Time to Plan a Summer Party?

Congratulations - planning a summer party for your colleagues is a fun project that will certainly be both successful and appreciated. But as with all projects, the difference between a good and a fantastic result will depend on how well you plan and organise your work.

We recommend that you first consider what the objective of your event is. For a summer party, the objective may not be measurable in ROI (return on investment) the same way as a client event, but there are other softer values or goals that can be good to confirm with your client; for example, the company's management or HR department. It could be a nice and fun conclusion before the holidays, a reward for an extraordinary effort, or simply a casual dinner to bring the team together.

Once you know the objective of your summer party, it is time to start planning! A good way to think is to see your event as a puzzle. Start from a blank sheet and fill it with puzzle pieces - one piece for the venue, one piece for food and drink, one piece for activities, one piece for transport, and so on.

When you have laid out your puzzle, it is time to prioritise - which puzzle piece is most important for the whole puzzle to come together?

We recommend starting with the venue/location, and of course setting a date. Before you start calling suppliers, you need to have answers to the following:

• DATE: Make sure to have at least three different dates - and preferably different weekdays - to compare; the price can differ significantly depending on the day of the week and time. The more flexibility you have, the easier it will be to find a solution quickly.
• TIME: Attractive times, such as lunch at 12 or dinner at 18 or 19, tend to get fully booked quickly. Could you consider finding an alternative time - a later lunch or earlier dinner, for example?
• BUDGET: Make sure your maximum budget is set, but also the maximum cost per person. Depending on which supplier you choose, the cost of each puzzle piece in your event can be adjusted. Make an estimate of what each part can cost at most.
• LOGISTICS/TRANSPORT: How far are you willing to have participants travel? Close to the workplace or further away? Will you need to arrange transport, or will participants want to drive their own car? Are there parking options? Can participants make it to public transport - the last train/bus/metro home, etc.

If transport is needed to and from your summer party, you need to include it in your budget. Here you can find tips on how to make transport into something unique during your summer party.

As soon as you have laid out your puzzle, it is high time to inform your colleagues about the date of the party, so they can block their calendars. If you do not have all the details in place, it is enough to send out a save-the-date, and supplement with more information when you have more to share. Good luck!

PS. If it seems a bit overwhelming to not only plan your event, but also keep track of all deadlines, communicate changes to both participants and suppliers (we know how it goes - someone forgets to mention they are allergic to nuts, that the colour yellow makes them nauseous, or that they will only arrive for the main course), inform your manager that the budget seems to be running over, and all of that, we just wanted to mention a planning tool we have developed, which simply helps you keep track of absolutely everything.

Goodbye spreadsheets and goodbye sleepless nights. Read more about how you can make your next conference, kick-off, or summer party easier with the planning tool Event Logic or send us an email and we will get you started. It is completely free.

Best regards, Event Logic