen to a long string of speeches.Set speech time limits, as to insure speakers do not ramble on and distract from the mood of the party.
4. Watch Your Timelines
One of the biggest concerns we’ve heard from corporate parties is about the running time and having a late dinner. Not everyone is able to stay out late, especially if they have small kids at home or if the event takes place on a weeknight.
For these reasons, it’s important to work with your caterer or venue coordinator and ensure that dinner will be served at a timely hour. Plan an itinerary and timeline and stick with it! Your event can always go later for those who can stay, but make sure the critical components of the night are completed by a reasonable time.
