How To Plan A Corporate Event in London
- BATEAUX LONDON BLOGS
- Posted: Friday 5th March 2021
- Author: Anonymous
At Bateaux London, we understand that planning a corporate event can be a fun yet daunting process. However, for many businesses, building professional and meaningful relationships with relevant industries is crucial for success. Private Corporate events do not always gravitate towards building business partnerships, in many cases corporate events take place with the concept of team building in mind.
However, even planning and hosting an informal and fun corporate event in London requires effective event management.
Before you start your private corporate venue hunt, be sure to consider our top tips for planning a successful corporate event.
DEFINE THE OBJECTIVES OF YOUR CORPORATE EVENT
There are many reasons as to why you may choose to host a corporate event. Whether it’s to inform and educate people about a new product or service or to drive change within the business or improve skills within your company, a corporate event can be a fantastic way to gather the team and build confidence within the business.
The purpose of your event should subsequently influence the choice of corporate venue you hire. For example, driving change within the business can be initiated through workshops and discussion, which means a small corporate venue for hire may be more fitting.
DEFINE YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
After defining the objectives of your corporate event, you will need to start thinking about who your target audience is. Defining the target audience of your event whilst in the earlier stages of the planning process can ensure that the decisions you make thereafter are appropriate. After all, your target audience will influence decisions such as the format, pricing and location of your corporate venue and event.
Whilst a team building event might include a variety of fun activities, with the aim of driving communication between different teams, some settings may not be as fitting for a corporate event aimed at CEOs tackling key challenges within the industry.
Once you understand the target audience of your corporate event, you can then take a structured approach to your venue and planning.
PLAN AND PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS
As a corporate venue space, we have hosted several events onboard our boats. Working together with our clients to help them deliver their desired corporate event, we have been able to use several years of experience to pay attention to the finer details and subsequently coordinate a successful event.
There are variety of aspects of the event to consider, from car parking facilities, event catering, content, additional resources, and entertainment. Putting together a checklist is a great place to start and will allow you to truly visualise the event from start to finish.
Consider the day of your event, who will be sat at each table and what food and drink will be served and how will you display your presentation? This level of detail will allow to build a complete picture of precisely how you want to not only coordinate your corporate event but also what you need from a private venue for hire.
THINK ABOUT YOUR BUDGET
Whether you’re planning a large-scale corporate event or a small team building event, you should allocate a budget early in the planning process. The cost of organising and delivering a corporate event can easily get out of hand. So, once you have settled on a budget be sure to stick to it!
Deciding what is most important to your target audience is a great way to fine tune exactly how much you will need to allocate to what areas.
For example, the activity is the most important factor when planning a team building event. However, spending money on interesting speakers might be more important when planning an industry event.
No matter how you allocate your budget, keep a record of your spending, and update it regularly.
SET AN AGENDA
The next step to planning a corporate event in London is setting an agenda.
You should consider how the corporate event will be structured, with consideration around the activities and speakers you want to include since the level of participation from the attendees is also a key consideration.
Keep in mind that a corporate event should offer variation to keep the audience both entertained and enhance the learning experience.
PICK A DATE
If you’re planning an internal company event, choosing a date is straightforward. However, if you’re going to be inviting attendees from different companies and locations, you need to carefully consider timing.
Ensure you double check if there are similar corporate events happening around the same time that your target attendees might be attending and consider that certain times of the year are popular for taking holidays. If possible, it’s best to avoid arranging events around these times.
DELEGATES
Expand your event management team by delegating tasks. Planning a corporate event on your own can be stressful since there is so much involved. However, creating a to-do list and allocating deadlines based on the tasks can help you to decide on who needs to be involved.
As a team, holding regular progress meetings to check that everything is on track can ensure your corporate event runs as smoothly as possible; be sure to communicate regularly with the hosting venue and vendors too.
GETTING PEOPLE TO ATTEND
Having people attend an internal corporate event can be easy, whilst having people attend a networking event can be slightly more difficult. Depending on the nature of your corporate event, a detailed marketing and strategy plan can prove beneficial.
Before you begin to reach out to your target audience, be sure to define what the benefits will be for the attendees. From reaching out to existing connections, to creating advertorial copy that can be shared across social media platforms, there are several ways in which you can invite attendees to your event.
OVERCOMING SETBACKS
Overcoming setbacks are vital when considering the success of your corporate event. Planning for the worst may sound pessimistic, however can ensure that you are able to problem-solve before it happens.
Listing out possible setbacks such as technical issues or a keynote speaker failing to show, as well as addressing these scenarios head on can allow you to effectively prepare for the unexpected.
ASKING FOR FEEDBACK
After your corporate event, it is important to reach out to attendees to obtain feedback around the event. For instance, sending out a short survey within 24 hours of the event and allow you to collate responses and determine what went well and what areas of the event could have been improved.
This will be a great standing point when it comes to planning any future corporate events!
CHOOSE A CORPORATE VENUE TO HIRE
There are a wide variety of corporate venues for hire in London. From networking events, private parties and conferences to team building activities, there are a variety of private hire venues that will suit your needs.
Be sure to give yourself enough time to fully understand what you need from your private hire venue. Whether that means you require a venue with corporate catering services, or breakout rooms.
At Bateaux London, we offer a selection of unique corporate event spaces for hire. Whether you’re looking for an incredible Corporate central London venue for an office party or an inspiring space for a conference event, team outing, daytime cruise, gala dinner or beyond – we are here to make your next event extra special, all with the glorious River Thames as your backdrop.
With the largest rooftop boat terrace on the Thames, a capacity of up to 200 on our River Room boat and 400 (standing) on Glass Room, along with London’s newest riverside bar & lounge, The Pier and an expert team of event managers, designers, mixologists, and chefs, you need look no further for your corporate event space.
Our wonderfully designed venues for hire offer river scenery, delectable food and drink, bespoke conference set ups and more. We are experts in the field of corporate hospitality and are committed to providing a bespoke service from your first enquiry to the moment your event ends.
Situated just off Victoria Embankment, Bateaux London is easily accessible from all over London with excellent bus, rail, underground and road links.
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