withit Event planning

Here are some suggestions and ideas for executing your events. Everyone starts small and builds a community with each event over time.

For each event, consider the following:

  1. Secure Speaker/Program
  2. Site/Catering – Any contracts must originate from national Headquarters.
  3. Budget
  4. Get a Sponsor – financial, site, food & beverage
  5. Alert National Headquarters to Invoice Sponsors, add events to calendar, and manage registrations.
  6. Expenses (invitations, postage, etc)

You may submit receipts to Amy Van Dorp for reimbursement from your chapter funds, OR ask for a disbursement from your Chapter funds before making purchases.

 

Publicity

Notify Executive Director with details for announcement in WithIt newsletter and to set up online registration.

Produce invitations or announcements:  Evite, email blast, personal emails or text chain.

At the Door

  • Free of charge? Nominal fee? Donation? Any fees or donations come back to national headquarters for later chapter use.
  • Greeters
  • Business Card Bowl OR Sign-In sheets (to capture email addresses)
  • Scholarship donation bowl?

Materials

  • Headquarters supplies: membership brochures, pins, special swag, eblasts to members
  • Region supplies: people, ideas

 

More Ideas:

  • Monthly luncheon series: Set a repetitive date such as the first Wednesday or first Friday of every month at a central location. This gathering can have several purposes: networking, educational with a luncheon speaker (invite industry trend makers, designers, community leaders, etc.). Use a luncheon as a time to plan for programming in the chapter. Keep these luncheons to no more than an hour and a half.
  • Educational seminars tailored to your chapter’s interests. Do you have mostly designers? – go for trends. Lots of sales representatives? – ways to more effectively manage your territory. Don’t feel you have to always create the seminar yourself. You can piggyback with something going on in your area. Check the seminars given at your local market center, chamber of commerce, or business organization and organize a group to attend together.
  • Member-led Seminar: Have your chapter plan an event utilizing the expertise of one of your local chapter members to present.
  • Lunch & Learn: Dialogue in the round with other members to get answers to business questions with in-depth discussion of the programs theme.
  • Membership drive: Mystery Wines and New Connections: Wine tasting and program to introduce WithIt to prospects. Each member attendee brings a prospect.
  • Networking: For novice networkers, a short introduction to networking with some practice exercises and pointers that will help to get you started.
Share This