Holiday parties are a staple for companies and organizations. they offer employees the chance to bond, exchange ideas, and do all sorts of fun activities they don’t get the opportunity to do in an office. And if done right, they can yield a lot of benefits from employee motivation, satisfaction and team cohesion.
These parties are generally perceived as being a big thing which employees look forward to. Because of this, people attending the party will have high expectations for it.
Planning a holiday party for your organization is no easy feat because of the many aspects which you have to consider. Even if you’ve settled on the venue, food, and date, there’s also the entertainment to consider.
However, organizing one isn’t a walk in the park. Planning a Christmas party is a balancing act which requires you to be mindful of many things before taking action.
The reason behind this is because there are many factors to consider for such an event which will simply be beyond your control.
The holiday seasons are very busy, with many other organizations looking to hire caterers and book venues for their own events. Besides that, your party needs to meet your attendees’ expectations.
All of this may seem overwhelming, but rest assured we will offer you a few helpful tips which will help you ease the burden of organizing the party and make your party stand-out this year.
1) The Right Props for the Occasion
Tastefully placed props help create atmosphere and help your guests get out of the ‘work-mood.’
Depending on the holiday which the party commemorates, you should consider getting a set of props to decorate the venue.
Here are a few directions:
- Thanksgiving, you can opt for a homier decor with corn husks and plates of seasonal fruit.
- Halloween, go for an aura of mystery and magic with the iconic jack-o-lanterns and candlelight.
- Christmas, create a festive ambiance for your guests with the customary Christmas tree.
Besides decorations, you can raise the bar and set up props that invite people to participate in group activities.
For example, you can set up a stage in the main event room, or you can have a red carpet rolled at the entrance, to give your guests a feeling of special treatment.
2) The Holidays Are Busier than You Think
The holidays are the busiest times for restaurants and venues, with many companies defaulting to organizing their annual Thanksgiving or Christmas party.
Besides other organizations, you are also competing with families, groups of friends who are going out to celebrate.
Also, be mindful when planning a holiday party, the specific day in which you set up also counts. Friday and Saturday might be the best days for your attendees, but they’re also the days in which there’s the most activity in town.
3) Planning a Party Is a Group Effort
Much work goes into organizing a corporate party, and taking it all upon yourself is never a good idea.
It’s better to delegate some of the tasks to other people. Perhaps even consider organizing a small team to cover the primary responsibilities that will set up the whole party.
The best course of action is to distribute the workload evenly, not to end up overworking some team members.
If you feel that the party is too much of an undertaking, you can always hire professionals. There are many catering and event organizing firms that will do a great job setting up the party as close as possible to how you imagined it.
4) Not Everyone Will Be Able to Make It
The date of your event will probably be the most important factor in determining your event’s plan. It is important to pick a date and then to stick to it because a lot of other decisions will depend on it.
As the holidays will be approaching, most employees will want to get days off to be able to spend time with their families. And the party might just end up interfering with their personal plans.
If you want to have as high of a turnout as possible, then it would be best to not set the party right during the holiday season.
5) Have a Backup Plan
There is a chance that your party will have weather issues or need to comply with certain restrictions, if not to be entirely canceled.
If you’re caught up in this situation, you can consider shifting towards a virtual/hybrid event formula.
With hybrid events, you get the best of both worlds, ensuring that your party is still happening, offering an entertaining experience for your employees, while also maintaining safety and not endangering public safety.
If you’re interested in knowing more about how you can seamlessly transition your live event to a virtual/hybrid format, we gladly recommend you check out this article.
6) High Expectations for The Party
Consider these two scenarios:
- Planning a holiday party takes place only once a year, so people expect it to be something truly special.
- People have been to a few holiday parties before, so they’re expecting the next one to be a step up from the rest.
Regardless which situation you might find yourself in, it’s clear that people want their experience to be unique and memorable.
To easily deliver on that front, you’ll have to spice up the party through a set of fun and entertaining activities.
We suggest setting up a stage where you can have your attendees do karaoke, talent shows or you can even use the stage to host professional entertainers.
7) Next Day Might Be a Working Day
If the party takes place sometime during the weekdays, there’s the issue that employees need to be sobered up for the upcoming work day.
A result of this is that the attendees won’t be having the same level of enjoyment since they will be conditioned to show up for work the coming day.
This means that they’ll cut down on alcohol consumption and most likely even leave early, to get enough rest.
A possible solution to this would be to have the upcoming work day off for your employees. And if that is not achievable, you can set up the party during a week when projected targets will be lower.
8) When Planning a Holiday Party Don’t Skimp on Entertainment
If you’ve taken care of the organizational aspects, there’s one thing left to take care of – and that’s the entertainment.
When you’re planning a Christmas party, you shouldn’t cut corners and compromise the entertainment factor. Instead, it would be best to give it the same level of importance as you would give to other organizational aspects.
For that, you should consider hiring professional performers to offer your guests a memorable and entertaining experience.
At the Grable Group, we offer entertainment solutions for corporate events, including Christmas parties. We can help you find the right performer to fit your party best, we also offer virtual holiday entertainment.
Up the Ante When Planning a Holiday Party
Organizing the party definitely requires a bit of thought and effort put into it. Generally, planning ahead of the event will save you a lot of headaches and will help you to be better prepared for any unforeseen incidents.
What’s more, if your party hits all the right spots in terms of entertainment, you’re looking at a very positive outcome from your team.
At the Grable Group, we can help you find the right performers to book for any kind of corporate event. Reach out to us at (615) 283-0039 and we will gladly help you!
