The main event

If you are thinking about running an event for your firm, there are a lot of things to take into account. Start by setting your goals and knowing your audience; the rest comes down to good planning and organisation on the day / night. Here are my top tips for running a successful event.

Plan

Before you get started, ask yourself: why do you want to run the event and what is the desired outcome? Do you want to promote the firm, share details of a report or some recent work, or highlight something you’ve achieved with another organisation? Perhaps you would like to use the event to build a network, such as for young lawyers. Who is your audience? Are there enough of them to make an event worthwhile? Do you want your event to be open to all, or invite-only?

Now look at your budget. Costs, from big ones like venue hire to smaller ones like canapes, can soon mount up. A good budget should anticipate your expenditure and income / sponsorship (if applicable), and allow for unexpected costs that may occur. It would be a shame to have to turn people away because you can’t afford the cost of their attendance.

Joint events

You may want to consider running your event with another organisation; this can make the potential audience much wider, plus you may be able to share the costs. If you do this, make sure that everyone’s roles are clear, to prevent duplication of work and make the event more cohesive. Think about how the event is being promoted and what topics are covered by specific speakers, and agree this in advance.

Venue and catering

These can be your biggest costs, but there are ways to save money. Could you host the event in-house? Could you source a free venue locally? If so, make sure that it meets your requirements, or it is a false economy. Can it comfortably accommodate the number of guests you’d like to attend?

If you are paying for a venue, explore potential additional costs. For instance, if you need audio-visual equipment, is this included? Does the venue require a minimum number of attendees? If there is a high minimum number, you might end up paying for delegates that aren’t there. If you are having a drinks reception, consider paying for drinks based on consumption – it can be cheaper than a fixed drinks package.

Marketing

You can plan the best event in the world, but if you don’t market it properly – and in good time before the event – then there’s a good chance people won’t know to attend.

The event title shouldn’t be too long, but it should still highlight the theme of the event. If necessary, use subheadings to further explain things. Ensure your descriptive text is clear and aimed at the target audience. Provide an overview of the event, who should attend and why. Also, make sure you manage expectations and don’t over-promise and under-deliver – delegates will remember that for any future events you may run. Make sure the text is proofed and that your branding is correct.

Emails are a good way of marketing your event, and so is social media, but it’s also very easy to get wrong. For instance, time your tweets for when your audience are likely to be looking at their phones or computers: lunchtime and the commute to and from work.

Drop-outs

You will get drop-outs on the day, particularly for free events. This is not a reflection on you or your event, but a fact of life. It therefore makes sense to overbook slightly to allow for drop-outs. Send clear joining instructions before the event, so attendees know where they are going and when to arrive.

On the day

It can be tempting to put lots of information and images on a slide, but it’s best to keep text and images to a minimum, and just use the slides to highlight your keys points. You want the delegates to be focusing on what you are talking about, not trying to read all the text on a slide.

It sounds obvious, but you can’t do everything yourself on the night. Enlist a team of helpers who are properly briefed. Have people on hand to welcome delegates and direct them to the correct room, and also welcome speakers. It is important that staff have a professional appearance, a ‘can-do’ attitude and an ability to think on their feet.

Running an event can be stressful, but remember to enjoy yourself. Have contingencies in place, and if something goes wrong, remain calm – your guests may never notice, unless you look stressed.

As your event is drawing to a close, thank your speakers and helpers, and promote any future events to your audience. If you want to conduct a feedback survey, distribute these either at the event, or the following day.