If you’re the conference planner in your office, you can find out all of the latest corporate event planning news and trends. As you know, everyone expects you to do something better each year. Unless you have an unlimited budget, as well as a creative mind that never runs out of ideas, it can be a tough task to keep putting together better corporate events.

No matter what type of conference planning you intend to do, or how cutting edge you intend to make your plans, there are still some common sense factors you need to consider. They include:

1. The budget for your conference planning endeavors.

2. The purpose of the event.

3. The clientele who will attend the corporate event.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Attend a corporate event planning expo or conference

These are a great way to see what is new in the world of business event planners. You can see new styles of presentation, new themes, new planning tools and new corporate event planning software. This may seem like an additional expense; but if you are in charge of planning your company's events, you can't afford to miss out. You not only see new ideas and trends, you also make contacts with people who can make your corporate planning a lot easier.

I recommend: The Ultimate Expo Company holds exhibits that showcase the latest trends in corporate event planning. Its event planning business gives you ideas to make your next corporate event a success. Media Mas Events & Expos hosts an annual Events Planners and Suppliers Expo to feature corporate event planning news and trends.

Subscribe to corporate event planning newsletters and magazines

These monthly or quarterly publications can help you make the most of your event planning time. Corporate event planning news and trends periodicals are a great way for you to stay on top of changes in event planning.

I recommend: Mighty Dog Media has a free “Meeting Pages” newsletter you can sign up for. While these business event planners focus on the upper Mid-West, the information on its website is current and valid for anyone who puts corporate event planning packages together. Take out a subscription to “Smart Meetings” magazine. While this Bright Business Media periodical focuses on events in the western United States, you can find many helpful tips and trends.

Sign up for blogs written by corporate event planners

These blogs are an up-to-the-minute way to stay on top of trends. Often these bloggers report on things that they see at corporate events. These new ideas may very well work for you at your next event.

I recommend: The Face2Face blog provided by “Association Meetings” magazine, a subsidiary of Penton Media, offers up-to-date information for conference planners. The OnSite Events blog gives you insight into the latest news and trends from corporate event planners.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  As you plan your corporate event with the latest trends, remember to put technology items into your corporate event planning budget. You don't want to show your company's latest product on an old television set, nor do you want to use old computers and projection equipment.

A professional planner helps plan and execute your event or meeting, overseeing details that would escape most people’s attention. Their tasks can include event site selection, meeting-room design, food and beverage planning, speaker or special-event planning, and audio-visual management.

1. Meeting and event planners save time and eliminate unnecessary stress.
2. Planners can save you money negotiating event contracts because they have valuable resources and contacts to draw upon.
3. They manage facets of an event or meeting so you can focus on the guests and attendees.
4. Planners can effectively market and promote your event.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Know the kind of event you want to host

Before you speak with a planner, you should know the reason for your event (fundraising, celebration, informational), date of event, approximate number of guests and estimated budget.

I recommend: Review tips on how to choose the right location and date for your event and items to consider when drafting a budget at Effectivemeetings.com.

Research event options

Contact several event-planning companies to compare experience, pricing and work ethic. Ask friends and colleagues for event-planning references, and consult online resources.

I recommend: Professional organizations like Meeting Planners International can also help you find qualified planners; locate and contact your local chapter. Get tips on hiring an event planner at eHow.com.

Interview potential candidates

Ask about their experience with similar events, how many events they have produced, what kind, for what size group, and what made these events special. Always ask for and call references.

I recommend: Find potential meeting and event planners at Gatheringguide.com; the database is searchable by type of event and location.

Negotiate fees beforehand

Discuss whether the planner bills by the hour, by the event or as a percentage of the total budget. Inquire what deposits, if any, are required and ask if package prices are available. Get a quote in writing and make sure that costs won't run over without your prior agreement.

I recommend: If you are working within a specific budget range of over $75,000, you can find lists of national event-planner companies at Alltimefavorites.com.

Read and sign a contract

The final contract should outline what the event entails, previous discussions on the planner's responsibilities, negotiated fee and other agreed-upon factors. The meeting planners often draft their own contracts.

I recommend: View sample meeting planner-client contracts at Daily Plan-It.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Ask event planners if they are certified. A Certified Meeting Professional, or CMP, certification is given by the Convention Industry Council, while a Certified Special Events Professional, or CSEP, is awarded by the International Special Events Society.
• •  Ask the planner how he or she would handle potential catastrophes, such as the caterer running out of food, the DJ not showing up, or a sudden downpour drowning out an outdoor event.
• •  Try to visit one of the planner's events in progress.
• •  Spell out the event in detail. Describe the planner's responsibilities and delineate all payment information in a written, signed agreement.

The bottom line is important when you need to focus on making the most of corporate event planning budgetary funds. Whether you plan to do your conference planning in-house or hire professional corporate event planners, there are things you can do to get the most out of your investment.

As you plan your event, you can either delegate the responsibility to one person or you can create a team of conference planners from your staff. In the early stages of corporate event planning, everyone on the team and other lead personnel from your staff should sit down for an idea session. From this meeting, you planning team should be able to plan your event more effectively. Be sure everyone on the planning team understands:

1. Exactly what the budgetary restrictions are for the corporate event.

2. The deadlines in place for the corporate event planners.

3. How the lines of communication will be open between corporate event planners and management.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Prepare a budget when making the most of corporate event planning funds

Make a budget and stick to it. Decide if there are items you can do without if necessary. Watch for unnecessary items that creep onto the list and be prepared to cut them out.

I recommend: Party411 has a budget worksheet you can easily adapt to your business for corporate event planning. That’s A Wrap also offer tips, along with a budget worksheet to help you with conference planning.

Keep a corporate event planning ideas file

Don't wait until the date of the next corporate event is on the calendar. Be alert to new ideas. Write them down. Keep a file. That way when the time comes, you can hit the ground running because you already have some good ideas to work with or expand on.

I recommend: The Corporate Event Channel has several ideas for themes you can put in your corporate event management file. All Time Favorites also offers a number of unique ideas for you to put in your planning folder.

Decide if it's less expensive to outsource the conference planning

If you have a small staff, it may be a wiser choice to hire a team of professional conference planners. Some corporate event planning packages may cost less than the manpower cost necessary for one of your staff members to accomplish the same thing.

I recommend: BuyerZone.com can match your business with local business event planners. These meeting planners then work within your budget. You won't have personnel tied up with the planning process for weeks on end if you choose the business event planning services option. Turnstile Systems offers complete online corporate event planning software to help you prepare for your upcoming corporate event.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Even if you decide to outsource your conference planning, be sure to establish deadlines and budgetary restrictions. Periodically check with the service to make sure everything is in place according to schedule. You don't need to micromanage professional conference planning services, but you do need to be have regular communication with them.

Corporate event planning can be a large task and involves many details both large and small. In order to plan a successful corporate event, you must know some basic terms of the trade. Educate yourself on the basics starting with event budget and event venue. To ensure that your corporate event goes off without a hitch, become fluent in more detailed terms such as pipe and drape, talent, site management and signage.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Event venue

Location is everything in corporate event planning. An event venue refers to the specific location that you choose to rent, with the explicit purpose of being used to host your event. An event venue is also referred to as an event site or an event location.

I recommend: Learn more about an event venue and how to choose the best one for your next corporate event at Gathering Guide.

Event budget

One of the most important aspects of corporate event planning is the event budget. An event budget is a thorough plan detailing the estimated costs and the actual costs of all aspects of your event.

I recommend: Check out Cvent for a complete definition of an event budget.

Pipe and drape

Pipe and drape is a metal frame in which thick fabric can be draped over and used to separate your event into different areas, block off certain areas from your guests and add splashes of color to enhance the decor of your event.

I recommend: In its comprehensive glossary, Event Solutions has more information on pipe and drape.

Talent

Used to spice up corporate events, talent is a person or group hired to perform, entertain, greet guests or demonstrate products.

I recommend: Exhibitor Magazine has a definition of talent in its extensive trade show glossary.

Site management

Using site management takes some of the stress off of you during your corporate event. Site management is a person or company designated to be at the event venue and oversee all aspects of the site, including setup, equipment and any additional needs that might arise.

I recommend: Learn more about site management and how it can benefit your next event at Corporate Events.

Signage

In order to communicate with your guests, you need signage. Signage means specific signs that are created for an event to give attendees directions, information or to promote something.

I recommend: Gold Graphics specializes in special event signage.