Aiza Day
Meet and Greets are a thing nowadays. Most companies do this to launch events and product promotion for a starting presence. Even though meet and greets seem unconventional in this time of virtual and technological experiences, it plays a vital role in connections and building alliances for companies. By meeting with various folks in different industries, anyone gets the chance to broaden their sphere of influence. Meeting people means creating new business partnerships, and it becomes a snowball effect wherein a new connection introduces you to another connection and so on.
Because meet and greets can greatly influence how advantageous connections and opportunities are made, it is a vital strategy for companies. No matter how known or not a business is, it is still essential for everyone to be able to talk to other people as this can impose better collaboration among companies.
If you ever want to create a meet and greet event, here are the things that you should do to pull off a successful one:
Set Up Teams
When a meet and greet event pops out, the first thing that you need to do is to assign teams for different committees. The logistics should include the following teams:
The Network Committee – the ones that are tasked to look for guests and contact them for the event. These people are also responsible for sending invitations, following up with guests, and making sure that there are enough people who would attend the event.
The Floor Committee – the people that are responsible for giving a smooth flow on the event area. They should compose of the usher and usherettes to welcome guests, and guide them through the course of the event. Moreover, the floor committee is also required to work hand in hand with the network committee, to find a good event location that is just nearby the invited network. Food is also included with the floor committee together with the handouts for the guests.
The Presentation Committee – this team must create a good program flow to be able to create a fun learning experience for guests. Hence, they are the most essential part of the committee to entice new networks before the individual meet and greet come into place.
Good Timeline for a Meet and Greet
Of course, an event isn’t completed overnight. It always takes time to make everything furnished and stable so it would come about beyond success. With this, it is non-negotiable to set committees months before the event. Here’s a good timeline for a seamless meet and greet:
3 Months Prior – identify the committees, event location, and set the formats for the invitations to your valued guests and teams as well.
2 Months Prior – identify nearby businesses and networks that come in advantage with your company and your guests. Have as many guests as you can, but make sure they are beneficial for each and every one.
1 Month Prior – following up on business and teams is a must. This will remind them of the event, making sure that everyone will go with the plan and guests can earmark their calendars for the said event.
2 Weeks Prior – never ever forget to follow up again. If guests cannot answer email invitations, it is with significance to call them instead.
1 Week Prior – Finalize everything; confirm event area, food, guests, and program flow, as well as the attending manpower. This ensures that everything will be in place, avoiding delays and lacking manpower during the event day.
Meet and Greets are one of the best practices to expand a network. Individual meet and greets may be good, but pooling all the probable networks in one area hits many birds with one stone. Still, it is very essential to plan such an event, to attract more connections for everyone. You might not know it, but perhaps your next meet and greet will be the best one yet.
