A successful business event is more than just what goes on during the big day. Indeed, the planning phase is the most integral aspect of any event. Planning ahead reduces the likelihood of mistakes and unforeseen incidents during the live event.
When planning your next event, these five elements are keys to success.
1. The right venue
Any event, whether in business or otherwise, starts with the right venue.
When sourcing the right venue for your event, ensure it has all the features and functionality you require. If it’s a business event, your venue should have the right audio visual equipment necessary for all your requirements. Likewise, if your venue doesn’t provide these essential elements, source the right AV distribution and rental company that can work with your allocated space and venue.
An experienced, leading event company will have the necessary equipment and expertise to ensure the success of your event.
2. A well-organized logistics plan
Whether it’s a speech, banquet or conference, your event will require a well-organized logistics plan. This goes beyond the food, entertainment, and a guest list.
Your logistics plan should include the sequence of events as it unfolds throughout the event. Understanding and managing the flow of the event will create a seamless transition between periodic shifts. Just as important is how you utilize your venue.
Lighting and sound can create emotional moments throughout your event to engage your audience. Knowing when to apply the right audial and ambient setting to unifying and emotional bond between event and audience will create a memorable event.
Plan for failure as well. Understanding pain points in your event and how to overcome them ensures your event will run smoothly.
3. Good planning and communication
Effective communication is key to the success of any event. Establishing an understanding of the event’s objectives and everyone’s role throughout the event process is done through good planning and communication.
Whether verbal or nonverbal, communication clarifies expectations and desires. This is especially important when dealing with external third-parties such as a catering and audio visual companies. This will establish what you require for the big day, such as equipment and specific food requirements.
It’s also important to know when to delegate tasks and communicate often. Few things are more frustrating than failing to communicate an important change. Whether its changes with external third parties, your venue being double booked, or even an absent guest speaker.
Effective communication between all involved parties is the only way to ensure everyone involved is on top of required tasks and roles.
4. Great customer experience
The experience your guests and audience have during your business event is a measure of success for your event.
People who attend your event should be incentivized to invest in your business or communicate interest in future purchases. This can go a long way in delivering continued success to a business while generating brand loyalty and future leads.
There are many factors to delivering a great customer experience. The essential venue facilities, the entertainment value, and even the audio visual equipment are all components to determine the guest experience. Guests who feel catered and cared for will go on to become brand advocates for your business.
5. Repeatability and scalability
The objective of any business event, after all, is to drive the continued success of any company. Therefore, it’s pertinent that any business event has the components in place to scale it to match demand.
The evaluation process post-event is an essential tool in determining the repeatability of your event. Acquiring feedback and acknowledging mistakes will go a long way in making improves for future events. Particularly if you host annual galas to drive business.
If your business event has been successful that it’s created a platform for future events, your partnerships with external agencies must be able to match your event’s scalability. Thinking long-term and analyzing the potential success and growth of your event must be implemented from the outset.
Launching a successful event takes requires a lot of work. But with planning and an elaborate strategy, your business event will be executed to perfection.
AUTHOR BIO
MANAGING PARTNER LEVEL PRODUCTION DUBAI: HADI AL RIFAI
Hadi Al Rifai specializes in event management and audio engineering and holds a BA in business management from the American University of Science and Technology in Beirut. Before settling down in Dubai to manage Level Production, Mr. Rifai has worked with leading national and multinational event management organizations in the Middle East where he honed his AV production skills. Among the notable projects he has worked with are the X Factor and Baalbek Film Festival.
