Planning a party? You’ll want it to be memorable for all the right reasons. But with so many elements, there are so many balls to juggle- and so many ways things might not go quite the way you’d hoped!
Dine have been planning the very best parties for over 25 years, and with a guest list that includes A list celebrities, blue chip companies and even the British Royal Family, you can be sure we know how to make everything run smoothly. Here’s our 5 top tips for planning the perfect party!
Plan a party with a clear vision
The first thing you need to think about is your vision for the party. What do you want your guests to experience, feel and enjoy? What do you want to achieve from the event? The answer to these questions will vary, depending on whether it is a private party, a corporate event, or a public event. So, for example, a private party might be to celebrate a landmark birthday, whilst bring family and friends together from across the globe. A corporate event might be to build networks around a new showroom, or launch a new product. A public event might be to raise money for a charity.
These should be the foundations from which you can build a picture of the ideal event.
Once you have this vision clear in your mind, you can begin to choose an event specialist who can work with your ideas to create your party.
Choose event suppliers wisely
It’s fine having ideas, but to deliver the perfect party you need to be able to follow through on every step from concept to completion, with every eventuality planned for, built into the schedule and taken care of ahead of time. Co-ordination is key.
Your event specialist should be able to demonstrate that they have a track record of implementing and coordinating a full project as “lead contractor”, up to and on the day itself.
The benefit of this approach is efficient project management and a smooth delivery. The team delivering the overall event “on the ground” can be confident that its component parts will come together to achieve an effective end result.
Consider the finer details
Most people planning a party will think about the food, entertainment, flowers…. but a successful party depends on lots of smaller details in the background. As well as theming and hospitality, have you considered traffic management and security or infrastructures like power, water, heating, waste, access and lighting? Have you thought carefully about kitchen space- your caterers will need sufficient room to lay out plates for all your guests.
A good event manager will deal properly with the back of house detail, but will ultimately focus the vast majority of their skill on the important part: the party!
Add the personal touch
A great event manager will draw on the initial brief to produce an event that’s rich in creative detail. Building a rapport with the client to get to the heart of their vision is a key skill. Avoid any company that simply tries to apply a list of pre-conceived options, props or rolled out ideas. Your event should be a unique and fully bespoke experience.
That might mean re-creating your favourite dish, or having canape dishes made with your corporate logo. Perhaps your corporate colours are used to light up the outside of the building. Or maybe your favourite scent is used throughout the venue.
Time spent planning and preparing with someone capable of proposing, developing and implementing innovative ideas is key.
Don’t forget to enjoy it!
Whilst any good party requires good planning on the run up, a good event specialist will take the hard work out of it so that you can relax and enjoy the party on the day.
