While not every event is as large as the Super Bowl, it is a must to stay organized in order to host a successful social event. If you are in the middle of hosting a social event and are feeling overwhelmed, you are not alone. Event planning is challenging especially when you don't have experience and it is your first time. Keep reading to learn our top organizational tips.
Do Not Wait for the Last Minute
You want to start planning as early as possible especially if the event is pretty big. The bigger the event is the more months you need to plan every small detail from speakers to venue options to marketing. If the event is more than 500 people then you want to start planning at least four months ahead of time at the minimum. Smaller events still require at least one month in advance to plan.Choosing Your Venue
When you are choosing where to host your event you need to make a list of the following:- Location
- Parking
- Size
- Insurance
- Accessibility
- Acoustics
- Budget
When you are considering the location make a list of all the venues in the area so that you can list the cons and pros of each location. You want to make sure that the venue is close enough to the airport or train station if your plan is to attract attendees from out of town, or if you plan on having international attendees.
Also, take the parking situation into consideration and evaluate whether it can accommodate all the attendees you anticipate having. The size of the room or rooms in the venue is another factor to consider and add to your list.
Look at whether you need to purchase additional insurance for the venues you are considering. You also need to make sure that the venue will accommodate accessibility for those with special needs or in wheelchairs. Of course, the condition of the stage and the venue itself are also important and will contribute to the speaking sessions.
Event Team
Who you have in your corner is just as important to staying organized. You want to establish who your event team is and what each individual is responsible for. Take the time to figure out everyone’s strengths so that everyone has an even plate and no one feels overwhelmed.Some common roles include catering, marketing, venue management, volunteer or staff management, etc. During the organizational process, it is crucial to keep in mind that catering for large groups requires careful planning and strategic implementation. For an already overwhelmed social event planning host, juggling quantity, dietary restrictions, and taste preferences can become too much. Consequently, giving this task to a qualified caterer can greatly streamline your preparations. They can take care of a variety of small details, like sourcing ingredients, making meals, and serving a large crowd promptly, freeing you up to concentrate on the event's more crucial elements. The goal is for everyone to be accountable to help increase the chances of the event being successful and staying as organized as possible.
Marketing
You never want to leave the marketing for the last minute or leave it up in the air. This is something that you also want to be super organized with. Everything is doomed to fail even if you have the best speakers and entertainment lined up if no one knows about your event.Make sure that you launch campaigns telling people to save the date. This will help create the initial buzz that you need to let people know that there is an event happening.
In your marketing plan, you also need to have a plan for an early bird campaign where you can sell tickets early on and secure some cash flow. Another campaign you want to include when you are creating your marketing plan is a headline announcement where you announce the keynote speakers.
Branding
Something else that goes hand in hand with marketing is branding because you want your event to stand out from the rest. Organizing your branding will also make it easier for you to sell tickets and attract people to come to your event.Think about event names, logo designs, event themes, colors, etc. Staying organized with your branding is going to make a world of a difference when it comes to making your event successful. You also want to come up with a tagline that combines the end goals along with what the attendees can expect when they come to your event.
Time to Plan the Social Event of the Year
With our organizational tips above about hosting a social event, you can take everything you learned and put it into action. Now it is time to get everything in order and throw the best possible social event.Remember to keep your goals in mind because the better you understand the reason for your event the easier it will be to successfully see it come to fruition.
For even more event planning tips make sure you keep browsing this section for more guides.
.jpg)
.jpg)
