by Sandy Cosser

People are essentially lazy. Care to differ? Its true, we would rather pay to have someone else do something for us than have to do the work ourselves. Especially if the task is something that we don't really like and that involves actual activity. For some it could be housework, for some it could be keeping up to date with their accounts, for others it could be organising an event, for many it is all three.

Let us take a look at organising an event. What kind of event should it be? It should be something that would best serve your company and your company's needs and show your company off to its best advantage. You need to decide whom you are trying to reach, if you are angling to expand your client base, improve client relations, or improve staff morale. You need to decide on the best way to achieve your goal e.g. a corporate hospitality event, a conference, a multi-activity day, team building, sales incentives, a company fun day, a themed event or party etc.

That was the easy part, now the hard work begins. You have to decide on a guest list, who to invite and not invite without offending people. You have to decide on a date. Remember to give yourself enough time to organise the event. That may sound like dumb advice, it is not. Do you have any idea how many people leave things to the last minute and end up doing it all in a rush, sending fervent prayers to their deity of choice that it'll all come right in the end? It inevitably looks rushed and unprofessional and leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth. It's unforgettable for all the wrong reasons. You don't want that. Pick a venue, have a back up and another back up after that in case both of your top choices are not available for your chosen date. Either that or have back up dates. You need to establish a relationship with the person in charge at the venue, a good one. Always be friendly and courteous and you might find that they might go that extra mile for you. If the venue provides catering and décor services, brilliant, if not, you still have a long way to go. You will need to find out if any of your guests have special dietary requirements and take those into account. Don't forget audio-visual equipment and band hire if you're going the live music route. Keep track of all the invitees who have responded and said that they will be coming and those who have declined and those who have not replied at all, you will have to follow those up. So far the volume of phone calls and admin involved is enormous and we haven't even covered everything.

Wouldn't life be so much easier if you could get someone to take care of all that nonsense for you?

Of course it would and of course you can. Event organisers are a godsend among businesses and companies for whom events and shmoozing are vital. Events form part of their marketing campaigns and help to heighten their company profiles among their business peers and the public. In this scenario all you have to do is come up with the invitation list. The event organisers do the rest. They figure out what kind of event best suits your needs. They send out the invitations. They keep track of those attending and those who are not and do follow-ups. They find a venue and arrange the catering and décor, lighting, music, entertainment etc. They make sure that there is enough parking, that there is a cash or credit bar depending on your requirements. They have a manager overseeing the event, to make sure that everything goes smoothly on the night.

They do all the hard work and they do it professionally so that everything looks stunning and it all reflects well on your company. You get to arrive in whatever attire is appropriate for the event, sit back and reap the rewards of a job well done.

You may think that paying for someone to organise an event for you is a waste of money, that you are capable of doing it yourself. But consider what it costs you in terms of your time. Not to mention frustration. While you could be getting on with your real work you're stuck organising the event and while things are going wrong and there are setbacks, you are getting further and further behind in the work that you need to be doing. That costs the company money. You may not know the best places to go for the best prices, because you may not know the best prices you may not know that you have to negotiate in some situations. All this costs your company money. And then there is the stress and frustration. What is it all worth? An event organiser perhaps?

In all aspects of business we try our best to be as professional as possible, to present the best possible impression to the public. Why should our events be any different? It's just a matter of recognising that in order to be as professional as possible we should hire the professionals. Leave the experts to do an expert job, event organisers were invented for a reason, use them.

About the Author

Sandra wrote this article for the online marketers RBA Events corporate event organisers one of the biggest corporate event organisers in the UK