Your next corporate event is around the corner, and excitement is in the air after months of planning. You’ve spent months checking off items: Attendance, speakers, sponsors, agenda, and of course, a delicious menu.

Still, there are a few important details to keep in mind in the months, weeks, and days leading to your event that can help guarantee a smooth experience for everyone involved.

Include these five technology tips in your event planning checklist to ensure a smooth corporate event experience that’ll leave your guests raving.

#1: Don’t Forget to Ask Some Important Questions

Let’s be honest: Technology is critical to the success of your event, from the Internet and Wi-Fi networks, multimedia displays and A/V technology your speakers, attendees and exhibitors will rely on throughout the event. If this is your first time using a particular venue, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the existing architecture, equipment and support available prior to the event.

Here are some technology-related questions you’ll want to ask your venue in advance to avoid potential hiccups:

• Is the venue fully staffed?

• Is there a dedicated technical team onsite and assigned to your event?

• Are the networks and technology dedicated to your event also shared with other guests, other events or with the public?

• Are there separate public and private networks available for your production team and guests? How are those private networks secured?

• Are you in compliance with APAC and EMEA data privacy regulations?

• Does the Wi-Fi coverage extend to all areas of the venue, including outdoor spaces?

Answers to these questions will give you the insight needed to plan for contingencies and help prevent complaints from attendees, speakers, sponsors, and vendors.

#2: Inquire About the Venue’s 5-Year Plan

Each year, as technology progresses, attendees expect events to adapt and improve. If you’re signing a new contract with a venue for a recurring corporate event, it’s important to understand the venue’s 5-year plan regarding its current capabilities and future technology roadmap. The venue you contract with should be committed to supporting not only the technology demands of today’s corporate events but anticipating tomorrow’s as well.

Their roadmap should include:

• Equipment investments

• Infrastructure improvements

• Human capabilities

• Price stability and dependable service standards

• Any future upgrades that might impact or enhance your event

Assurances in these areas before you sign a contract will help provide the confidence that the venue’s capabilities will continue to align with the vision, goals and requirements of your event this year and beyond.

#3: Always Be Prepared

Speaking of potential hiccups, no matter the size of your corporate event, it’s important to prepare for unexpected problems. Having a backup plan will help minimize the frustration of everyone involved.

Be prepared by answering the following questions:

• Does the venue already have a backup plan for emergency situations?

• Who do I contact in case of an emergency, and what are their available hours?

• Is there a dedicated person on my team who can quickly understand the problem and coordinate with the venue and vendors to ensure a fast and effective resolution?

It’s important to keep a master contact list sheet that includes vendor information, Wi-Fi passwords, and any other logistical details that would be helpful in a jam. While this should be digitally accessible to your staff, you’ll also want to print off physical copies and keep them in the planning areas.

#4: Break Things Down Into Thirds

Before the event

Your event is fast approaching. You’ve got your checklists and your backup plans (and maybe backup plans for your backup plans).

Pre-event planning can be the most challenging part and requires the most vigilance. You have to trust the venue’s initial responses to your questions while, at the same time, verifying their claims to the best of your ability.

The Wi-Fi was strong during your initial walkthrough of the venue, but how will it handle a sudden overflow of attendees? Test the connectivity and capacity at the venue in advance, during another event if possible. Consider bringing in outside experts that can validate on-site capabilities. This way, on the day of the event, you can be more confident knowing that your technology will work seamlessly and without delays.

During the event

It’s finally time. Speakers are in the green room, attendees are lining up at registration areas, Wi-Fi signals are going strong, digital signs around the venue look impressive, and you’ve checked off each item on your master prep list.

Successful technical operations during the event will very likely depend on your performance in the following areas:

• Proactive monitoring of all systems and networks

• Readiness of the support staff to react to technical issues and complaints in an effective and timely manner

• Keeping digital screens in sync with the conference, including real-time updates and last-minute changes

• A/V and multimedia support to resolve any content or presentation-related issues for speakers and sponsors

Enlisting adequate support staff for your event and properly equipping them to handle issues and escalations in real-time will help your event run smoothly with minimal crisis along the way.

After the event

Whew, it’s over. Yet, the job isn’t done. After the event, it is important to assess the overall satisfaction of attendees, speakers, sponsors and exhibitors, as well as the performance of the venue, your teams and outside vendors. One way to do this is by conducting post-event surveys. This feedback provides valuable data that can help in determining areas for improvement and inform planning decisions for future events.

#5: Form a Technology Advisory Council

In the run-up to a recent large corporate event for a Fortune 100 company, the event planning team encountered an issue with vendor coordination that threatened the success of the event.

Experts from Xpodigital were brought in to manage the Internet and Wifi networks and already had solid working relationships with event management partners and stakeholders but not with registration, A/V, or the general sessions. In response, Xpodigital formed a technology council and urged all technology vendors to add members to the council.

The result? The event technology worked as planned, guests and sponsors were impressed, and the event went smoothly. This is the power of coordination facilitated through a technology advisory council.

Rely on Experts You Can Trust

From having a backup plan to breaking things down into thirds, the five technology tips offered in this article can help you ensure your next corporate event is a hit. To avoid unnecessary stress and piling any more on your plate, consider partnering with technology experts like Xpodigital.

For over 20 years, world-class event planners and major venues have turned to Xpodigital to help design, install, manage and support their critical Internet and Wi-Fi networks in order to optimize their events, free up valuable resources and improve the attendee experience. Learn more at: https://www.xpodigital.com/event-technology