Choosing the Right Venue For Your Event

Since the pandemic, events have become more popular than ever for brands across all industries. For businesses looking to engage, immerse, and inspire customers and employees alike, events such as galas and dinners are vital. Whether you want to host exciting live experiences or simply bring people together for valuable face-to-face interactions, events help you achieve a range of goals.

But before you tackle all the logistics, checklists, and other elements of event planning. You need to choose your venue. This decision affects pretty much every aspect of the event as it needs to suit your requirements, customers’ needs, and brand identity. But how do you choose your venue?

In this blog, we’ll discuss a few key considerations when choosing a venue.

Venues account for a significant percentage of your overall budget, so it’s important to thoroughly assess and compare the associated expenses. Many factors affect cost when you choose your venue, such as the type of space you need, facilities and amenities required, and seasonality.

Additionally, things like the event location, duration, size, and production all contribute to the overall costs. Therefore, you must consider all of these factors to make the best decisions for your event and to support your goals. And, of course, to make sure you don’t go over budget.

During the planning process, it’s vital to compare a selection of suitable venues as possible to ensure the best value for money, helping to accommodate your budget and needs. Also, if you have no fixed date at present, being flexible can help to negotiate lower costs.

Your venue’s size and capacity greatly impact how happy and comfortable your attendees are. For your event to be a success, the venue’s capacity and legal occupancy need to accommodate the number of attendees without risking overcrowding. This is where estimating attendance using previous events, historical data, and your understanding of your audience can prove to be valuable.

The size and capacity of your venue is not only critical to comply with safety regulations, but also to cultivate an environment that promotes interaction, engagement, and networking. For this reason, creating a plan that aligns your event needs with venue size and capacity is invaluable for maximising success while avoiding potential headaches. Is there enough space for the activities you have planned? Can attendees move freely through the space without feeling crowded?

Another consideration when choosing your venue is its layout. Every event is different and has individual needs and goals. For some, large spaces will cut it, but others may require more dynamic environments to cater for varying requirements. Some venues are better suited for networking and socialising with open spaces and outdoor areas, whereas you may want to focus on unique venues that are more detailed in their style and aesthetic.

The location of your event plays an important role in appeal and attendance due to many practical considerations. For example, you may need to consider airport proximity, public transport routes, and nearby accommodation. Failing to consider these aspects may affect how appealing and viable your venue is for potential attendees. So choose your venue with the location in mind. 

If attendees are concerned about logistical issues, they’re less likely to attend. Those who encounter issues while attending the event may not attend future events due to a poor quality experience, especially if attending requires complicated public transport routes.

When you choose your venue, picking the right location enriches the experience for everyone and reduces the likelihood of logistical problems. A suitable location instantly makes your attendees’ lives easier by ensuring hassle-free accessibility and transport options, rather than a venue in the middle of nowhere that requires additional planning and expense.

Even if you find the perfect venue in the right location, with a layout to suit your every need—it’s not complete unless you have the appropriate facilities. Depending on the type of venue, the available facilities will vary dramatically and affect your ability to put on an event that represents your brand appropriately. Some key amenities include:

• Venue staff: Having experienced and knowledgeable staff at the venue will help you mitigate potential issues and improve event management. Venue staff act as an extension of your own team and can be relied upon to enhance the overall experience.

• Internet: Society is more connected than ever before, and connection is key at events. When you choose your venue, consider all of the devices being connected by attendees and your company. This means you’ll need a strong and reliable wifi connection, which should be tested before and leading up to the event.

• AV equipment: Audio-visual equipment (AV) is a vital component of any event and something to consider when you choose your venue. Some venues will provide AV equipment such as microphones, speakers, and projectors. Setting up and testing your equipment before the event saves invaluable time, so you can focus on key areas that enhance the attendee experience and ensure success.

• Lighting: Your choice of lighting influences the ambience, mood, and energy of your event. You’ll need to make sure you have plenty of lighting options with different settings, which should be tested ahead of time. Lighting can be a powerful tool for setting the atmosphere and enhancing the event’s visual experience.

Branding goes way beyond your website design, tone of voice, and logo. One of the most commonly overlooked aspects of branding is when you choose your venue for an event. Your decision, which may seem more to do with logistics than branding, can have a huge impact on how your company is perceived and remembered.

Think about the events you’ve been to, good and bad, the venue plays a big role in how happy and energised the attendees feel both during and after the event. From first impressions to the moment attendees make their way home, the space should be engaging and provide everything attendees need to enhance their experience.

For brands, it’s essential for the venue to offer a dynamic space where every corner can tell their story. Whether it’s through decor, exhibitions, visual displays, or creative use of the space, your venue choice is essential for your brand’s presence and narrative.

This also extends to the facilities on-site, for example, if your brand promotes outdoor activities you’ll want the space to accommodate this. The same can be said for social areas if you hope to connect with attendees through conversational and immersive experiences.

Choose the right venue with the help of Word on the Street

Partner with Word on the Street to create unforgettable experiences that engage your audience and boost your brand. From choosing the venue to event management on the day, our expert approach offers everything you need—get in touch today!