There is nothing more gratifying than knowing that you just threw the event of the season. While party planning seems to be an insurmountable task, you managed to pull it off — and in style. But before you wipe your hands clean, here are five things you should absolutely do after every single event:
1. Send a morning-after email.
Don’t leave your guests high and dry; give the people what they want. Your follow up email should include more than just pleasantries — it should offer something your guests will enjoy and can use. For example:
- A sweet and simple note to thank them for coming
- Links to information on where they can register to receive more information on upcoming events
- A URL to view all of the party photos, videos, and social media posts
- A rundown of the night’s numbers and notables, like total money raised, or notable press articles
- Discounts to places or services you know will come in handy, courtesy of your vendors.
2. Send Thank You Tokens.
Show your attendees and vendors your gratitude with more than just an email. Send them something physical, small, and useful that will remind them of you for years to come.
If you’re feeling very generous, send gifts to your vendors to show how much you value their services. After all, potential clients who feel nurtured make 47% larger purchases than non-nurtured leads.
Putting the effort in now to make your recent guests more permanent fixtures will pay off, because an existing client list is over 10 times more likely to invest in you again than someone who is unfamiliar with you.
3. Keep the wave going.
Don’t hype up your event beforehand just to forget all about it once it’s over. Keep talking about it: ask for feedback on social media, update your website, post high-quality photos.
If you keep the event going for as long as possible in the minds of your attendees, they’ll be more likely to remember it the longer it’s on their personal radar.
4. Evaluate and reflect.
What worked and what didn’t? What are you going to do differently next time? Really sit down and go through the event, detail by detail. Don’t just gloss it over with a ‘what’s next?’ Take advantage of the resources available to you.
Reflective, responsive professionals are twice as likely to show upward growth in their careers than their hurried counterparts, so get out the old notebook and hash that thing out.
5. Strike while the iron is hot.
You’ve just given something to your guests: an event to remember. The glow is still warm in their minds, so now is the time to ask guests to give back. Our attention spans are alarmingly short, so make sure you grab your audience while you can.
Three ideas: email all attendees and ask them to complete a post-event survey (Splash makes this super easy to do), reach out to a few VIPs and invite them to write a quick testimonial, or promote your next event or product. There is no such thing as too soon.
These simple guidelines will take your event postgame from flat to fab in no time.