Even the most experienced event managers can find it very hectic. If you don’t have a plan, there are many things that can go wrong. Every little thing you can do to make your event more successful and memorable for everyone involved will go a long way in making it a success. These are five tips to help plan and manage your event.
1. Planning – Setting measurable goals and objectives
Your event should have a foundation built around your goals and objectives. To help you set realistic goals and establish measurable objectives, ask yourself these questions. What is the purpose of this event – are you looking to increase branding and awareness, sales lead generation, customer engagement and upsell, or information/education? Are the event’s outcomes in line with organizational goals? Is the event being used to reach worthwhile communication goals? It will be easier to optimize every aspect of your event for success if you have set strategic goals when planning it.
Questions to consider: What format is it? What is the intended format? Is it a conference, seminar, trade show, or breakfast so that you can reach the people you desire? Are you a media representative, employee, or potential customer? How will you reach your target audience and who are you inviting? Is it possible to charge attendees? Are you looking to raise funds for a charity or sponsor team, increase public awareness about a certain social problem, launch new products, or generate publicity for a seminar? What number of attendees do you expect to draw? These key questions will help you set your goals and objectives.
If you are asked or challenged by your senior managers about the event’s ROI, you can refer to the goals and measurable targets you set. This will demonstrate how the events company Manchester supports the business priorities of your company. The event’s tangible results will show the value of your efforts if you set realistic goals.
2. A competent team
Once you have established your goals and objectives, it is time to start the process of building a team that will help you reach them. You will need to use your staff and hire skilled people. Then, you’ll assign them responsibilities based upon their abilities. You can, for example, appoint one person as the head of each subgroup.
- Management of venues
- Promotion and publicity
- Sound systems
- Entertainment
- Catering
You can establish a system for accountability by assigning individual responsibilities to your team members. This ensures that each task is completed. To promote collaboration, establish a reliable communication channel.
3. Budget preparation is key
Planning and managing your event is only possible if you have a budget. Even the most brilliant ideas can fail without a budget. Make sure your budget covers all essential expenses. You should also have a 5-25% emergency fund for the unplanned. These are the most important expenses your budget should cover.
- Venue. This cost should include venue rental, as well as any permit or insurance you may need.
- Catering. The cost includes servers, bartenders and food, drinks, table settings, linen, and other services.
- Entertainment. This aspect can be customized to grab the attention of your attendees. This expense can include music equipment or a DJ depending on the type of event.
- Staff. It’s easy to forget about this area, but it is important to budget for transportation and accommodation costs of your staff, especially if your event destination is far away.
- Marketing. You would need to prepare enough marketing materials for large events, such as publicity, advertising, publicity and shared media like partnerships with charities and co-branding with others brands. Owned content, such as direct mail with employee stories, customer stories and brand journalism, is also required. You can also pay influencers to share sponsored posts on your social media accounts.
- Event technology. Any hardware or software that assists in planning and producing an event or making it a memorable experience for attendees. Event technology encompasses many aspects. Spacehuntr has a Spacehuntr article titled ” The Ultimate Guide to Event Technology.”
- Visual coverage. Hire a professional photographer to take photos of the guests and conduct video interviews. These videos can be used as testimonials and publicity. You can promote your formal events through different channels by ensuring visual coverage.
- Creative. Consider creative opportunities that can influence attendance at your event. You could have a prominent speaker, an announcement of new initiatives or operational results, top information, or a service in high demand.
4. A reliable and appropriate venue
There are many factors that could influence the date of your event. Are you launching a product, hosting an annual seminar or a year-end event? Are key people at the event or are there other events happening in your industry? Expert event planners agree that 9 months is the ideal lead-time for event management . This is not too long, but not too far in advance. These are some things that can help you select a date.
The largest expense in your event budget is likely to be the venue cost. You can use venue search services to find venues in your area. A place can offer seating, entertainment, wi fi, and catering. If you already have these things, you will have many more options. You can look into creative venues like museums, yacht clubs, or botanical gardens if you’re looking to make your event unique and have plenty of funding. You should be prepared for weather changes if the event takes place outside. You can find vacation rentals if your event is outside of the city. They are very affordable and in excellent condition.
5. Minimize last-minute changes
You will need to work with many people, including sponsors, staff, consultants, vendors, and staff in order to organize an event. You must work with all parties ahead of time to resolve any issues and establish a deadline for any changes. As an example, vendors should be made aware that they cannot withdraw after a certain date. To reduce cancellations, set penalties.
Event planning is an increasingly popular activity for PR professionals, as more people are looking for new activities. You must be innovative and well-organized if you want your event to stand out among the rapidly expanding industry. These 5 tips will help you make your next event a success.
