Planning the company holiday party can be a really fun experience. But the bottom line is you want to make sure your guests have as much fun or more at the party as you do planning it.
Each year, thousands of people begin planning the holiday party and each year, every single person out there is doing the best they can to make the party bigger, better, and more successful than any other party out there. They are also trying to make sure the party is at least as fun as last years event…
The common trap people fall into when planning a party is doing the same thing over and over… When people know exactly what to expect at a party, attendance starts to dwindle- and the excitement/allure of going to the event begins to diminish.
Here are some fresh ideas for planning a new and different company holiday event this year:
1) Change the location of the Holiday Party –
While holding your holiday party event at the same location year after year can be a tradition, ad can create some consistency- changing up the location of the event offers a multitude of options to you. Finding a new event space can not only benefit your party by adding allure, but it also gives you an opportunity to change up food options, entertainment options, and a whole lot more…
2) Look into some new entertainment ideas.
From bringing in Pool Tables and a game table type theme, to having a stage act or entertainer, to casino party entertainment, murder mystery’s, video/arcade games, arts and crafts activities- and a whole lot more there are all kinds of entertainment options for the holiday season. In addition to game rentals- classic holiday characters like Santa and the elves can be a huge draw to people with families!
3) Create a Buzz.
There is no better way to boost attendance than to create a buzz. This can be done many different ways. It may be as simple as starting the conversation about a holiday party with the invitees, asking for entertainment and activity ideas or requests, and sharing those ideas with the group in a fun and candid email campaign. After this initial contact regarding the holiday party, it will be easy to catch people’s attention with fun updates regarding planning, the date, etc…
Another way of doing this without having a million ideas and office politics to juggle would be do simply start a countdown… Which updates daily, or even by the minute- until the holiday party. Every once and a while throughout the planning process you could drop a hint regarding an activity, or other item of interest that will be at the party. This kind of thing creates mystery and allure- and can go great as long as you make sure to have a great event planned for the culmination!
4) Pick a theme.
This is pretty much event planning 101. if you do not have a theme, or a common goal, or something tying the whole event together then it can be very difficult to create a cohesive event at which all of the activities, decor, catering, invitations, and entertainment work together. So deciding on a theme for the holiday party is important.
Themes can be simple or elaborate for holiday parties. We have hosted simple “Frosty the Snowman” themed events, to full fledged “Winter in the 80’s” blowouts. There is no end to the amount of great themes out there. If you need help planning an event theme- just give us a call!
5) Always have booze.
A holiday event without alcohol is pretty much lame. If you, the boss, or other people in the organization do not drink at all- not even socially, that is fine. But it is pretty much silly to enforce this rule on everyone else at the company. The fact is that most working people do enjoy a nice drink at the end of the day or work week- and denying your guests the opportunity to have a drink is not going to create a happy, fun, and interactive crowd.
In our experience working with some of the leading global companies in the world- crowds are much more fun, and events have a lot more participation when the booze is flowing. It is a pretty paramount piece behind the success of several companies out there. People for years have socialized and cut loose having drinks at home, at bars, or other functions. Denying your workforce this ability will not give your crew the opportunity to cut loose together and celebrate a job well done.