Budgeting for your Melbourne
corporate event

Work out your Basic Expenditure

Without this you will usually run over budget, particularly when it comes to last minute bits and pieces. No matter what type of business event you need to understand the following before you do anything else:

• Cost of venue hire
• Rental equipment cost (e.g. projectors, staging, stands, chairs, tables, internet access, speakers etc.)
• Price of speakers or special guests, DJ, compere etc.
• Marketing & promotional cost (this could include leaflets, posters, cost of a marketing agency etc.)
• Printing costs (presentations, documents etc.)
• Catering cost (including staff if necessary)

How to Save Money

Once you understand your operating costs (above) you may want to find ways to cut corners so you can spend a little more money on other things such as entertainment (if this is suitable for your type of event). Or maybe you would like to offer more food options and more drink options? Perhaps you’ve just found out that your operating costs are too high and you need to exercise some cost-control! Here are some things you can do to cut-cost:

• Don’t act on impulse, so don’t get over-excited about extra decorations or choosing very expensive food options if you are on a strict budget. This doesn’t mean you have to skimp on good quality food (speak to Brisk for our corporate event food suggestions on a budget).
• Re-visit your catering. As catering experts we know that no-one wants to put on a corporate party that lacks food. So it is human nature to over-cater. Most of our clients over-order their platters of food, salad, hot finger-food and sweet treats so we would advise that you set up your catering budget and then take off 5%. We will always tell you if you haven’t got enough and cutting your budget by just a little will reduce food waste and save you money!
• Keep a good eye on what you’re spending. Especially if you’re not the only person co-ordinating the business event because if everyone has a hand in the corporate wallet, you might find things spiral out of control. Monitor all the staff involved, have regular meetings, keep a communal spreadsheet and make sure it gets updated every time an amount of money is spent.

Make Money on your Corporate Event

Corporate events are inevitable, you have to entertain clients and customers every now and again and many corporates run regular training seminars, talks or informal gatherings to discuss business. It’s difficult to quantify the actual ROI but understanding what you want to achieve from each event you run helps you to try and measure it. In some cases, it’s even possible to make a return on your investment – or at least make some significant savings.   A training event for your own staff will help them to understand new systems or update an old working practice. Initially this will always be difficult to gauge but long-term the quicker staff adapt to new strategies – hopefully the faster your business will make money.

Some events lend themselves well to an entry fee, for example, a notable guest speaker. In which case when choosing a ticket price, think about your operating costs but don’t be tempted to put a high price on a ticket as you might shoot yourself in the foot and end up with low attendance. This could cost you dearly.