Corporate events in the UK currently generate £20 billion each year, and this is expected to rise to £27.6 billion by 2026.
With so much money to be made, how can you make the most of your event?
Through planning every detail, from selecting a theme that resonates to tactics for keeping your audience engaged.
Easier said than done? Maybe. But you can set yourself up for success with comprehensive planning and a great event strategy.
At Eventbrite, we’ve got the industry-leading ticketing and marketing solution for corporate events, and we’re here to share how event organisers have used our tools to sell more tickets and host truly memorable events.
In this complete guide, we’ll share innovative, industry-leading strategies from real event organisers that will make your professional events cut through the noise.
Plan your professional event
Find what makes your event special
Pair sponsors with unique branding opportunities
Find what makes your event special
In the dynamic world of events, creating a distinctive and memorable event is paramount. Leveraging the same framework for building a unique event brand, you’ll have a secret weapon to stand out without necessarily doubling your budget or hiring celebrity keynote speakers.
Let’s dive into the four principles our community of event organisers has used to make their events stand out.
Authenticity
70% of consumers spend more with brands they perceive to be authentic. Similarly, professionals want to go to events that seem authentically interested in delivering a quality experience.
There are a few ways to communicate your authenticity. One is to include top leaders in an event, such as a roundtable discussion. Having key partners present and actively engaged in discussions attests to the event organiser’s commitment to their values and genuine interest in understanding their community.
Unique content
It’s great to make your event stand out by providing something others usually lack. Finding that little something extra to add to your event can make all the difference. For example, you can find high-quality sponsors that give attendees new information or offer prize giveaways to encourage attendance for the full length of the event.
Meaningful experiences
If you can’t offer a truly unique experience, you can make yours deeper and more meaningful than others. Out in Tech London does this by facilitating networking events for the LGBTQ+ community working in tech. This allows them to attract a crowd of like-minded professionals.
Consistency
You can ensure your event stands out by building a reputation for quality through consistency. Focus on service quality and delivering a great experience at all of your events.
For example, Matthew Maran Photography hosts helpful workshops for beginners and professionals to develop their camera skills. With more than 150 workshops under their belt, you can bet they’ve developed an excellent curriculum that you can trust.
Manage your event budget
Managing your event budget well is a key part of planning any event, but it’s especially important if your audience is full of professionals who have high expectations. To make your event a success, you need to be aware of where your money is going and make sure it’s being spent wisely.
In order to do that, you’ll need to prioritise very carefully. Consider which elements of your event are most important, focus your spending on those, and then see where you can trim the fat.
For an event like a craft workshop, it’s especially important to have plenty of the necessary materials and a great instructor with solid experience. But you don’t need to rent an elaborate venue, and while refreshments are nice, they’re not necessary for a successful event of this type.
On the other hand, events like the networking meetups run by Affiverse depend more on marketing. That’s because the real value of a networking event is in who else attends. By investing in branding and marketing, they’re able to differentiate themselves and give their attendees more value.
Finally, virtual events come with their own budget challenges. While you won’t need to deal with venue costs, you’ll want to equip yourself with the right virtual events platform and equipment. For organisers like GlobalSaké, all of their events depend on their ability to livestream high-quality video content. That’s why their virtual events budget certainly includes costs for the right equipment and a quality internet connection.
Overall, different types of events will require different event budget management strategies. It’s important to know what you need and plan ahead so that you can deliver a great experience for your attendees. Furthermore, you need to keep track of all expenses and budgets in order to accurately budget for your next event.
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Pick a standout event venue
When you’re planning an event for professionals, your venue matters. It speaks to your brand, your level of professionalism, and what kinds of attendees you expect to attract. That’s why it’s so important to put a lot of consideration into choosing a standout venue that fits your event and its goals.
Check the amenities
Of course, it’s essential to consider the facilities of your chosen location. You need to look at these through the lens of your specific event needs. Does it have enough space for everyone? Is there a stage, or will you need to rent one? Are there tables and chairs, or will you need to find a supplier? Does the venue have any AV equipment that you can use? These are all important questions to answer before booking a venue.
When the Streetz Artz Alliance organises their events involving dozens of booths with small businesses, it needs to be sure its venue has the facilities to support each of those vendors. That means water, electrical access, and the physical space for the vendors to set up shop and for attendees to move around comfortably.
Matching your audience’s vibe
When selecting a venue, think about who your event is for. Are they more laid back or corporate? Will it be an intimate gathering or a large audience? The answers to these questions will help you narrow down your venue options.
For example, Honeycomb Credit wants local small business owners to come to their meetups. For that reason, they host the events at local small businesses like breweries that may have connections to the community they’re looking to connect with. By showing their support for local businesses, attendees can tell Honeycomb is authentic and genuinely interested in local businesses’ well-being.
If you’re looking for a unique venue, consider local landmarks and hidden gems like parks, cafés, and art galleries. Think outside the box — perhaps a restaurant could serve as your event space during non-peak hours or a museum in the evening when it’s closed to the public. These kinds of venues can add an extra layer of character to any event.
Choose the right event tools
With the plethora of event tools available, choosing the right ones can greatly impact the efficiency of your event planning and the overall success of the event. Here are some of the most important features Eventbrite offers and how major event organisers use them to hit their goals.
Social media integration
By leveraging Eventbrite’s social media marketing tools, you can easily create social media ad campaigns. More than that, A/B testing and budget automation can help you get the most out of your advertising budget.
Social media targeting also lets you reach the people who would most enjoy your event. For example, London Sound Bath GONG completely sold out its event after utilising Eventbrite’s social media marketing tools.
User-friendliness
When Klaviyo wanted to increase attendance at their conference, they knew they’d need an easy-to-use event platform to streamline their processes and foster growth. By leveraging Eventbrite’s intuitive features, they were able to simplify the intricate aspects of event planning, from ticket sales to on-site check-ins, doubling their conference attendance within a year.
The cornerstone of their strategy was implementing a “Friendship Day” promotion, facilitated seamlessly through Eventbrite, allowing attendees to purchase a ticket and receive a second one free for a friend or colleague. This initiative not only resonated with their audience but also surged ticket sales by nearly 40%, a testament to the platform’s user-friendly interface for creating and managing promotions effectively.
Event discovery
Sip ‘N Stroke has become a viral sensation in London, celebrating five years of paint parties in the city. The success behind their expansive growth lies in their strategic event promotion, facilitated in large part through Eventbrite’s platform. After using Eventbrite’s marketing tools, the event now sees 32% of sales coming from Eventbrite channels.
The platform’s far-reaching discovery system was instrumental in enhancing the event’s visibility. This approach ensured a wider audience could find and attend the event.
Build a community
In order to ensure your event’s success, it’s important to make attendees feel like they’re a part of a cohesive community. Here are a few tips for engaging your audience and making sure they connect with each other and your events.
Speak their language — literally
Events like EforAll Merrimack Valley’s mixers provide amazing opportunities for people to connect with one another. They invite people from different backgrounds to get involved in the event planning process and even provide materials in multiple languages to ensure everyone has the information they need.
This approach creates a sense of belonging for each attendee and encourages them to come and be themselves. It also ensures that everyone feels welcome and appreciated.
Connect over common interests
Provide a few different activities or attractions at your event that’ll interest attendees. Not everyone is going to find the same things engaging, but by setting up a variety of attractions, you can be sure that attendees will start a conversation around one of them.
Include industry influencers
Who better to remind people about what unites them than the most influential people in their industry? By inviting industry influencers, you can get people excited about meeting others at their events.
For example, Worlds Influencers lived up to their name and brought industry influencers to their HR Business Summit. That gave attendees a rich and diverse learning experience, creating an environment where like-minded professionals could network, stay abreast of the latest trends, and take away valuable insights.
Create a marketing plan
A marketing plan is a comprehensive document outlining your marketing objectives, strategies, and tactics. It provides a roadmap to achieve specific event goals through carefully crafted marketing efforts. For events, a marketing plan is crucial as it helps to attract the right audience, improve attendee engagement, and ultimately, ensure event success.
Master social media
Marketing to professionals requires a blend of traditional strategies and innovative approaches. Consider leveraging social media platforms like LinkedIn for targeted, professional networking and advertising. Webinars and podcasts can serve as unique platforms for promoting your event, allowing you to reach the professionals you’re looking for.
If you can, take advantage of professional networks by encouraging people to post about your event on social media. If you use a selfie wall or even just an illuminated area with writing, your attendees will be happy to advertise your event so even more people come to the next one!
Leverage content marketing
You can increase the visibility of your event by creating content that speaks to the interests of your target audience. For example, you can make useful tools and guides for the professionals you’d like to attract to your event.
Just make sure to include some language pointing to your event within the content, and make sure you target the right audience. This will help you reach out to more of the right people and increase the chances they’ll show up.
Partner with other organisations
Lastly, consider partnerships with influential industry professionals or companies. Co-hosting events or featuring well-known speakers can significantly increase your event’s appeal to professionals. These partnerships not only enhance your event’s credibility but also widen your reach within the industry, bolstering your marketing plan.
By putting together a comprehensive and well-thought-out marketing plan, you can increase the chances of success for your event. A marketing mix of online content, social media outreach, and partnerships will help you reach more professionals.
Pair sponsors with unique branding opportunities
A common mistake many event organisers make is looking at sponsors as mere ATMs. That’s too bad, because the right sponsors can become valuable partners that help elevate your event. In turn, that can raise the sponsors’ profiles, helping both sides of the exchange make a difference for attendees.
Have sponsors provide your event needs
If your event requires certain products, try to get them sponsored! That turns your event into a de facto product demo for the sponsors, delivering a lot more value than just a name on a shirt. And if those products are related to your event’s theme, you can create a complete “package” that both boosts attendee engagement and benefits sponsors.
Teach sponsors’ products
Another great way to incorporate a sponsor is to do a workshop that teaches the attendees how to use a sponsor’s product. Not only will this benefit the sponsor by raising their profile, it also rewards attendees with a valuable learning experience.
Connect sponsors to their communities
You can also get sponsors that aren’t necessarily related to the event itself but that your target audience can connect with. That just means finding a great fit with your attendees and letting the sponsors know your event will actually be a great fit for them.
How to execute your corporate event plan
Executing a successful corporate event requires careful planning and strategic implementation. Whether it’s leveraging social media connections, creating a sense of community, developing a comprehensive marketing plan, or pairing sponsors with unique branding opportunities, each aspect plays a crucial role in your event’s success.
At the heart of all these strategies lies the need for an efficient event platform, and Eventbrite has proven to be a versatile and user-friendly choice for event organisers across various industries.
Your event can be a phenomenal success with the right planning, execution, and tools. Start your journey today with Eventbrite and unlock a world of possibilities for your next event.
