An event planner and a corporate event planner are not the same. You’ll rarely find a person who is good at organizing both weddings and corporate events.
In cases like these, a corporate event guide comes in handy. If you’re just beginning to learn the art of corporate event planning, you’ve landed at the right place.
This article outlines how you can start out and thrive in this field. But, let’s begin with the basics first.
A. What are corporate events?
These events are mainly organized for businesses, companies, and organizations. Corporate events usually have one of the following targets:
- Strengthening bonds with clients
- Giving employees their hard-earned rewards
- Launching new products and services
- Imparting training to employees and new joiners
- Provide opportunities for networking
- Showcasing company values in person
We’re sure that such goals for a corporate event must already give you ideas. There’s actually a large variety of events you could be organizing in your corporate event planning business. They all fall under the umbrella of corporate events.
Let’s find out what they are.
B. Types of corporate events
We will cover the ten major types. Do remember that they’re the most common ones. So, you can expect professional event planning outside this list too.
1. Team Building Corporate Events
These events aim at improving the communication and problem-solving skills among employees. By organizing these events, you’d be contributing to the overall teamwork skills of the employees.
These corporate events tend to involve outdoor and indoor adventures together. It can also have fun and light-hearted games and exercises.
2. Conferences, workshops, and seminars
These fall on the educational side of corporate event management. In these events, you’re supposed to arrange an exchange of knowledge.
3. Employee appreciation events
They are corporate parties and galas that honor employees and their hard work. It could be a simple award ceremony that boosts morale.
4. Exhibitions and meets
These events creatively showcase the products and services of a company. It aims at bringing better sales or partnerships.
5. Product launches
By organizing product launch events, you boost future sales of your new products and services. These tend to draw good media attention.
6. Board meetings
Here, event planners are required to give the best facilities to the most important people in the company. You need to be able to create a favorable event setup for important conversations like company performance to take place.
7. Annual meetings and events
Founder’s Day and annual general meetings are also some of the most important corporate events that take place.
8. Office festival celebrations
In most companies, festivals and national events are also celebrated ahead of the holidays. Beginner event planners should definitely start by organizing these. They’re easier to relate to and thus, organize better.
9. Networking events
Networking events usually happen within conferences or seminars but focus more on connecting professionals. People talk about potential partnerships, client relationships, and peer learning.
10. Retirement or farewell parties
These might not top a planner’s list, but they’re quite meaningful. Employees receive a warm send-off after years of service, which helps maintain a positive company culture.
C. How to plan corporate events?
As a corporate event planner, you’ll have to oversee the following to organize events:
- Theme and concept development
- Budgeting for corporate event planning
- Sourcing corporate event decor
- Venue visits and finalization
- Logistics management
- Vendor coordination
- On-site duties on the day of the event
If you have a good grip on this checklist, you’ll be able to do a satisfactory job. However, after seeing how many types of corporate events exist, you know there’s a steep learning curve. Each event would require a separate subset of action items.
In practice, once you finalize your theme and concept, allocate specific resources for designing the event layout. This includes drafting floor plans or seating arrangements that match the event’s objectives.
If it’s a training seminar, ensure that the stage or speaking area is equipped with suitable audio-visual tools.
For fun team-building outings, plan for open spaces that encourage movement and interactive sessions. When you marry the theme to your functional needs, you produce a balanced environment that both impresses guests and supports the core agenda.
D. How to start a corporate event planning business?
Just like any other business, your corporate event planning business will need lots of market research. Look out for your target market, competition, and potential clients. You can give your business an identity with a name and a logo.
You’ll also need to get all the necessary licenses and permits to have a legitimate business. You can register your business as a sole proprietorship, partnership, or LLC.
If you have some previous experience, consider making a portfolio for the same. It’ll help you sell your services better. Now, let’s move to a very crucial step for building your event planning business.
It requires you to build a business plan. It outlines how you will carry out your event planning processes. Your standard business plan should have:
- The pricing structure
- Budget breakdown
- Marketing strategies
- Timeline or plan of action
- Target market
- Scope of your services
Know that you will need to tweak and customize this business plan for each client. Once you and your client agree on these, it’s time to sign extensive contracts. You need to sit down with an expert to draft all the necessary paperwork.
Your event planning contract must include the following:
- Scope of work
- Terms of payment
- Cancellation policies
- Liabilities in case of unforeseen circumstances
- Terms of dissolution of the partnership
- Any other relevant point your expert might suggest
While you’re heavily involved in the legal process, you must also focus on your partnerships. We are not talking about possible clients here.
Rather, we are talking about the driving force behind your events—vendors. You need to have good relationships with caterers, venue providers, photographers, and entertainers. This will make your corporate event planning journey much smoother.
E. Budgeting tip for corporate events
A corporate event planning guide is incomplete without financial advice. From industry experts, we learn that a key ingredient for event planning is expense prioritization. An event calls for a lot of money, but you can’t spend it on everything.
In your event planning budget, you must rank the necessity of all expense items. Spend the majority of your budget on the most significant items like the venue. As you move lower on the list, you can start cost-cutting.
You can learn the finer details of how to allocate funds by exploring detailed budgeting frameworks or checking out sample budget templates.
They provide a structured approach to listing every possible expense, helping you track costs while ensuring you don’t skip essential elements.
F. Tips to plan better corporate events
Planning better events comes from experience. But that requires a lot of opportunities. So, if you’re an independent event planner, you need to focus on networking.
You’ll be surprised to see how many people are interested in your services. You just need to be out there.
Once you do begin working, you’ll learn that understanding your client is key. You really need to get into their heads. Once you learn what they might and might not like even before asking, you’ve cracked it.
In corporate events, a good way to leave a mark is customization. It could be as simple as customized notepads or water bottles. You could send your attendees with a small gift bag and a note. These small acts make a lot of difference.
You should also keep a log of any unique decor elements or interactive games you’ve used in past events. This record becomes a valuable reference point for future projects, helping you replicate successful strategies or improve on less effective ones.
Whenever you meet fellow planners at industry events, don't be shy to ask about their best practices and unique solutions. Exchange ideas, gather references, and adapt them to your own style. Such knowledge-sharing fosters innovation and continual growth.
Another event trend you need to catch up on is sustainability. You won’t just do a favor to the planet but also hear praises from your client.
The last tip we give every event planner is to take post-event follow-up. We aren’t just asking you to ask your client, “How was the event?” You need to go in-depth and take ratings and reviews for every aspect of your event.
Knowing where to improve and adapt is crucial. Once you’re done reading this event planning guide, these reviews and follow-ups will guide you further.
G. How do you decorate a corporate event?
A corporate event has a very different ambiance as compared to other events like weddings and birthdays. However, even within this difference, you will have to create a different ambiance for conferences, celebrations, etc.
You need to first understand the type of corporate event. Then, you need to understand the theme and purpose. Once you have clarity on these two, you can think of decor elements.
When decorating for a corporate event, you can’t miss company branding. You need to tastefully incorporate the brand’s colors and logos into the decor. This corporate event guide encourages you to stick to polished decor as opposed to a flashy one.
You can achieve this by focusing on lighting and simple furniture. Floral arrangements are fine as long as they are minimal.
In corporate events, you should avoid decorating each and every corner. Rather, focus on creating focal points such as large displays or panels with event info. For more informal corporate events, you could create selfie points with a branded backdrop.
Since you’re not going berserk with the decor, you should engage other senses. Make sure there’s ambient music playing. Focus more on the entertainment and educational value of the event. One tip that no other corporate event guide will give you is to engage the sense of smell. Invest in good room fresheners with a subtle scent.
H. How to do corporate event marketing?
With corporate events, you have limited marketing channels. You can’t really post a reel about it on Instagram and expect a great turnout. So, first start with identifying the marketing channels. Email marketing remains at the top of the list for corporate events.
Know if you can leverage social media or the company website to promote the event. If it’s a large-scale event that’s open to people outside the company, you’ll need to list your event on relevant directories.
Also, a digital ticketing platform like Ticket Generator is an excellent option to keep the event personal yet secure.
When it comes to digital marketing for corporate events, don’t underestimate the power of targeted email campaigns or partner collaborations. If multiple departments are involved, ask team leads to spread the word internally.
This grassroots approach often yields better engagement. You can also create a consistent visual identity across event materials, from digital invites to on-site banners. That sense of cohesion helps attendees feel immersed in the brand experience.
To further promote your event, you should focus on video marketing. It’s the most impactful media these days. You could share it on the company group or any other communication channel.
For example, if you have a known speaker for the event, get them to record a teaser video. Focus on creating that pre-event buzz!
I. How do you make corporate events interesting?
Let’s address the elephant in the room. Corporate events are boring. But, as a seasoned event planner, it’s your duty to make the event as interactive as possible.
Here are some questions you should ask yourself to know how interesting you’re making your event:
- Does my event have a theme?
- Is the speaker engaging when they talk?
- Does my event have a relevant and relatable theme?
- Is the chosen event venue standing out from the conventional corporate event spaces?
- Are there any ice-breakers at the beginning and middle of the event?
- Did I pay good attention to the event food and catering?
- Am I providing any personal gift or experience to the attendees?
More points to you if you get as many “yes” as possible. We also recommend you add an element of surprise to the event. Give the attendees something they didn’t expect from the event.
It can be a unique entertainment act, a giveaway, a quiz, or even a unique food experience. Break the monotony with something that may seem irrelevant but serves the purpose.
If you’re still not getting any ideas, remind yourself that sometimes the simplest additions—like an unexpected host or a quick interactive poll—can keep people talking. Don’t be afraid to test new concepts at smaller events first.
J. What do you wear to a corporate event?
No, not all corporate events are black and white. Here are some dress code choice buckets for you as an event planner:
- Ask people to dress according to the theme. For example, for a Christmas in the office, people could come dressed in red and white
- The casual dress code is suitable for company outings and adventures in informal settings. Here, attendees can wear anything they’d wear to meet friends for a brunch
- Smart casuals are a suitable dress code choice when the attendees are expected to interact with seniors. Men can dress in neat jeans or chinos with polo shirts, while women can go for casual dresses or jeans with a top
- Some events will still call for business attire. But this is only common for conferences and big business meetings. Here men are to wear tailored suits while women can go for shirts with pants/skirts or conservative dresses
In certain cases, you can also encourage participants to add a playful twist—such as wearing accessories that reflect the company’s brand colors. This small effort can tie the dress code back to the event’s theme or to the company’s identity.
As an event planner, always clarify any dress code guidelines in advance, giving attendees time to plan. Clear communication leads to a unified, confident look among participants. Remember, confidence and comfort matter at corporate events.
K. Top corporate event planning companies
If you’re looking to work with event planning companies, here are the top ones:
- Eventive is a global event management company. It is famous for organizing product launches and conferences for corporate clients
- Cvent provides software that helps organize large-scale corporate conferences and meetings
- GES is a global event marketing company that is famous for organizing corporate trade shows and exhibitions
- MCI Group is a leading event management company that gets its reputation from corporate events
If you don’t want to apply but just want some inspiration, you might want to look at Google and Apple. They organize some brilliant events for their employees. Their product launches are also a sight to behold.
Keep up with the technologies and creativity they use in their events. It should keep your head buzzing with ideas. And on days you’re not feeling creative, we’ll do the buzzing for you. Sign up for our newsletter below to receive one mind-blowing event idea each week.
L. Conclusion
Now you know the essentials of how to plan a corporate event with confidence. Whether it’s about big conferences, smaller gatherings, or anything in between, keep focusing on creativity, brand alignment, and attendee engagement. Each occasion lets you sharpen your professional event planning skills.
When it comes to ticketing and secure check-ins, consider platforms like Ticket Generator to keep your event efficient. That way, you can pour your energy into making your corporate event planning experience truly memorable.
.gif)
.png){kind=small}
.png){kind=small}
.png){kind=small}
.png){kind=small}
