Corporate events can build brand recognition, strengthen teams, create new connections, and provide numerous other benefits for your business. It’s critical that while focusing on improving your business’s success, you consider the environmental impacts of your events.
Creating sustainable business events proves to your employees, customers, and potential customers that you’re serious about protecting the environment for current and future generations. Embrace the following ideas to help minimize the environmental impact of your upcoming corporate events.
Choose the right venue and vendors
A sustainable venue can help you create a more environmentally friendly event without adding too much extra work to your plate. A qualified sustainable event venue will already have practices in place to save water and energy while keeping as much waste as possible out of landfills.
Choose vendors that locally source their food and beverages. A sustainable vendor will steer clear of single-use plastics and ideally implement a no-waste catering policy. Your event venue may be able to recommend sustainable vendors from their local network.
Go hybrid
Taking your event online can be an effective way to reduce its environmental impact. However, going fully virtual depletes some of the team building and connection benefits associated with in-person events. Going hybrid may be the ideal solution.
A hybrid event is a blend of an in-person gathering and a virtual event. Individuals who cannot attend in person can log online, widening the audience base while decreasing carbon emissions due to transportation, accommodations, venue energy use, and more.
Go paperless
Event invitations, maps, schedules, and other essential event documents are typically printed on paper that eventually gets tossed in the trash. Reduce paper waste by sending electronic invitations and notices. Or create a comprehensive event app that includes all the information your attendees need, including PDFs of important materials, maps, event calendars, and more.
Eliminate throw-away swag
Corporate swag can be an excellent advertising tool, but it’s ineffective if your attendees never use it. Unused swag items contribute to the waste caused by business events while costing your business money.
Upgrade your swag and increase your attendees’ chances of using it by running surveys before the event to learn which products your attendees prefer. You may even let them choose their swag online before or after the event. Charitable donations, in place of traditional swag, are other options that have strong positive impacts on the communities they touch.
Green Event Planning Can Be Easy
Green event planning doesn’t have to be a hassle. With the right venue, vendors, and a few changes to your prior event planning tactics, you can create sustainable events that benefit your attendees and your overall brand content strategy.
