As the country enters Stage 4 and the lifting of lockdown restrictions, now is the time to pull the trigger on your event planning.

With the easing of restrictions have come an abundance of enquiries from our customers around face-to-face events with an increase in away days, company incentives, social events, training, team building and prior planning for 2022 conferences.

So, we’ve put together this guide to help answer some of the core questions you’ve asked us.

Pilot Events – The Stats

Pilot events have taken place across the UK, to work out just how safe they can be in these almost post-COVID times. Out of the ten events that have occurred, the four that took place in Liverpool have reported zero cases of COVID as a result. These numbers are even more impressive when you take into account that 13,258 people attended Liverpool’s Good Business Festival alone.

Within these pilot events, no masks were required, and social distancing was not mandatory. Only one of the nine events attended resulted in COVID positive tests afterwards, and even then, the number of positive cases was a mere 15.

This is very encouraging and will go a long way to boost delegate confidence when it comes to attending business meetings and corporate activities. Which brings us neatly onto another question we’ve been asked a lot lately.

Is there delegate confidence in returning to live Meetings & Events?

There’s been a massive amount of confusion over the past year, with rules changing and unexpected occurrences becoming somewhat of the norm. And while venues are ready go and companies start rolling out event plans, there is a question around confidence and whether or not delegates feel comfortable attending face-to-face events.

There’ve been leaps and bounds made with the vaccine rollout, and there is a certain amount of fatigue being felt across the board. From Zoom fatigue to general mask-wearing and other restrictions-related fatigue, people are ready to get back to normal as best as they can.

Working remotely has also taken its toll on staff across a number of industries, and for the most part, delegates are desperate for some face-to-face communication and for the stresses of the past year or so to be reduced.

This means that there’s a heightened desire for people to not only meet in the physical realm rather than from behind a screen or over the phone, but to partake in exciting activities and networking opportunities as part of their workplace team.

This is why we’re confident that delegate uptake will be abundant now live events are allowed to return, and that these events will be embraced by the vast majority of people.

And if this isn’t quite the case with some of your team, there are still hybrid event options you can opt for. As well as rural venues and roadshows that could ease people into the idea of returning to real-life activities.

Live Vs Hybrid Meetings – Benefits of Both

There have been many lessons learned in recent times when it comes to the efficiency of meetings. Remote meetings have become much more commonplace and a lot of the time, have proven to be successful.

However, we firmly believe that a real-life meeting is the best option, or at the very least a hybrid meeting, and here’s why.

Engagement – Live meetings are much more vibrant and engaging than a Zoom call. There are no glitches or delays, and the atmosphere can be truly soaked up and built upon with great ideas in person.

Efficiency – Hybrid meetings tackle people’s fear of returning to physical meetings by providing a mixed approach for businesses. With some delegates physically in the room a certain atmosphere can be achieved, while certain members who are unable to come along can still take part relatively effectively.

Connection – There’s nothing like seeing people in person, and while online meetings have their benefits, face-to-face will always prevail when it comes to creating strong connections and offering networking opportunities.

Communication – This boost in connection boosts communication and provides a fertile ground for ideas to grow. It also helps people feel a little more human after such a prolonged period staring at a screen.

Attendance – A hybrid approach means more people are likely to attend, as they don’t all have to worry about commuting or access. You can even have delegates from out-of-reach places around the world attend without leaving their office, so a boost in attendance is a huge benefit of a hybrid approach.

(Zoom) Fatigue

The effects of relentlessly Zooming has taken its toll on almost everyone.

A primary reason for this is that the sheer level of focus required for a Zoom call can be quite intense because there are no non-verbal cues (which are vital for communication) to take note of and react to. That’s without even mentioning technical glitches and awkward silences.

Silences that may lead others to think you’re being less friendly or focused, simply because of a glitch with your computer.

People have had enough of this way of communicating for the most part, and it’s clear to see why. The negatives associated with solely online conferencing are completely eliminated with face-to-face events, and people are eager to get back to it in real life.

Social Events, Incentives, Christmas 2021

Incentives are a brilliant way to get your team of staff motivated, and away days are the ideal method of getting people fired up and passionate about their work. Demand for UK based Incentives are expected to increase in 2022 so plan yours in early.

Bien Venue can tailor make your perfect incentive to meet your requirements and budget.

From summer events to Christmas parties, people have missed out on a lot in the past year and a half so it’s time to let loose and get booked up.

And remember, it’s not too early to plan 2022…

There will be an influx of events being booked so expect venues to be in high demand at the later end of 2021 and start of 2022. This means it’s not too soon to get started, so contact Bien Venue today.

Our dedicated team support you from before your event, during, and after, to make sure everything runs smoothly and that the necessary safeguarding measures are in place, as well as best layouts and any other measures you need to consider.

Have you seen our latest blog
Top Tips for Planning an Event Post COVID?

The key questions:

Are you ready to press play on your event planning?

Can Bien Venue Support with your venue finding or event management?

If Bien Venue can assist in any way whether it be to discuss a new enquiry or discuss your future planning please let us know – sales@bvevents.co.uk

What does Event Management mean to us?

We see event management as any part of the planning process from conception to delivery, it’s not just the onsite event management we specialise in but also the pre-planning and logistics plus post event. Our flexible approach means you can pick and choose which of our services you would like to use or just use our free UK venue finding service.

Bien Venue are a boutique creative agency who specialise in a free UK venue finding service.  It’s not just workshops, training, conferences, or off-site meetings we can arrange and venue search for but also away days, residential training events, awards ceremonies, networking, roadshows, hybrid events, summer parties, Christmas celebrations, private dining, team building, incentives, employee engagement hampers and virtual activities. We also offer accommodation booking platforms for both corporate bookers and event specific allocations of bedrooms

Our re-identified strapline alongside ‘Our Team is Your Team’ is ‘Event Management – Professional, Pro Active with a personal touch’.