Resources – June Update

June 29, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Here at Ministry Serving Ministry, we are constantly on the lookout for content we believe may be helpful to our readers.  Here is what we’ve added in June by category to our resources.

Marketing/Promotion

Understanding Generational Differences – The Key to Attracting, Motivating and Retaining Your Workforce…

Planning a Women’s Retreat and Can’t Think of a Theme? -  There are dozens and dozens to choose from right here…

Site Selection

Safety First – Safety and security planning has long been a hot topic in the meetings and convention industry…

Retreats/Meetings

The Great Shift – Meetings, no matter at what level, have a major influence on government, business and organizations…

Teambuilding:  Its Important Role in Stressful Times – When I mention I’m passionate about teambuilding the eyes roll, or look away…

Meeting Planners

Principles of Professionalism – meetings management and meeting professionals under a microscope…

I hope you find these helpful and remember we have many more than might interest you  in the Meeting Planner Resources section of the blog.

Filed Under: Christian Retreat Ideas, Contracts, Leadership Helps, Marketing and Promotion, Pre-Event Planning, Teambuilding Tagged With: , , , ,

Are You Considering The 2 “Why’s” When Planning Your Event?

June 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I hope you’ve been keeping up with our series on the Who, What, Where, When, and Why of planning an event. Today’s post, “Why”, is the 5th and final question in the series. Are you ready?

There are two giant questions in this post which may seem very similar, but are, in fact, quite different.

1.  Why are you having this meeting/retreat/event? Is it to feel closer to God?  Is it a staff retreat with 30 of your coworkers? Is it to learn a specific skill, trait, or idea? Is it an annual conference? Or is it because you were able to book a big-time speaker and are focusing the whole event around them?

Whatever the reason, you will need to consider it throughout the other four key elements of organizing this event. If you want to have a small event where everyone gets close to one another, you won’t want to invite everyone on the Internet and rent a giant lecture hall. If you’re focusing on one key subject like writing or painting?  You must make sure to advertise to people who are interested in the topic. Keep your central theme in mind throughout the whole planning process so you don’t lose focus on what’s really important.

2.  Why are your attendees coming to this event? To learn? To grow? They have to? Whatever the reasons are, it’s critical this issue be addressed throughout the planning process. Once you determine why you’re having the event, you need to think of why your potential attendees would sign up and actually show up. Make it worth their while. Whatever your theme may be, make sure your attendees will leave the conference with a greater knowledge about the topic. Making your attendees happy should be your number one goal, so keep that on your mind at all times!

In my opinion, I think you should know who is speaking, what the conference is about, and why you’re really having this event before you start figuring out where and when. That way, you know exactly how you want the event to be, which will help you find the perfect place to hold the conference. Oh, and remember to be a little bit flexible on everything, because something always happens differently than you originally planned.

I hope this series has been helpful to you and let us know if you’d like to see a series on any other topics, we’re here to serve.

Filed Under: Pre-Event Planning Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

4 Things You Should Be Doing During Your Event

June 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

We have spent a great deal of time on this blog talking about critical tasks such as budgeting, planning and marketing your event. Hopefully you have found those posts to be helpful! But, what do you do during your event?

Chances are you will spend weeks, if not months, planning your event. Once the big day arrives and your event begins, you can kick back and take it easy…right? WRONG! Your job as the event planner is to make sure everything runs smoothly as planned…or as close to the plan as possible. This is easier said than done, but here are 4 things you can do during your event to help make sure this happens:

  • Always carry a copy of the schedule - You and your team put a lot of work into the schedule. What speakers are presenting, what breakouts/activities you’re offering and when, which meals are at what times, etc. Every person at the event should have one of these schedules and, while it may not run exactly on time, it’s your job to ensure the whole show runs smoothly and as close to on time as possible.
  • Always have a backup plan - Everyone assumes that some speakers or activities will run longer than expected, but please don’t forget that some may fall short. I once saw a speaker get off stage with an hour left in his time slot. What did the event planner do? He had an impromptu Q&A panel that went on without a hitch. Having backups is important at events because, no matter how rigorously you plan, thing can still go awry.
  •  Continually and clearly express your main message - What is the main theme or message you want to get across during your meeting? Think about why you’re having the conference and what it is about, and use those clues to write up a statement about your main message. If it’s a simple one like, “I want everyone to learn team building strategies,” that should be easy to convey. But if you have a more specific message, pay attention to ensure that it’s clear and precise, and expressed just enough that it sticks in your attendees’ brains.
  • Constantly evaluate - To determine if your event was a success or not, you must first define what success means to you. It could mean that everyone had fun, everyone learned the main message, or simply that most people showed up and everyone stayed until the end. However, don’t just wait until after the event to evaluate how things went. Try to constantly evaluate during the event (attendees’ body language and actions, as well as talking with guests) to get a great overall view of your project in motion.

As a planner, what are some other things you focus on during your event?

Filed Under: Christian Retreat Ideas, Leadership Helps Tagged With: , , , , , ,

3 Design Tips For The Perfect Meeting Space

June 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When you’re having a meeting or event, it’s important that the set up, atmosphere, and design of the conference room caters to the needs of the attendees. I don’t mean give everyone comfy chairs and pillows, but it’s critical to have a good room flow, and a “vibe” that will spike the attention of the guests. It’s one thing to have interesting and thought-provoking speakers and activities, but it’s also extremely important to have a room in which your attendees can learn and accomplish tasks. Here are three important ideas to think about when creating your conference room!

  1. Color Psychology:  Colors have been thought to have specific affects on our brains and make people react and feel certain ways, according to this article. For example, hints of blue promote productivity, red is inspiring, and yellow is motivating. Add a small burst of color by having colored chair backs, matching notebooks and pens, and interesting (but not too eye-catching) additions. Since color is the first thing people see, add it somewhere you want your guests’ eyes to be drawn to! (Here’s a tip: Having too much color and/or too many different colors might distract your guests, so keep it clean but fun when adding color.)
  2. Seating Arrangement:  The arrangement of tables and chairs is another way to change the vibe of your event, and even change the way people learn. If you’re having a large meeting, you could choose styles ranging from theater style that accommodates the most people, and modified chevron style, which promotes attendee involvement. A smaller meeting can have a typical board meeting or U-shape setup. This is a great website that explains these styles along with other different types of seating plans for conferences or meetings…and even has pictures.
  3. Decor:  Event décor can add some fun and excitement to a room. Adding the right amount of embellishments, like flowers, banners, pictures, Bibles, and even fruit baskets or funny hats will engage your attendees and let them know right off the bat what kind of event you’re having, so certainly have fun with it! When decorating remember the goal of your meeting, you don’t add too many decorations that could distract your guests if your goal is to focus.  Oh, and don’t forget to learn the conference center’s safety rules and regulations before decorating!

Have you tried out any other design tips that worked for you?

Filed Under: Food and Beverage, Meeting Set-Up Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Deciding “Where” To Have My Event Is Easy, Right?

June 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Today’s post is the 4th in a 5-part series on the 5 W’s of planning an event. Those 5 W’s are Who, What, When, Where and Why. Previous posts have addressed Who, What and When. (If you have not already, I would encourage you to go back and read each of them.) Now it’s time to take a look at what should go into determining “where” to have your event.

How many of you think choosing “where” to have your event is all fun and games? I mean, come on. Don’t meeting planners get to travel to great places and enjoy being pampered by hotels and CVB’s anxious to get their business? Well, yes, that is probably true for those planning large events, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

Whether you’re planning a conference for 2,000 or a retreat for 20, choosing where to have the event is serious business. You can do a great job with the who, what and when questions, but drop the ball on where to hold the event and you’ll run the very real risk of watching all those efforts go spinning down the drain. Definitely not something we want to see happen!

When planning where, the first thing you must decide is whether to hold the event on-site at your church or ministry, or take the event off-site to a Christian conference/retreat center, hotel or convention center. While I would always recommend holding your event off-site, there are advantages and disadvantages to both options. It really comes down to the type of event it is and what it is you hope to accomplish.

I’m sure you’ve all heard it said the 3 most important words in real estate are location, location, location. What works for real estate also works for events. Once you’ve determined to take your event off-site, choosing the location/venue is the next step in the “where” process. It’s critical you select a location and venue that fits your group and their needs. Here are some sample questions you should consider when deciding where to hold your event:

  • How far from home are people willing to travel for this event?
  • Where will my attendees be coming from?
  • Will the majority of attendees be driving or flying?
  • What levels of service do my attendees expect?
  • How much can my attendees afford to pay?
  • Where was the event last year and how did that impact attendance?

Choosing where to have your event should not be taken lightly. Take the time to select a location and venue that best fits your group’s needs, pocketbook and objectives. I promise you won’t be sorry!

What has worked best for you in the past?

 

Filed Under: Pre-Event Planning, Site Selection Tagged With: , , , , ,

5 Ways to Save Money When Planning Your Next Conference

June 18, 2012 By 1 Comment

When planning an event, what do you consider the most important aspects? Having fun? Learning? Growing? Okay, all true, but what’s another significant part? How about saving money and staying within your budget?

Chances are if it’s not you, then someone else in your organization sees saving money and hitting your event budget as pretty important. Therefore it’s something you should probably spend some time focusing on. To help, here are 5 things you can do to save a little cash:

  1. Plan early. Actually, plan earlier than you think you should. Not only is it usually easier to get better deals when you plan early, it’s also easier to get what you want, when you want. If you leave it all to the last minute, you run the very real risk that everything might already be booked and/or more expensive. Think ahead.
  2. Be flexible. If your dates and times are flexible, it will be much easier to save money. The venue you’re booking might be cheaper during the week than on the weekends, or if you check-in on a Sunday night, or if you book for four days instead of three, etc. Don’t be afraid to ask the hotel or conference center for their best deals throughout the year and inquire about their least expensive times of year when booking. If you’re wanting to hold your event during high demand times be prepared to pay top dollar. Flexibility to take a lower demand date will definitely help you to save money.
  3. Do your research. It is usually easier to save money if you explore multiple options instead of just booking the first one you find. Submit RFP’s (requests for proposals) to multiple hotels/conference centers, entertainment companies, catering companies, etc and then compare to see who has what you want at the price you’re looking to spend.
  4. Use connections. If you have a friend in the DJ business, see if he or she can hook you up with a deal, instead of hiring a stranger. This concept goes for anything from caterers to party planning companies to audio/visual equipment vendors to, again, venues. Friends, friends of friends, and old business associates are much more likely to charge you a fair rate, or even give you a discount. Don’t be afraid to ask.
  5. Focus on the budget. Really look at your budget at all times. Once you create your event’s expense budget, try everything possible not to spend money on something you did not budget for. This will, to no surprise, help you stay within your (probably tight) budget.

What other money saving tips have you found to be helpful? Let us know by commenting below!

Filed Under: Budget and Pricing, Cost Saving Ideas, Pre-Event Planning, Site Selection Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
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