I know from some of my clients this year that booking their holiday party was hard. Venues catering and entertainment was all hard to find. So that is why I suggest starting to plan now! Read the article and go find a caterer! Then book me early as some 2023 holiday dates are already flying off calendar!
Tips for planning your next Company Holiday Party!
Planning successful social events takes time and patience. But the effort also gives you a chance to shine. One of the best ways to demonstrate your good judgment and your planning ability is to help plan a party that people will be talking about all year long.
Start Planning Now In most cases the planning should be at least 6 months in advance if not more. Most restaurants and caterers have their menus ready months in advance. Many venues are booked a full year in advance and good quality entertainment can be booked up to 1 year in advance!
1. What type of party is appropriate for the occasion? (casual get-together, banquet, buffet, dance, etc.)
2. Are you hosting this event during the work week?
3. Where will it take place? (office, hotel or restaurant)
4. Who is footing the bill? (company or the employees)
5. Set the date.
If the event will be formal or if a lot of people will be attending, you may want to hire a caterer. This will save you an enormous amount of time because once the essential decisions about the party are made, you can let the caterer handle the details.
Here are some suggestions if you decide to go the catering route:
1. Shop around. If you have never hired a caterer and have no recommendations to fall back on, check with the home office. They may recommend two or three reputable caterers in the area that are suited to your needs.
2. Make sure the caterer you choose is licensed has liability insurance and a permit. Feel free to ask for references, a reliable business shouldn’t mind.
3. When you’re considering price quotes from caterers make sure you’re getting what you pay for, i.e. one caterer may serve frozen pizza that you could easily buy in a grocery store, while another may prepare it fresh.
4. See if the caterer can prepare an assortment of interesting foods and Hor D’Oeuvres. People like to be able to pick and choose. You may also want to take dieters and those with known health issues into consideration and have vegetables, fruits and salads or even special dishes, such as low-cholesterol recipes
5. Go over the details once you decide on a caterer, you need to take the time to discuss your plans in detail so the caterer knows exactly what you want. For a company party, the presentation can be extremely important. The best company parties are often somewhat simple, but elegant.
6. Make sure you get a signed Catering Agreement outlining job responsibilities, total cost of your event, deposit and additional fees for setup and decorations. If there’s room in your party budget, you might consider having the caterer supply a staff to serve and clean up so you can enjoy the party.
7. When deciding on the menus consider using seasonal dishes. Quality and price are the main cost saving advantages.
Alcohol or Wine Because of the potential legal liabilities, more and more companies are serving wine or champagne instead of having a full bar. Make sure employees are reminded of the State Laws and Company policy on Alcohol and Drugs. Besides cutting down on legal problems, it helps to keep party expenses down. A champagne punch is a good choice for a holiday party.
The Forget-Me-Nots Don’t forget the little things. Once the major details are worked out, make arrangements for often overlooked essentials, such as ice. It’s the first thing that people run out of so buy extra. You can always through out what’s left over, but you’ll have a problem if you run out of it at the party.
Try and give the caterer an accurate count of people attending. Caterers usually take into account a few extra people. But if there’s gross misjudgment you’ll run out of food. And nobody wants to run out of food.
You should be ready to have a great time and shine for all your efforts in making this a successful event to remember.