Some things just don’t change like the energy, love and enthusiasm people share over food. For any event to be successful, networking is one of the most important cards to use. Food and Drink Events invite a specific audience and need a particular type of process to conduct it. From small gatherings to giant corporate events, food and drinks are acknowledged by one and all.
Your mantra is to hustle hard, invite more people, generate awareness and increase your footfall to make as many people as you can go – “umm, Yummmm”!
As they say, “Nothing brings people together like good food.”
For you to be able to organize a top-notch event, here are the top seven tips for executing a successful food and drink event:
- Planning and Plotting
Organising a food and drink event is more than just deciding upon your menu. There are a lot of behind-the-scenes efforts needed to reach out and make it successful. Right from planning when, where and how to organise it, it involves leaving behind an experience to remember. Numbers, catering, experience, diners, location and presentation are some of the key features that need to be planned carefully and in detail before organising the event.
- Spread The Word
Utilize the power of the Internet and Social media in making your event and its occuring viral. Using attractive hashtags, conducting short online cooking classes to share a glimpse of the type of food, tagging food bloggers and featuring your event on their page, etc. helps in spreading awareness about the event.
These online cooking classes can be left abruptly announcing the event and a small section in the event can be kept only for live cooking sessions where those leftover dishes can be completed live.
Newspaper advertisements, Social media marketing, SEO for events can also help in spreading the word and increasing the event visibility.
- Choose Your Diners
In events catering to food and drinks, your target audience must involve food critics, food bloggers and food enthusiasts who have an understanding of the topic. Famous critics and bloggers help your event and brand become famous by sharing their experience on social media. Also, inviting a famous or celebrity chef also marks the success of an event since it generates buzz and creates a wider audience.
- Food Is An Experience
In order to highlight your culinary skills, it’s equally important to showcase your presentation skills. The diners, along with remiscining the food, remember the presentation and the experience that stays with them. Music, lights, side dishes, the way they are served, and the way they connect with the food along with the ambience are key features to consider while organising a food and drink event. Other factors like generosity, communication and socialising along with the quality of food matter just as much.
For instance, the turkish ice creams are known for the way they are served instead of their taste. The ice cream maker pranks around with the customers, making them crave the ice cream. That leaves the customer with a fun and memorable experience. Similarly, the concept of nitrogen ice cream, or even that of street food are famous and eventful because of the experience that they leave behind.
- Networking Is The New Success
For any event to be successful, communication plays a major role. The more people you meet, the more aware they become about your event. Writing blogs, posting stories, sharing clips of your event in ongoing cooking classes (so that your audience includes aspiring chefs), etc are great ways to network and increase your contact base. Building networks is an easier task than following up with those contacts. Constant SMSs, emails and social media pings help your event alive long after it’s over.
- Preach Thy Post Event Rituals
One of the most important tips to make an event successful is to follow up on the feedback, suggestions and recommendations. After your event, it is important to hold feedback sessions, Q&A sessions, asking suggestions to your diners and announcing your upcoming events to keep the energy continuing.
Along with the feedback, it is also essential to review your own event and take lessons from any shortfalls.
- Incentivise Your Customers
Promotional activities like holding cooking giveaways or free tickets to the VIP tasting to the lucky winners also help in building contacts for the upcoming events. Offering discounts on early bird registrations, group tickets to increase the number of customers and VIP tickets for esteemed guests also incentivises your customers. Attracting guests through the celebrity influencers and inviting famous chefs also works as an added incentive for your diners to arrive at your event.
- Cater To Building Business Relationships
Collaborations and partnerships in hosting an event will only benefit you in the long run. You get access to not only a wider audience but also, your profits are more secured. Along with that, the risk taking exponent reduces which gives you a greater chance to explore and experiment and dig deeper into your options.
However, it is important to select a partner who shares the risk and financial burdens and maintains cordial relationship.
Nice content.