Planning an internal meeting: Event objectives

Please note:
When you’re planning a public meeting as opposed to an internal one, you need to take numerous additional aspects into account, such as participant acquisition, media relations, participation fees, sponsors etc.

Step 1:
The goals of an event point the way to success
 

• Why is the meeting being held? What is the occasion?
  - Information
  - Developing a strategy
  - Customer loyalty
  - etc.
   
• Who will be attending the event?
  - Employees
  - Customers
  - Partners
  - Field staff
  - Executives
  - etc.
   
• About how many people will be attending?
   
• What dates would be ideal?
  - Please note: Trade fairs, holidays, competing events, the availability of important participants, the event’s size and scope (large meetings require longer preparation times than small  ones!) etc. must be taken into account in your planning!
   
• Will the meeting last for one day or several?
  - This question must be answered because of the volume of information to be processed or communicated, as well as the amount of time generally available.
   
• What would be the ideal destination? What are the precise requirements for the destination?
   
• Must it be close to an airport?
   
• What are the transport connections/accessibility like?
  - Should it be a rural or an urban destination?
  - Where will the participants be coming from?
  - Does the destination have the necessary infrastructure?
  - Where has this meeting been held in the past?
   
• What location should you choose?
  - Type of location (a hotel or an unusual event location that communicates a message/a theme?)
  - Requirements for the location (premium or basic, number of stars etc.)
  - Available facilities — are they suitable for the number of participants and the event’s structure, timetable and requirements (e.g. plenary sessions or workshops)?
  - Are additional spaces needed (e.g. for an exhibition, a reception, lunch/dinner, coffee breaks)?
• Must overnight accommodation be available?
  - If the meeting is held at an event location, you may need to reserve hotel accommodation nearby.
  - Upgrades for VIPs
   
• Will transfers or shuttles be needed for groups or individual participants?
  - From the airport or train station
  - From the hotel
   
• How will the meeting be structured?
  - Only a plenary session?
  - Workshops? If so, how many?
  - Seating arrangements?
  - Exhibitions?
  - Get-together areas?
  - Catering?
  - An additional evening event (an extra room or a rearranged space?)?
   
• How should the participant management and the overall communication, from the invitations to the feedback questionnaire, be organized?
  - Does a motto/key visual/central theme already exist, or must it still be developed?
  - Should a corporate design be taken into account?
  - Which aspects should be analogue, which should be digital?
  - Would an event website and/or an event app with information about the event be desirable?
  - How should the participant management be carried out?
   
• How should the event’s content be developed and communicated?
  - Internal and/or external speakers
  - Presenter
  - Workshops
  - Panel discussions
  - Exhibition
  - Interactive meeting formats
   
• What is the available budget?
   
• Will the event be planned and organized in-house or with support from an agency?
   
• Would partner companies like to participate in the event (as sponsors, exhibitors, in presentations etc.)?

Download this checklist here:
Checklist 1a. Event objectives - planning a meeting

Go to step 2: Checklist 2a. Concept & calculation – planning a meeting

Version: 2019
Responsible for the content:
welcome Veranstaltungs GmbH
Frauke Landsberg
www.welcome-events.de