Budgeting is one of the key elements of successful corporate event management. Without the right budgeting, it’s impossible to achieve your goals and everything you’ve planned for, whether it’s a small event or the largest conference your company hosts.
However, another thing about budgeting is that it can be complicated and overwhelming. Not to mention the possibility of sudden increases in prices due to inflation, and other emergencies. So, before diving into corporate event budgeting, you should prepare yourself first.
In this article, we’ll give you some tips on how to budget corporate events effectively.
1. Define Your Event Objectives
What are the event objectives? If you’re aware of the main objectives of the event, it’s easier to plan and allocate the resources accordingly. For instance, if the event is a virtual seminar, you can focus on investing more in technical support, especially since you won’t need a venue.
On the other hand, if it’s a team-building, you need a lot of budget for the food and the venue, so that the participants can enjoy.
2. Create a Detailed Budget Template
Having a detailed budget template is another thing you should try. Start from the key elements of the event. From there, you can incorporate sub-categories, until you reach the smallest thing you need to pay for.
For instance, your main category is divided into venue, food, audio/visual, marketing, and logistics. You can add sub-categories to the venue, such as actual rental fees and additionals. As for the food, you can add subcategories, like catering, and cost for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
3. Research and Get Quotes
One of the things corporate event management requires is to start getting quotations as early as possible. This allows you to compare the prices, and make informed decisions in what store or vendor to consider when it’s time to finalise the budget plan.
When searching for vendors, you can start by looking online but don’t forget to check the reviews or feedback from their past clients before considering a vendor. If their service looks promising, you can schedule a consultation, and get the quotations. Usually, vendors give discounts to early reservations, so you should also take it into account.
4. Set Realistic Budget Limits
Once you understand the costs of each element of the corporate event you’re planning, you can then set a realistic budget limit. Of course, it’s essential to update and adjust the budgeting as you move forward, but setting realistic budget limits can significantly help with controlling the overall costs of the event.
5. Get Sponsorships and Partnerships
Considering partners and sponsors is a great way to stay away from the stress you may encounter as you move forward. Usually, partnerships and sponsorships are offered to other companies related to your company. Since they also strive to provide services to the same audience, collaborating with them makes a lot of sense.
When looking for sponsorships, you should also invite them as early as possible, so that you can include their contributions in finalising the event budget.
6. Consider Fixed and Variable Costs
Another thing you should categorise when accounting for the budget is the fixed and variable costs. The fixed costs include the things that the price won’t change no matter the number of attendees. An example of fixed costs include the sound system, there’s no need to add more once the venue is finalised.
Meanwhile, the variable costs may vary depending on whether there are more or fewer attendees. Usually, the event planners include a bigger budget if they think there’ll be additional guests as the event date approaches.
7. Track Your Expenses Closely
As you move forward, tracking the expenses is essential. It allows you to make the necessary adjustments. So, every step of the way, you should review the budget, if there are spending adjustments to make, you should do so.
For instance, if you notice that you need to increase ticket prices to cover all necessary costs, then don’t hesitate to do so. However, you should make the price adjustments before releasing the ticket price.
8. Build in a Contingency Fund
In every event, there are unexpected situations where you need to spend more money. Unfortunately, if you have a tight budget, it may be impossible to cover the said emergency. So, whether you have a tight budget or not, allotting a specific budget for emergencies is a must. Fortunately, if there are no emergencies, you will still have additional funds you can use for other important matters.
9. Conduct Post-Event Analysis and Review
The budgeting doesn’t end when the event does. It’s important to have a post-event review and analysis of the actual cost and the budget you’ve created. It allows you to assess whether you made a profit or loss.
Aside from that, the post-event analysis can also help with future corporate events, as you can calculate things more accurately.
Final Thoughts
Corporate event budgeting requires attention to detail, careful planning, and the ability to make adjustments. Additionally, by incorporating these tips into your planning process, you can create a successful budget plan.
Let us know your thoughts about this by commenting below!
