Planning a business event is frustrating without guidelines. As a first-time business event planner, you need to follow the steps and take pro tips from experts.

In this article, you’ll get direction towards planning the best business events. From curating an outline for the event to establishing an awesome, engaging audience for your event, every step is covered here.

Step-By-Step Guide for Business Event Planning

Define the Objective

First of all, you need to identify the type of business event. Seminar or conference, a tradeshow, a large networking summit, or a simple corporate team-building event. Defining the goals makes the event measurable and achievable.

If your aim is to launch a product, your event should have the necessities for showcasing product features and allowing users to experience a short demo. On the other hand, if you aim to arrange a workshop or seminar on a topic, then contact relevant speakers and trainers and emphasize the sound quality and seats of trainees.

Choosing Venue

Now that you’ve estimated the business event type and objectives, then it’s time to choose the venue. Choosing the venue depends on the budget, approximate location of your audience, transportation facility, parking area, speakers’ stage, size of the venue compared to your event, etc.

You can follow these tips for choosing the best venue for your business event:

• Select a venue that is nearer to an urban area and not too remote, as transportation difficulties may arise. Your guests and employees should like the spot.
• Consider the space of the venue. It should be large enough to hold all the guests and have a little extra space for walking or stretching. Check in-person for a close perspective.
• The theme of the event should merge well with the venue. For example, a conference or seminar is well suited for the auditorium of a large hotel. A networking event needs a free space like a rooftop lounge.
• Your venue should have wifi, a proper sound system, a mic, large projectors, and facilities. There should be a streaming facility for the hybrid event.
• Finally, the venue cost should be under your budget. Look for hidden fees. Some venues provide catering and accommodation as a package.

Event Budgeting

The most important and difficult part is budgeting for the event. As a business event, the budget should be quite high. You may need sponsors to arrange the event smoothly. If there isn’t enough funding, you may require ticketing to collect it.

Estimate the expenses first. Try to portion out the total event so you can estimate the cost of each area, such as catering, technology, hiring a speaker or trainer if necessary, transportation, and marketing.

If your total event expense goes over the total budget, analyze where you can save up. For example, you can skip beverages or snacks and settle for one meal box to save up money. If your business event focuses on workshops or training, then investing in a good sound system, laptops, and desktops for trainees and experts is a good practice.

Managing the Logistics

The logistics, which include catering, technology management, registration, checking the guest list, and a backup plan, need proper management. These are crucial parts of the business event that need to be taken care of 2 to 3 weeks prior to the event starting.

Any logistics issue may occur, such as a problem with the Wi-Fi, sound system, or lights not working properly. There can be overcrowding; people outside the guest list may appear if the ticketing system is not followed. Or last-minute registration may occur. So you need extra utilities and seats arranged.

Contact multiple catering services, stage decorators, and speakers in case your desired company cancels at the last minute. Plan an emergency exit, fire extinguisher, and security service for your speakers and chief guest.

Incorporate Technology & Tools

Taking the help of any event management software or platform reduces the possibility of mismanagement. Consider good event-managing software that meets your criteria. You can create a checklist of what you want from the software. The pricing should be under your event budget.

The attendance system is quicker and simpler when technology is incorporated. You can use a QR code entry system and AI assistance for attendees. Presentation slides should be interactive, with live polls and Q&A sessions. A live feedback system can improve your overall business event.

Have Backup

Any type of inconvenience or emergency may occur. You cannot control every situation. So you need to be well prepared and have backups of almost every category.

For example, you may have picked the best catering service for your event. However, you need to contact another alternative to that catering service and ask for their price and service. Having an alternative service helps when the chosen one is absent or can’t deliver in the meantime.

Similarly, when it is about the speaker of your event, it is better to have multiple ones than depending on one single speaker. If one person is absent, the other speakers or trainers can extend their time slot to fill up the gap at the event.

Marketing the Event

Marketing is the best tool for reaching out to potential audiences and networking. Promote your business event by hiring a renowned marketing agency. The promotion can be done virtually, on social media platforms, or through offline banners, posters, and leaflets.

You can create a website or landing page that presents all the detailed information about the event. This includes the registration link, countdown timer, event venue, facilities, and so on. In addition to social media marketing, email marketing works great to keep the participants eager for the event.

For large-scale webinars, workshops, tradeshows, and networking summits, issue campaigns in relevant fields. This will also encourage the sponsors to notice your event. Finding sponsors is beneficial in both ways. Their product or service is marketed to your audience, and vice versa.

Engage the Audience

Audience engagement reflects how successful your event is going. Incorporate live Q&A sessions and live interactive polls to create an engaging audience. You can also start a reward system for the audience. It can be a gift hamper from the sponsors, a gift card, a special coupon, or points for your company purchase.

Prior to the event, excite the participants with early bird or VIP registration. Personalized email works well to make the event anticipated. You can post behind-the-scenes videos of hosts and speakers on social media.

After the event, get feedback from the attendees through a grateful email. Ask how the event was, if they faced any difficulties, and what the fun part was. Getting advice about how they feel is mandatory, as it can help you out for future events.

Pro Tips for Planning a Business Event as a Newbie

• Start planning earlier for the event. As you’re a new event planner, things might not work out first time. So you can list some vendors and venues to contact.
• Discuss and get help from an experienced business event planner. It will keep you on the right track.
• Include event management software. There are some good quality features in the free software.
• List out all possible sponsors for the business event. Contact companies with beliefs and goals similar to the event.
• Check the tech support prior to starting the event. Secure a stable Wi-Fi connection for live streaming and hybrid events.
• Prepare a contingency budget for any major inconvenience or change in the event plan.
• Prepare backup speakers and venue options.

Checklist for Business Event Planning

Prior to the event:

• Define the goal of the event.
• Create a detailed budget with all the expenses.
• Choose the venue.
• Finalize the date.
• Create a theme for the event.
• Contact speaker/trainer.
• Contact vendors.
• Hire photographer/videographer.
• News or media coverage.
• Secure a sponsor.
• Create a dedicated website.
• Hire a marketing agency for promotion.
• Create a guest list.
• Invite the guests.

During the event:

• Ensure an attendance system.
• Welcome drinks or coffee.
• Create engagement from the audience.
• Security, emergency exit.
• Provide merchandise and gift hampers to the attendees.
• Ensure breakout rooms, restrooms.
• Provide online support for attendees.
• Manage the event according to the schedule.

Post-event checklist:

• Gather the attendees’ feedback.
• Send thank-you mail.
• Offer lifetime support in the case of workshops.
• Share the photos, videos and behind-the-scenes videos on social media platforms.
• Share audience reviews and opinions online.

Conclusion

If you are new to business event planning, a detailed guide on how to plan business events surely helps. Follow the checklist one by one. Undoubtedly, the event will be an extraordinary one! No matter the event size, the basics are all the same if you follow the steps accordingly.

With insights from Rent2way, this guide provides expert-backed strategies to ensure a well-organized and successful event.