There is nothing more efficient in the corporate events world than to plan holiday parties in NYC ahead of time. How much time you ask? Start during the summer! That may seem a bit ambitious but planning corporate holiday parties way ahead of time will ensure that you’ve crossed all your t’s and dotted all your i’s in time to deliver an immaculate winter production. Let’s get you squared away with a list of to dos.
Corporate Events: Holiday Party To-Do List
Decisions, decisions. You must first choose the type of party you’ll be throwing. Is it going to be company-wide? Casual? Extravagant? Will the employees be allowed a plus one? Will clients be invited too? Having the answers to these questions will help you visualize the size of the event, which will in turn help you choose other items like the budget, venue, entertainment, etc.
Form a budget. This may already be established by the client, so be sure it’s among your first questions when starting the corporate events planning process.
Make a guest list. Another item that should be decided during the first phase of your corporate events planning process.
Set the date. Here is the foremost reason for New York Event Planners to start planning holiday parties as early as possible. Those red-hot party dates are tough to solidify with venues and caterers. Work with your caterers and/or venue to select an available date and time. If the desired Fridays or Saturdays are already taken, try hosting the company’s holiday party on a Thursday night instead.
Select a venue. This must be done in harmony with the previous step. Especially because available dates will be hard to come by except if you’re hosting at the boss’s house or at the office.
Choose a caterer. Again, this must be done ASAP to safeguard that the top available caterers have sufficient availability, ingredients, and the suitable staff to make sure your holiday party is a victory.
Choose your host or speaker. Look within the company first. If no one is available or interested, ask around and consider asking a someone who is admired by the staff. This could be a former employee who was loved by all or an industry influencer. Industry influencers can come in handy when it comes to posting announcements regarding the holiday party online. It will create an excitement which leads to a better turnout.
Pick a theme. Now, here is where the fun comes in when planning corporate events! Come up with a theme, such as Winter Wonderland, White Christmas, Gothic Holiday, or Candy Land. The theme will provide the groundwork for the remainder of the creative planning process.
Strategize your entertainment. What works well with your holiday theme? If you’re thinking about a live band or DJ, it’s great that you started the planning process during the summer. Why? You will have a greater chance of booking the top entertainers. Another great idea for solidifying a band, is asking the client or their staff to see if anyone is in a band outside of work. Having people that the entire staff is familiar with may make for great (and inexpensive) entertainment. It will keep the corporate holiday party feeling friendly and fun! Another idea that’s great for corporate events during the holiday season is to ask a local children’s choir to perform. If you can’t find one available, try a community group that may be used to performing for local events. Besides planning an act for corporate events, it’s important that you also plan for smaller interactive activities, which is also one of the most popular corporate events trends right now.
For more on corporate holiday parties, be sure to visit our blog often to catch our articles on holiday trends!
