Hosting a corporate event, whether it’s an internal sales meeting or a client conference, takes considerable planning and creativity. The days of stiff, boring corporate events are behind us (at least for those companies that want to make any kind of lasting impression on their guests.) Offering your guests a memorable experience that’s steeped in your company’s branding, mission, and goals is the best way to make the event’s effect last long after they’ve left. Here are five ways to freshen up your upcoming corporate events.
1. Keep it Local
For decades corporate event locations were defined by their fun, exotic, or far away destinations. But more and more companies are embracing their home city to showoff not only their products and services, but the community in which they are located. Rochester, which was recently named one of the top U.S. cities to visit in 2020 by SmarterTravel, is now more than ever an ideal place to hold your next company event. Leverage everything has to offer including historic locations, regional food specialties, and the varied natural locations as a backdrop for your event. By showcasing the place your company calls home, your customers will get a better sense of your team with whom they will likely interact every day.
2. Go Outside the Box While Staying Inside the Tent
If you’re looking for unique corporate event ideas, the best place to make an impression is by creating your own location. Working with the right tent and event vendor, you can establish a fully branded, one-of-a-kind event space that perfectly suits the needs of your event without having to work within the confines of an already established venue. Through decor, lighting, and the right A/V your guests will experience an event that can never be recreated by another company because it is uniquely your own. By using a tent you’re also not limited to just one large event space; constructing “rooms” that have definitive purposes will help your event flow and give guest reasons to experience many facets of your offering.
3. Make it a Family Affair
If the corporate party you’re planning is for employees or only local constituents, help bring their work and life together by making it family friendly. By dedicating a part of your event to family time will help build connections and further your corporate culture goals. Involving families can be as easy as including kid-beloved food and decoration throughout the event space. Goody bags, photo booths, and carnival games are other good ways to engages families with kids of all ages. You can even make your next company even multigenerational, inviting your staff’s parents and kids and providing a space for connection that’s also connected to your business.
4. Pay it Forward
More and more companies are incorporating an aspect of charity, volunteerism, or sustainability into their corporate events to illustrate their position on giving back. First, choose a way to give back that aligns to your existing corporate philanthropy activities or one that is an adjacency to the solution you provide in the marketplace. Then strategize how to share the message (place cards explaining the local, sustainable food you are serving) or involve your guests (asking them to bring a book to donate to a local charity in honor of the event). Involving clients in this work allows them to feel good about their contribution while giving them another reason to continue their partnership with you.
5. Embrace the Season
Your next corporate event will be booked during some time of the year and, instead of fighting what might be negative connotations (cold, bugs, rain), you can make any time of year the “right” time by fully aligning your event with the season. Hosting in summer… use an outdoor dining tent that mimics the beach to serve a fun picnic meal. In winter you can set up a photobooth full of “snow” and ski-themed props. Choose to embrace every opportunity to highlight the season with your brand as its star and your next corporate event will be remembered for its creativity and relevance to your audiences needs.
