It’s called event planning for a reason – having a detailed plan in place when preparing for an event is the key to ensuring its success. The first step in the planning process should always be clarifying your goals and objectives for hosting the event. Knowing why you’re hosting your NYC corporate event, what you hope to accomplish, and how to do it will make all the other steps - like arranging venue, food and guests - much easier to do. Here are some things to keep in mind when planning your event’s goals and objectives.
Identify the Goal
The first thing you should ask before you start planning any event is why it’s being held in the first place. What do you or your client hope to achieve with the event? Some reasons could include educating attendees about new trends or technology, unveiling a new product, celebrating a milestone, and more. Once you’ve identified what your goal is, then you can start thinking about what you need to do to accomplish it. Make sure to share your goal with everyone on your planning team so everyone is working together towards the same end.
Develop Your Strategy
Once you’ve crystallized your objective for the event, don’t start calling vendors just yet. Brainstorm some ideas with your planning team and develop a detailed strategy for how you plan to accomplish your event goals. We recommend using the SMART tools to strategize your plans: for each task you need to accomplish, ensure that your plan is Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant and Timely. This can help you in all aspects of event planning, from budgeting to venue mapping.
Communicate Your Objectives
In order to make sure your goals are accomplished, you need to communicate them with everyone involved in the event. This includes your planning team of course, who should be working with you to turn those goals into reality, such as planning a New York City event that generates excitementfor your guests. It also includes all of your vendors, suppliers, and event staff. Their jobs may seem straightforward, but if they aren’t aware of your objectives for the event, they may be unintentionally working in a way that doesn’t serve those objectives. Finally, don’t forget to communicate your event goals with the guests themselves. This might include a sentence in the invitations that explains the purpose of the event, or asking guests for feedback after the event to find out if you accomplished what you set out to do.
Be Adaptable
The best planning can’t prevent last-minute problems, so it’s important to be adaptable during the planning process. Keeping your goals as the primary focus, have more than one plan in place that can help you achieve them. Changes can happen unexpectedly, from a reduced budget to suppliers cancelling at the last minute. Have back-up plans in place and be prepared to think quickly so that your event objectives always remain your first priority.
To sum up, the best way to plan your event goals and objectives is to keep three words in mind – Why, What and How. Why are you holding this event? What do you hope to accomplish with the event? And how do you intend to accomplish the goals that you’ve set? By keeping these questions in mind and remembering our tips, you’ll be able to plan an event with a clear focus and goals that are achievable. If you’re planning an event in New York City, the team at Tribeca Rooftop NYC would be happy to help you turn your event goals into reality. Contact us today to speak to a member of our planning team.