Category: Operations

Everywhere you look, events are changing, and this is definitely the case when it comes to corporate ones too. From attendee engagement to décor, unique qualities are being added to help make these types of events even more exciting and engaging for the attendees.

It’s becoming increasingly important for companies to offer their guests a distinguished experience and here are just some of the ways in which the corporate event world is changing:

Finding New Venues

Traditionally, hotels were the most sought after places for corporate events as they were easy to book and ideal for gathering various amounts of people. However, many companies are now trying to find venues that give their gatherings a special edge (see examples at https://poet.co/venues/) opting for things like theme parks, casinos, concert venues and private houses. Some will even bring activities to their events, hosting murder mystery parties, for example.

These are proving successful because it provides more of an impact on the attendees, increasing the growth of attendance and prolonging the longevity of a company’s conferences. With memorable experiences created not only are the attendees impressed but the hosts have some great PR and promotional tools as a result.

Transforming a Venue

A lot of companies are also looking for different ways that they can add to the décor of their venue, adding more than just company banners to bring their branding to the location. Instead, they enlist the help of specialist décor companies who can bring fun games, experiential booths, furniture and linen to create a space that has the wow-factor for guests.

Because a corporate event is a prime marketing activity for any company, getting creative when it comes to the décor can really add to the overall impact. It helps add to the brand loyalty created with these types of events and will also help to engage employees. Plus, the more unique an event can be, the more media attention it will receive.

Getting Attendees Engaged in the Event

Another increasing trend is higher attendee engagement. Rather than letting attendees just sit and listen (and potentially switch off) for hours on end, the attendees are becoming a part of the event. This engagement can be found in things like audience participation through voting systems, video conferencing and live-feeds. Some may even use hashtags, specific apps and workshops.

Getting attendees involved in the event will help to provide them with a better experience. They’re more likely to learn something from the event when they’re involved in it as opposed to just sitting and looking at a presentation.

Going High-Tech

It’s perhaps not a surprise that many event organizers are using high-tech features within their events. Alongside the standard Wi-Fi and presentation tools needed, businesses are also focusing on more intuitive technology that will create a unique experience in their event. These include social media networking that happens whilst guests are attending the event (e.g. hashtags on Twitter), contests and surveys, language translation in real-time, navigation and GPS assistance for getting to the location, apps that feature workshops and presentations, information kiosks, and video feeds that can be watched on demand.

The possibilities really are endless when it comes to incorporating technology at a corporate event and it helps to get all of the guests involved and engaged with the activities. It personalizes the experience whilst allowing the hosts to get in touch with each of their guests, updating them on the event and keeping them in the loop.

Going Organic

As increasing amounts of pressure are put on companies to become sustainable, many corporate events are now using environmentally-friendly products, including food and the materials used in the décor. Some planners are also using their events to promote local produce, presenting themselves as a company that’s responsible and caring.

As a company is on show at an event like this, it’s important that they demonstrate how they’re part of the bigger picture. By showing commitment to local causes and by being responsible when it comes to the environment, they’re showcasing themselves as a company who’s dedicated to making a change. Many attendees will be looking for this, keen to see that a company is supporting other local businesses as well as the environment.

On the whole, corporate events are continuing to change. Gone are the days of traditional, stuffy environments where all attendees are bored to tears with presentations. Instead, companies are providing creative, unique event opportunities that engage attendees and provide a more rewarding experience.

About the Author:

Stephen McKnight works in the business events industry and can be found around the web sharing his tips and thoughts to help startups, as well as already established businesses get noticed.

Reading through third-party reviews has become an important part of the buying process for customers these days.

No matter what you do and what industry you are involved in, there is a good chance that customers will be leaving reviews about your business somewhere. This is great, because positive reviews are a powerful form of social proof that can help to give your business a boost.

But what about the negative reviews?

Unfortunately, all businesses will receive some negative reviews. There is just no way around it, and there is nothing you can do to avoid picking up a few. After all, you can’t keep everyone happy all the time.

But you must not worry too much about negative reviews. In fact, you can even turn them around and turn them into a business asset if you’re careful.

Here’s how.

Show How Seriously You Care About Your Customers

Every business owner hates seeing a negative review on online review sites. There is nothing worse than a big one-star review publicly splashed all over a review site for all the world to see, a blemish on your perfect record.

But the fact that the review is in the public eye provides you with an opportunity to show other potential customers just how much you care about them.

In fact, you can use it as an opportunity.

Start by finding the comment or review quickly by using a reputation management tool like Chatmeter. You don’t want to let reviews sit around for days before reacting, and a fast response time is crucial.

Then reply directly to the comment. Apologize for the negative experience, and explain that you want to help resolve the situation.

If the customer does not accept and tries to turn it into a public dispute, you may want to shift the focus to a private conversation. But by making a clear show that you want to help your customers, you will be showing other potential customers that their opinion matters, that  their experience matters, and that you are a business to be trusted.

This can be great for your brand.

You may even find that the situation can be resolved quickly and easily. The person who left the negative review may change their original review, and they could even turn into a loyal customer. They may then tell their story to others about how you helped them, boosting your reputation further.

Everyone understands that things go wrong from time to time, even with the very best companies. The odd negative review is not going to put people off doing business with you, but how you respond to that review could very well help generate more business.

Use Negative Reviews to Improve Your Business

Most businesses would agree that you need online reviews these days. And while some negative reviews will be completely unfair, most of them will merely be criticism of something that clearly isn’t working.

Don’t run from criticism—embrace it instead.

You can use criticism to work out what is going wrong and to make improvements to your service. You may already ask your customers for feedback on their experiences, and negative reviews are just another form of feedback.

If numerous customers leave negative comments about how slow your delivery is, this is not something to ignore. Instead, use this information to make changes. Find out what is going wrong and how you can improve it.

This will lead to not only more positive reviews, but more positive customer experiences, more recommendations, and more repeat customers.

Take Full Responsibility

Honesty is refreshing. People—your customers—love honesty in businesses. So when you do something wrong, when you make a mistake, own up to it.

When a service falls well below expectations, don’t try to hide it. Don’t try to bury it. If you do, it could come back and hurt you even more.

Instead, admit the mistake. State clearly that you are going to improve the service, that you understand it is unacceptable, that you take your performance seriously, that you want to provide the best you can.

Customers will thank you for it—and you may just convince them to return to your business.

Don’t Be Scared of Negative Reviews

Negative reviews don’t always have to mean doom and gloom for your business. No one wants to see negative reviews, but how you deal with them can make all the difference.

These are some of the ways that you can take ownership of your negative reviews and turn them around to your advantage, so make sure you start taking your reviews seriously.

That means seeking them out, keeping a close eye on what people are saying about your business, and reacting to negative reviews quickly and professionally.

Then you can start to take advantage of them rather than living in fear of every negative review you get.

About the Author:

Collin Holmes, founded Chatmeter, Inc in 2009 and serves as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Holmes is a graduate of the University of California, Riverside and graduated with an MBA from San Diego State University. Prior to Chatmeter, Mr. Holmes served as Vice President of Product Management and Director of Product Marketing for xAD, Inc. (LocalAdXchange) (also known as V-enable). Mr. Holmes comes with a couple decades of overseeing and developing product roadmaps, business development and managing the process of driving applications to market.

No workplace is without risks; employers have a duty of care to identify and mitigate hazards that may affect their employees in the workplace. Conducting a risk assessment is quick and easy: here are five steps to completing a thorough risk assessment.

STEP ONE – Identify the hazards

You can identify potential hazards in the workplace by carefully inspecting the work stations in your business, consulting accident and near-miss reports, and by interviewing employees and asking whether they have identified any hazards. You will also need to pay particular attention to any disabled or pregnant staff you have in your care; aspects of the work environment which are not hazardous to most staff may pose a considerable risk to these individuals.

Typical hazards in an office setting include wet floors (either due to spillages in kitchens or bathrooms, or as a result of cleaning) and bad posture as a result of sitting for prolonged periods.

STEP TWO – Identify those at risk

If wet floors are a problem, all staff are likely to be at risk; if the hazard is bad posture, staff who sit at their computers for long periods are most likely to be affected. Staff who regularly engage with demanding clients may be at risk of stress – an emotional hazard.

STEP THREE – Evaluate the risk

Consider how likely it is that the risk will be realised; in the case of staff who sit at computers for long periods, the likelihood of a problem associated with bad posture (such as back or neck ache) occurring is high. Other risks – such as the risk of staff badly burning themselves on the office kettle – are much less likely to happen, but will still need to be mitigated.

STEP FOUR – Devise processes to mitigate risks

Think carefully about how you can reduce your risks. The most effective means of protecting your staff is to eliminate risks entirely; if the problem is a dodgy shelf that is overloaded and likely to fall, get rid of the shelf. If eliminating the risk is not possible, the next best thing is to mitigate it. Help to evade the problem of slipping on wet floors by using appropriate signs to alert staff to the fact that areas are wet; put signs up in recreational areas such as bathrooms and kitchens to remind staff that the water is likely to be hot. Any hazard that can be found in a work area will have an accompanying safety sign.

STEP FIVE – Record your findings and retain for future references

Once you have completed your risk assessment and have identified all the hazards in your environment, the staff they are likely to affect, and how you should endeavour to mitigate them effectively, record your findings and keep them filed for future reference. As well as providing proof that a risk assessment was conducted, the record will also provide a basis for future risk assessments and discussions. Risk assessments must be repeated regularly to ensure that the safety procedures outlined are effective, and that no new risks have cropped up and been missed.

For many start-up owners and entrepreneurs, the concept of delegating initially seems like a bad idea. It’s hardly a surprise, the nature of the start-up game is that you grow your business from concept to completion. This means being involved in every aspect of the company, the inner workings of the day to day.

It can be difficult to step back and allow someone else to ‘mess with your masterpiece.’ But to be a truly successful start-up, at some point you have to see the bigger picture. This means outsourcing smaller jobs in order to focus on growing and solidifying your business.

Read on to find out four business tasks your start-up should be delegating.

1. Office Admin

Easily one of the most time consuming tasks for any new start-up is office administration. It’s a necessary part of the day to day business, but one that can be quite the distraction. While you’re covering payroll, chasing invoices, making travel arrangements and ordering stationery, the rest of your business is stuck on pause. With so many qualified office workers available on community marketplaces like Airtasker, outsourcing office admin is an absolute no brainer. Be thorough about what is required, the systems you use and the level of experience necessary. But delegating your office work is guaranteed to pay dividends in the long run.

2. Market Research (Surveys, Data Collection, Research)

Start-ups often operate on the basis of what the marketplace needs. An entrepreneur will identify a gap in the marketplace or a potential for improvement on an existing product, then look to capitalise. So knowing what the marketplace is thinking and feeling is a crucial part of running a start-up. Take this ability into your own hands by outsourcing your research online. Find a digital army ready and willing to help. You can hire people to fill out surveys, do a targeted letter drop, collect data door-to-door or complete a trial run of your new product.

3. Product/Website Testing

When it comes to finding success as a start-up, first impressions count. So if you’re looking to launch a new product or website, you want the initial feedback to be full of glowing appraisal. But rather than hiring an external firm to carry out tests on your product or website, why not go direct to the source yourself? By outsourcing the testing phase, you are tapping directly into your marketplace and getting instant feedback from the consumer. Outsourcing also allows you to specify the demographic you want to reach and liaise with them immediately about what they like, dislike and would change about your product.

4. Public Relations

Any business can benefit from a little good press now and then. If you’ve recently made a major development, landed a new client or launched a product, the more people that know about it, the better off you’ll be. But running a highly effective and specialised press campaign can be a big ask when you’ve got the rest of your business to worry about. Outsourcing your public relations is a great way to ensure you’ve got positive word of mouth, without compromising your own development. Whether you engage a PR firm or opt for an individual contractor, you can find a professional who will work magic in the media for your business.

Technology is a major part of any business these days. Regardless of what type of business you’re running, there’s many appliances you can invest in to enhance the workplace. From help with printing and labelling, to keeping employees happy and refreshed – here you’ll discover some of the most useful appliances you can use in the workplace.

Printers/Label machines

First up we have what may seem as an obvious choice – printers. However, these days there are a LOT of different types of printers out there and your main dilemma isn’t choosing between ink and laser anymore. Instead, you have to take a lot of different factors into account.

For example, did you know slow printers take as much as 17 minutes per employee out of each working day? This is a lot of wasted time over the course of a year! So, making sure you have a fast printer that’s especially designed for business use is essential.

Don’t ignore the importance of label printers too. They may seem pretty small, but a label printer can be really convenient in the workplace. You can use them to keep things more organised, or to mark products up for sale.

Multi-dock chargers

Multi-dock chargers can prove essential for businesses who rely upon smartphones or tablet devices. Allowing them to be charged simultaneously, you can leave employee devices to charge overnight, ready for the morning. It’s a simple, yet very useful appliance that can save a lot of stress throughout the working day.

Energy consumption gadgets

Are you worried about how much energy your business is using? There are clever devices available that can tell you exactly how much energy various appliances are using. Not only that, but some can even be controlled to turn appliances on and off at specific times, such as air conditioning and heating systems. These give you a great opportunity to really cut down your energy bill and protect the environment at the same time.

A back up router

If your workplace relies heavily upon the internet, it’s worth having a back-up in case it ever goes down. There are routers that you can invest in which come with built in 3G and 4G capability. So, if wireless does stop working, you can switch to 3G or 4G connections until it’s up and running again.

Overall, there are many different types of appliances out there that can be really beneficial to the workplace. The above are just some of the ones you’ll want to consider.