There are always those normal - "did I forget" questions we go through in our daily lives. Keys? Check. Wallet? Check. Lock the door? Check. However, it's not always that easy when planning a corporate event or meeting. There is always a plethora of details that come up, seemingly out of nowhere!

In order to pull off a successful business meeting or event, we like to look at 5 areas that will help you organize and ensure a great outcome for all the attendees.

1. What is the goal? Like in business, an event has to have a goal, or objective. Are you planning a corporate meeting to review performance or roll out new products? Or is it more HR related to highlight company values or celebrate a year of success? Whatever the goal is, be sure to identify it so that all decisions are supportive.
2. Who are the attendees? Sometimes this is the easiest to miss because many times we think, well - the employees or customers are attending. However, in order to really plan a successful event, narrowing down the focus to the types of attendees can mean a "yay" or a "nay" from folks. Consider whether you are hosting the Board of Directors or executive level employees or new hires getting introduced to the company culture. Both paths can be very different depending on the event goal. Define each group and you're sure to plan things accordingly.
3. Where will your event take place? Looking at the first two points, if your event will have break out sessions because you will be planning new product launches, your event space may need to have the ability to be broken down or support multiple small groups during the day. If you're celebrating a year of success, perhaps a stage or special lighting is needed for the fun. Thinking through the event and it's objectives will help you nail this point.
4. How will you market the event? Knowing how to communicate about the event from invitations and reminders to name badges and signage - is a critical component of a successful event. Walking through like an attendee so that you can see what will be needed and when will make your event stand out from the rest. The devil really is in the details.
5. Pick an event coordinator who will manage the check lists and the action plan so that others can assist with specific tasks, like kitting all of the welcome boxes,printing the name badges and knowing that all the speakers have arrived and are ready to go. The check list and the person that manages it are such a life saver.

Share your favorite event photos with us - we love to stay up to date on who's doing what. And thanks for reading!

John