As a business leader, you will already understand that events are an important fundraising tool, and if you are in support of a nonprofit organization, then you should be making sure that the events that you run and support in aid of charities are unforgettable. We all adore a live event because of the connection that they inspire and the feelings that they bring to the surface. Emotions are a big deal when it comes to events, and when you’re talking of business charity events, it’s going to be something close to your heart.
Planning a unique charity event is not the easiest thing to do, but either way you want it to exceed your goals as well as your expectations. The best way to do that is to understand how to get the planning underway and then make sure you see it through to the finish. With the help of companies such as Brightvisionevents.co.uk, you can ensure that your event goes to plan from start to end. You need to get your name as your business out there, which is the selfish region to put the event on. But when it comes to supporting charities, you as a business have a driving power that other people don’t. If you do have a charity that you sponsor as a business leader, then it’s time to put your money on the table and start bringing other people into the fold because this event needs to go off without a hitch. With that in mind, here’s how you can plan a business charity event to perfection.
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1. Know your cause and set a goal. You need to have a fundraising goal when it comes to supporting a charity and that’s the cause that you should be looking at from the beginning. Why are you raising all of this money and what is this event for? Knowing the answer to this question can help you to create a promotional strategy and an operational plan. Yes, you can bring on an event planning company, but you still need to have some passion behind it. You need to understand what your mission statement is and how all other decisions are going to cascade from it. Remember that donations are not the only way to support a charity, because your event is also going to raise huge amounts of awareness and help you with networking.
2. Make sure that your budget is realistic when you’re planning an event. It’s very easy to throw as much luxury at the wall and hope it all sticks, but you need to determine the cost of holding such an event against the funds that you can expect to raise. For example, having a budget in place where you’re not going to raise anywhere near that amount doesn’t make sense. You should include every single detail of your event, from the venue to the catering to the valets that you use for parking. Always keep an open mind with a little bit of wiggle room in your budget for the unpredictable expenses. But it’s always a good idea to exceed your expenses goals, rather than have them eaten elsewhere.
3. Get to know your target audience. You clearly have an audience in mind, otherwise you wouldn’t be considering a fundraiser. You need to be able to dig into the pockets of those who have the funds to be able to raise them with you. So if your charity is going to appeal to a particular generation or interest, then the event has to reflect that. Is your fundraiser going to be local or is it going to be global? Would a gala dinner be a good idea, or would a huge networking ball party be a good idea? Is this going to be invite only or black tie, or would you reach out to the general public? It’s so important that you understand the answers to all of these questions because you’re going to need to pinpoint your charity event towards the right people.
4. Look for the venue. Location matters when it comes to your fundraiser, because if you’re going to be running a ball with Masquerade as the theme, then you need to have a venue grand enough and luxurious enough to reflect what you’re trying to achieve. Research, visit and assess a range of locations so that you can find the best one that suits your event properly. Plenty of charity events are held in alternative spaces such as airport hangars, but whether you need a rooftop garden or you need a City Hall, you need to make sure that your location is going to be within your budget.
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5. Find some sponsors. You can start with your inner business circle and work your way outward for this one, but either way you need to target businesses with which you are already engaged. It’s always going to be mutually beneficial for them to become a sponsor for your charitable event because they can then bring in their own clients and customers and help themselves to network. You should also check in with your stakeholders or other board members to see if they might have any sponsor suggestions for this charitable event. Lastly, you should reach out to companies that are sponsoring other nonprofit events in your area to see whether they’d like to sponsor yours as well.
6. Make sure that you market your charity event effectively. Here is where you take the social media, local radio and other PR opportunities to really push the message of your charitable event going into the world. You want everybody who is anybody to be there and to be involved, as well as potentially sponsor. And if you are sponsoring a particular charity, reach out to them as well so that they can also get the message out there that this is what you are doing. Effective marketing practices are really going to elevate the event as well as your business.
