What are the keys to a successful business seminar? You are hoping for a concrete answer to this question and that is what we are going to bring you in this article. Because by dint of organizing business seminars for its customers, the UNEXPECTED team knows what to do... and what to avoid doing!

1. Get ready in advance ⏳

A business seminar is between 6 and 9 months of preparation.

As you can imagine, there is a lot to think about.
Here is an overview:

• Write a precise brief if you use an event agency;
• Make a Retroplanning, an essential step in order not to get lost;
• Book the perfect location as soon as possible (some highly requested locations have a limited schedule);
• Book all service providers: caterer, entertainment, photographer, presenter, security, cloakroom, etc.

To better understand the extent of organizing a business seminar, consult our Checklist of the 100 questions to ask yourself when organizing an internal event. You may feel the need to get to work as soon as you finish reading!

2. Determine your goals and budget above all else 💰

Let's not freak out at this impressive to-do-list and let's go back to the beginning.

Do you know accurately Why are you organizing this seminar ?

Is it to present goals achieved and those to come?
To strengthen corporate culture?
To unite teams?
To improve happiness at work?

If the answer to this question seems obvious to you, so much the better.
It will determine the appropriate type of seminar (integration seminar, management seminar, training seminar, incentive seminar...) and will be the common thread for your event.

Second step, and not the least: The budget.

It is essential to first determine the budget and then to do the rest according to it, and not the other way around. Otherwise, you may quickly become disillusioned.

To get an idea, note that a good budget for a residential seminar revolves around 500€/pax/day.

Don't forget to provide for a margin in this budget. Expenditure items are numerous, and organizers often have unpleasant surprises due to costs they forgot.

3. Choosing the destination of your professional seminar 🛬

If you are organizing a residential seminar — knowing that The ideal French seminar is spread over 2 days — you will need to know the destination before even thinking about the location, activities and logistics. Otherwise, you will waste a lot of time imagining all the possibilities.

In a Bird Office survey, 70% of respondents said they preferred seminars in another city. To do this, 58% say they are ready to travel 1 to 2 hours.

Whether you go abroad or decide to stay in France, the watchword is Change of scenery. It is entirely possible to offer a break to your employees without taking them to the other side of the world. For example, we suggest that you discover these 7 places for a green seminar in Île-de-France.

Le Barn, a hotel in the heart of the Rambouillet forest

4. Consider the type of accommodation 🏰

What type of accommodation will be most in line with the values of your company and with the DNA of your event? A 4 or 5 star hotel? A cottage? A more atypical option like a yurt?

Whatever your choice, don't overlook The comfort of your guests. Corporate seminars are often synonymous with fatigue.

However, the choice will be reduced if your seminar has more than 200 people. In fact, it will be necessary to travel on a large carrier (place with a large capacity) such as Mercure or Novotel, and therefore opt for a large city in principle.

To help you, know that the respondents to the Bird Office survey ranked the places that represent for them the seminar of their dream in this order:

• 1. An atypical place
• 2. A castle
• 3. Abroad

Did you know that?

For events lasting several days, 4-star hotels are preferred by 60% of businesses, while two-thirds of them are looking for original locations.

5. Book a variety of activities 🤹🏼 ‍ ♀️

We often hear that it is not possible to please everyone. To contradict this theory, suggest diversified activities: one sporty, one quieter, another creative, a show... The advantage of the seminar is that you have time to plan several of them, making sure to leave free time with self-service activities.

6 examples of activities for a seminar:

• An original and personalized team building, through an escape game or an immersive investigation;
• A specific cooking class (vegetarian, molecular, zero waste...);
• A creation workshop (candles, terrarium, insect hotel...);
• Olympiads combining sports and intellectual events;
• A smoothie bike (self-service activity);
• An original photo animation (self-service activity).

Did you know that?

French employees prefer activities:

• Fun 63%
• Sporty 52%
• Culinary 40%
• Karaoke 10%

6. Do not overlook the content of the plenaries and workshops 💼

Seminars are for fun and relaxation, but not only that.

We also meet to discuss current projects and develop future ones, to brainstorm or to exchange best practices.

Do not hesitate to book in advance for Engage management in order to create the content of your meetings and workshops, which will be in line with the objectives defined beforehand. Do not miss out on the preparation of this content, which you want engaging. This involves, for example, doing rehearsals, possibly soliciting a speaker or guests for the plenary, creating video content in advance, an audio jingle, etc.

7. Teaser internally to engage 💬

Waiting is part of the fun. In his book Newspaper, the writer Jules Renard even wrote: “If you built the house of happiness, the largest room would be the waiting room.”

So, how do you build a beautiful waiting room for your employees?

1. Bet on an original invitation ;

2. If your budget allows it, create a Video teaser ;

3. Keep your guests on the edge of their seats:

• Send it Save the Date as soon as the place is booked (3 to 4 months in advance ideally). If you have the opportunity, take advantage of another professional event such as a kick off at the start of the year or the anniversary of your company to announce your seminar.
• Program frequent reminders via various channels (newsletter, social networks...).

This rhythm will also help you to Reduce no-shows.

8. Create evenings that unite 🎉

According to the Bird Office survey, a seminar is a way to strengthen team cohesion for 81% of the respondents. For 48% of them, it is also an opportunity to Have a good time And of meet new colleagues.

The setting sun will therefore mark the start of the festivities! The evening (s) of your seminar should be unifying and memorable moments. Think big. If possible, find a original evening theme and/or a dedicated space that will impress. Why not go to the beach for example if you are by the sea, or invest the pool in your luxury hotel. Your mission is to create a context that will promote exchanges and good humor. In short, a moment of conviviality!

9. Do not underestimate logistics 📦

Logistics is the lifeblood of a seminar.

A disaster is quick to happen at the slightest bug in your roadmap, whether it's an oversight, a delay or an unexpected event.

It is necessary Think of everything (shuttles, tickets, passports, insurance, meals, etc.) and even more, because in events it is always better to have a plan B or even a plan C. One solution is to surround yourself with good people Tour leader or simply a super event agency, who will think of everything for you!

10. Making memories last 🎬

Finally, don't forget to Book a photographer and/or a videographer to immortalize your event. It can also be used for content for your communication external (promoting your employer brand) and internal (teasing for an upcoming event by showing the success of the event).

All we have to do is wish you good luck! 💪🏼

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https://fr.statista.com/statistiques/715255/budget-moyen-participant-seminaire-residentiel-entreprise-france/

https://blog.bird-office.com/blog/2018/01/15/seminaire-ideal-francais/

Coach Omnium research company