Las Vegas welcomes 32 million visitors each year. That is a lot of people in a 136-square-mile radius. In order to have the best success scheduling corporate events in Las Vegas, it is important to be proactive with planning since the city fills up pretty quickly.
Despite what Las Vegas is notoriously famed for, bachelorette parties and weekend getaways, it makes a great city for your next corporate event venue. In order to plan a thrilling event, make sure to avoid the eight common corporate event planning mistakes below.
1. Going Over the Budget
Set your budget before you start planning your corporate event. A corporate event budget is absolutely necessary as it will be the guiding force behind all major decisions. The problem occurs when event managers avoid or are completely unaware of the budget for an event.
This can set back a company and put an event manager at risk for job penalties. It is so easy to want the fanciest venue, the best speaker, and the most gourmet food. To ensure you create the best experience possible, know your total budget and allocate your resources in order of priority.
This might be the venue, the speakers, the staff, the food, and lastly, the decor.
2. Not Prioritizing Event Food and Drinks
A party without food isn’t a party at all. Vegas is a foodie cornucopia, as it is ranked the sixth-best foodie city.
Vegas is famous for seafood, grilled meats, and desserts. There are so many caterers to choose from. Some event venues will be all-inclusive and provide different menus for you to select from.
Make sure to have an abundance of amuse bouche, beverages, and something sweet to tie everything together. Depending on the style of your event, it might make sense to do passed appetizers and then a sit-down meal.
Whatever you’re serving, just make sure not to leave guests hungry.
3. Being Late to Find the Venue
Vegas is a busy city. It’s a hub for corporate events, tourism, concerts, festivals, and conferences. Because this city’s foot traffic is so high, venue spaces are reserved very quickly.
Proactively pick a venue and make sure to book it at least four months before your event. Have a list of two or three backup venues in case your top choice is booked.
Booking the venue late is one of the worst corporate event planning mistakes. Doing so makes it impossible to send out invites and help guests save the date.
4. Not Having a Defined Goal for the Event
Throwing an event just because you feel like celebrating isn’t enough. Corporate events are time-consuming to plan, but if done right you and your invitees will come out of them with a renewed sense of purpose and camaraderie.
You define the goal of your event. Some ideas for corporate event goals are:
- A party celebrating the launch of a new product
- Celebrating a company merger
- Annual conference on new technologies relevant to the industry
- Event to highlight top-performing employees
- Investment in employee development and retreat
The options are endless with corporate event goals. Select a goal and build the event theme around it.
5. Your Agenda Is Underwhelming
In addition to having a clear goal for your corporate event, it is important to have an engaging agenda. Too few experiences will leave attendees bored and underwhelmed. Too many experiences will make it impossible for employees to choose what to attend in addition to making it more difficult for you to organize.
The sweet spot is to have one keynote session or main group session. Then build three to five breakout sessions around the event and make sure to include one to two short breaks in addition to a long lunch or dinner break.
6. Understaffed Event
Don’t be one of those corporate event planners who try to cut corners by skimping on staffing. The event staff is the brains of your event operation. Having enough staff will ensure your attendees have a safe and seamless experience.
The amount of staff you need directly corresponds to the size of your venue and attendee list.
Make sure to have staff to help with check-in to avoid long lines and frustration off the bat. Also make sure to have ample staff for serving, cleanup, and tech.
Staff members are usually more familiar with the event venue and can troubleshoot any complications quickly.
7. Failing to Do an Event Rehearsal
Another step you don’t want to skip is a test run. This can be completed a few days before the actual event. There are various factors you’ll need to test.
The glaringly obvious one is the event technology. Make sure all microphones, projectors, computers, audio, and lights are functioning as they should be. Preset these so when the day comes, you and the staff won’t need to adjust anything.
If there is any sort of performance or ceremony during the event, complete a rehearsal so anyone who will be on stage knows how to enter, perform and exit without complications.
8. Bad Timing
Whether your corporate event is required or optional, it is vital to consider the timing of your event. Do some research beforehand on what is going on in Las Vegas during your preferred event date.
Also, consider if there are any other important conferences or events happening in your industry during the date of your event. Some times of the year that are generally poor timing for corporate events include:
- The holiday season
- New year
- May and June graduation times
- September/back to school
When planning your corporate event try to be considerate of employees and the industry to optimize the timing and maximize attendance.
Create a Corporate Event Checklist and Avoid These Eight Corporate Event Planning Mistakes
Avoid the eight common corporate event panning mistakes by creating an event checklist with target dates. This will help you prioritize tasks and hold yourself accountable for their completion.
Minus5 ice bar in Las Vegas makes a great hangout for your next corporate event or event afterparty. Make sure to contact us and inquire about private events!