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How to turn your conference into a gala dinner

Posted on 31 Agosto 201618 Luglio 2017 by Fedra

More and more conferences are concluding with a styled gala dinner.

There are three main reasons driving this trend – an entertaining gala dinner is a great way to reward your attendees after a long information heavy conference; gala dinners encourage networking; the savvy event planner can minimize costs when ‘bundling’ the two events.

When planning two back-to-back events, the key to a successful experience is a smooth transition between the two. With so many elements coming together and you’re racing against the clock, this can seem somewhat overwhelming. Our event experts share some insightful tips to help the savvy event planner knock their event out of the park:

1. Use a second room within the venue

Choosing the right venue is one of the most important decisions in planning your conference. To successfully include a gala dinner as part of your conference, a venue with two rooms is ideal.

Booking two rooms in your venue will allow you to usher your guests to a second location for cocktails and networking. While your guests are enjoying cocktails your secondary team can redress the conference room in preparation for the gala dinner.

The key to a smooth transition is teamwork.

To make sure it goes without a hitch, you’ll need an experienced events team to ensure all the lighting, AV, sound and styling is in place. The room should be unrecognizable when your guests re-enter the room!

2. Offer a different kind of conference setting

Following a long day seated in a conference chair, your guests will welcome a change of scenery. Breaking from the monotony of what is expected at a typical conference will really wow event attendees.

Conferences can be rigid affairs, but a break from tradition and a little bit of flair changes all of that.

The most common seating transition is theatre to banquet round, but again it depends on what space you have to play with. Economical use of the venue space presents a number of possibilities for any enterprising event planner.

3. Add flair to your event with a hefty dose of style

It’s a no brainer. To transition from a conference to gala dinner your, event styling is your trump card.

Styling for a conference tends to be minimal with some simple yet sophisticated table centerpieces, draping and some branded props around the room. On the other hand, gala dinners are the holy grail for event stylists where literally you’re only limited by your imagination.

4. Keep the guests of your event entertained and engaged

Adding entertainment and inviting your guests to participate during your conference and gala dinner are great ways for any event planner to ensure that their’s is a memorable event.

Engage your guests with social media: Event Feed is an online platform which scans all social media platforms for a predetermined hashtag and then displays these posts on a screen so that guests have the chance to be featured during the conference and gala!

After a long, content rich day at the conference, your guests will welcome entertaining performances.

5. Create the right atmosphere and ambiance with AV and lighting effects

The right lighting features add another dimension to your event. Using roving gobos, pin spot lighting and dynamic colour changes are a great way to transition from a conference to a gala dinner.

During a conference, audio visual equipment is typically used to share slides and capture the audience’s attention. As you transition from a conference to a gala dinner, use the same audio visual equipment to create a dramatic impact. Using the projector and screen that were used for conference slides, project stylized images that match the theme of your gala for added effect.

6. Pre-set like a pro for a smooth transition from conference to gala dinner

Transitioning between a conference and a gala dinner doesn’t have to be an ordeal.

A great deal of pre-planning and pre-setting can make for a smooth transition from drab conference to exciting gala dinner. Timing plays a key part in transitioning between conference and gala dinner.

A well scheduled event will be one that goes off without a hitch.

For conference and gala dinners, pre-setting stage looks in two distinct layers is a good idea.

Employing the use of black drapery means that you will be able to hide a secondary stage for a gala dinner and transitioning from conference to gala dinner is as simple as pulling back a drape.

When it comes to planning a successful conference and gala dinner, the key is turnaround time and ensure that you have ample staff on hand to transition from conference to gala dinner in a timely manner.

Eco-minded Planning

Posted on 5 Agosto 201618 Luglio 2017 by Fedra

Sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are terms that continue to generate thought in the events industry. If you’re still not sure what those terms mean or how they impact the way you plan, here are the definitions:

Sustainability is a method of using a resource so that the resource is not depleted.

Corporate social responsibility is an organization’s sense of responsibility towards the community and environment. The hospitality industry might express this through their waste and pollution reduction processes, or contributing to educational and social programs.

How can you plan with greener practices in place? How can you work better with hoteliers and vendors to make sure they are using the best practices? Here are some ideas:

Interactive technologies like tablets, video walls, and kiosks allow you to communicate your messages electronically on a real-time basis, saving on both paper and printing.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle by offering recycling bins, and/or partnering with sustainable organizations that help keep materials out of landfills and allows them to be re-purposed instead. Let guests know of your efforts so they can participate—and feel good about doing it.

Transportation contributes to your carbon footprint, of course, so be conscious of that when considering your transportation options. To green up your transportation:

1. Understand the most efficient ways your guests can get to your hotel or destination. Promote those ways on your website for meetings when transportation is not being covered.
2. Utilize bus shuttle service instead of individual sedans to get groups to/from the airport versus.
3. If individual sedans are necessary, work with companies that offer hybrid or electric cars.
4. Consider destinations with a high ‘walkability’ score.
5. Encourage attendees to walk to local restaurants and attractions and/or share a cab when they have free time.

What are you doing to be eco-friendly?

Outdoor meetings: some practical considerations

Posted on 3 Agosto 201618 Luglio 2017 by Fedra

Outdoor meetings are the perfect opportunity to take participants out of their routine, stimulate brainstorming and foster out-of-the-box thinking.

But planning outdoor meetings is not exactly the same as planning outdoor events.While some of the same best practices apply, there are other considerations as participants will be outside longer, and they will need to focus and get work done despite some distractions.

Site Inspections

Sometimes, clients are tempted to skip site inspections to save money. If an outdoor meeting is on the horizon, site inspections are a must, not a nice-to-do. Audiovisual and lighting suppliers must also conduct site inspections.

Sensible Schedules

Some of the considerations for outdoor meetings include:

providing shade cover for hot periods of the day and cooling units if necessary
if shade cover is not possible, start early (e.g. 8 am) take a break at 11 am and resume the meeting at 3:00 in the sunbelt (e.g. Dubai, Oman, Singapore, the Caribbean)
if you must meet during hot times of the day at hot destinations, move the lunch and early afternoon portion of the meeting into a marquee or pop-up event venue
carving out some downtime for participants who will look forward to some R&R after spending time outdoors

Seating

Unlike strictly social or recreational corporate events, chairs for business meetings must have backs that provide good support and enough comfort for longer periods of seating. Portable tables with firm surfaces will be needed for work.

Mikes May be a Must

Even for small to medium groups, if participants are seated at more than one table, microphones and sound systems may be needed to counteract background noise. If some participants are soft spoken, it will be important to punch up the volume.

For small meetings, save on audiovisual costs by sending out the presentations in advance for participants to load on laptops and tablets.

Plan B: Always Have a Back-up Weather Plan

You will need a flexible agenda in the Caribbean and Mexico during rainy season (May and October). However, rain isn’t the only weather-related concern. In the Middle East, sandstorms are cause for concern in some destinations; in Canada and Europe, watch for unseasonable drops in temperature.

Set-up Fees

There will often be special set-up fees for outdoor meetings. It’s important to check what they are and determine if they will still apply if the event must be pulled indoors due to weather or other considerations. At some destinations, resorts are located on beaches that are government owned and a fee must be paid to hold an event or meeting on the beach. Sometimes, this has to be paid a week prior to the event and there are no refunds if the meeting is rained out.

Dress Codes: Brief Attendees on What to Wear

Opt for a casual dress code. Send out a packing list a few weeks in advance and a reminder before the event. Remind the group again during orientation. Despite reminders, I have seen participants show up without boots in areas where there has recently been rain, in sandals and high heels for horse riding, and without head coverings for meetings in the desert.

Be prepared. Pick up extra, sun hats, umbrellas and rain ponchos at a “dollar store.” $20 – $25 will cover it and it may make the difference between participant comfort and discomfort.

What are some other practical considerations for outdoor meetings?