Why good intentions aren't enough

The most common mistake is also the simplest: starting too late. Many event organisers begin the concrete fill-in two or three weeks before the event. That sounds like enough time, but it almost never is.

Popular venues are booked up months in advance. Good speakers have full diaries. Catering with special requirements needs lead time. And if you're working with a tight budget, comparing quotes also takes time you don't have when the date is already around the corner.

The rule of thumb: for an event of a hundred people or more you start at least three months ahead. For large events with external speakers or complex technology, six months is realistic. For small team events or department outings, four to six weeks can be enough, provided the venue is available.

Always start with the date and the venue. Those two elements are the foundation. Everything else (programme, catering, invitations, communication) you build after that. Without those two you don't have an event, only a plan.

What do you want to achieve with this event? That sounds like a trivial question, but in practice the answer often stays surprisingly vague. For example:

• "We want to do something fun for the team."
• "We want to thank our clients."
• "We're celebrating our anniversary."

Those are motives, not objectives. An objective is concrete and measurable. "We want employees to understand and carry out the organisation's core values better." Or: "We want fifty per cent of the prospects in the room to schedule a follow-up conversation."

Without a clear objective you make every choice (venue, programme, speakers, catering) on instinct. With a clear objective you make every choice on the basis of: does this contribute to what we want to achieve?

Write the objective down. Share it with everyone on the organising team. Test every programme choice against it. And evaluate afterwards on the basis of that objective. That makes the event better and easier to organise at the same time, because you have a clear yardstick for your decisions.

A common mistake at events is a programme planned minute by minute, with no slack. Every speaker gets exactly twenty minutes. Every activity is neatly scheduled. And then the first presentation runs five minutes over, and you spend the rest of the day in a domino effect of delays.

But the problem is bigger than planning. An overstuffed programme gives guests no room to breathe, to process or to talk to each other. And those informal moments (during the break, at the buffet, between two sessions) are often exactly when the real connection happens.

Build buffers in deliberately. After every presentation or activity, schedule five to ten minutes of informal time. Keep one or two sessions in reserve that you can drop if the programme overruns. And don't be afraid of an open moment: people don't mind if there's 'nothing' for a while. They fill it in themselves.

Another aspect: the length of the total programme. A day packed with content is too much for most guests. After four or five hours of intensive information, people hit their absorption ceiling. Plan less and make sure what you plan lands, rather than more and risk the second half of the day slipping into a slump.

It's a classic mistake: the presentation works on the speaker's laptop, but not on the venue's system. The microphone screeches. The projector outputs the wrong resolution. And while the first guests are walking in, the tech team is still trying to fix the problems.

Testing the technology on the day itself isn't a test. It's a gamble. Always test the day before, on site, with exactly the kit you'll use on the day. Check the connection between laptop and projector, the sound system, the microphones, the internet connection for live demos and the lighting if you're filming or photographing.

Ask every speaker to deliver their presentation at least two days in advance. That way you can check whether all files work, whether videos play and whether the fonts are right. And always keep a backup copy of every presentation on a USB stick, separate from the laptops.

For larger events, hire a professional AV company. Not because you couldn't, but because they've always done it. They know which questions to ask and how to fix problems when they do come up. That gives you room to focus on the guests and the programme, not on the technology.

You've sent the invitation. People have signed up. And then it goes quiet, until the day of the event arrives. That's a missed opportunity.

Guests who hear nothing between sign-up and the event start the day uncertain. Questions like: where do I need to go, what should I bring, what's on the programme and how long does it last? Those questions cost attention you'd rather spend on the content.

Send at least three communication moments. A confirmation straight after sign-up, with all the practical information. A reminder two weeks before the event, with a small teaser of the programme or an interesting detail. And a message on the day itself with the route, parking information and a word of welcome.

Use the pre-event communication to deliver value too. An article relevant to the theme, a short interview with a speaker, a sneak peek of what's coming. That builds anticipation and means guests walk in engaged and curious, rather than uninformed and passive.

An event without evaluation is an event you don't learn from. And an event without follow-up is an opportunity half taken. These are the two mistakes that are least visible on the day itself, but have the biggest effect in the long term.

Evaluate every event straight afterwards. The day after the event, send a short survey — three to five questions is enough. What did guests think of the programme? What could be better? What are they taking away? That feedback is worth gold for your next event, and it makes guests feel their opinion counts.

Evaluate internally too. What worked well in the logistics? Which suppliers performed as expected? What would you do differently next time? Write it down while it's still fresh — after two weeks you only remember half of it.

And then the follow-up. Send attendees a personal message the day after. Share the photos, the recording, the summary. Schedule the follow-up conversations with potential clients. Act on the action points discussed during the event. The event isn't over when the last guest walks out the door — it's over when the follow-up is done.

Anyone who manages to avoid these seven mistakes organises events that land. Not perfect, but meaningful. And that's exactly what distinguishes a corporate event from a successful gathering.

Need help organising a corporate event that lands this time? Call us on 085 401 40 14 or send a mail to hello@live-impact.nl.

Seriously fun.