Planning Your Best Summer Outing Ever and Staying on Budget
With the continued rebound of the economy, now is the time to start planning your 2010 summer outing. Windy City Fieldhouse (WCF) remains committed to Delivering Exceptional and Memorable Client Experiences focused on meeting your event’s unique goals and objectives in a fun and innovative setting – all while staying within your budget. To accomplish this goal, WCF must proactively assist its clients in planning for their upcoming summer outing – typically the largest event of the year and the one requiring the most planning. WCF once again provides its annual guide to planning a unique and memorable summer outing. With some new editions and twists, read on to help plan your best summer outing ever.
As the winter weather takes hold of the Chicagoland area, WCF is already busy working with clients planning and selecting their 2010 summer outing. Even though some of its many longtime clients were unable to hold a summer outing in 2009, most of them along with the 2009 summer picnic clients are returning for their summer outing in 2010. Over the past 12 years, WCF has planned and executed over 1,600 corporate summer picnics and outings for clients including JP Morgan, Seyfarth & Shaw, IBM, Allstate, USG, James McHugh Construction Company, Fortune Brands, Children’s Memorial Hospital, and more. Even during the economic downturn in 2009, WCF planned and executed over 200 summer picnics and outings. Through its experiences with summer outings and client feedback, WCF has identified key components of the decision-making process clients should consider to ensure their summer outing matches the mission and objectives of the event while maximizing value, participation and fun. Most importantly as the economy continues to rebound, don’t wait! Many clients are already booking their summer outings to guarantee the location and date of their choice.
Mission & Objectives
The first step in the decision-making process is defining the summer outing’s key mission
and objectives. Without determining these elements, it is virtually impossible to plan and
select an event that maximizes participation, fun and value for employees and guests of all
ages. WCF takes each client through a series of questions designed to help identify some key
goals for the event.
Some of the questions to consider in this step include:
- What is the budget for the event?
- Is a focus of the event to build camaraderie and goodwill amongst employees and/or employees and their families?
- Is the event focused on enhancing relationships amongst employees?
- Is the event strictly to reward employees?
- Is the priority on younger employees (generally without families) or those employees with families or both?
- If the priority is on both, how will the needs of the different groups be addressed?
Once objectives are determined, the planning and selection process for the ideal summer outing begins.
Weekday vs. Weekend Events
The next step in the decision-making process is determining if the event is to occur on a
weekday or weekend. With benefits to either option, the mission and objectives determined by
the client drive this decision. For instance, a company looking to provide a highly engaging
and entertaining event for employees and their families would prefer to host a weekend event to
ensure family members are able to attend. However, clients who want to guarantee a high
employee attendance rate and want to focus on building relationships amongst employees are likely
to choose a weekday event. In addition, weekday events are typically less expensive since
family members do not attend.
Day vs. Evening Events
After selecting the day of the week, clients must choose the best time of day
to hold the event. Traditionally, summer picnics are held in the afternoon taking advantage
of the warm weather, time off work during the week and the optimum time for family members of all
ages to attend, just to name a few. However, a recent trend towards evening picnics held from
5:00-9:00 PM has proved popular with many WCF clients. Evening picnics are a good choice for
many companies for a variety of reasons such as cooler weather, lower costs, larger range of
available dates and more!
Whether selecting a traditional afternoon picnic or opting for the newer
evening picnic trend, clients must make sure to match the advantages of each to fit their
needs.
Exclusive Interactive Event vs. General Admission Event
With the day of the week and time selected, the next step is choosing the
type of event: an exclusive interactive event vs. a general admission event. Exclusive
interactive events are private events strictly for the company, such as private summer picnics,
company softball tournaments and interactive receptions.
These events provide a great environment for internal networking and enhance relationships
between the company, the employees and their families. On the contrary, general
admission events take place in public environments such as amusement parks and zoos. These
events focus less on the relationships between the company, the employees and their families and
more on providing free admission to a destination.
More and more companies are selecting exclusive interactive events as the best return on investment. Both event types are intended to reward employees, however exclusive interactive events are much more likely to also motivate employees while enhancing employee morale and camaraderie. In addition, exclusive interactive events tend to develop goodwill with the employees’ families since the entire group is together (or in the same area) throughout the event as opposed to being spread throughout an enormous public area.
|
"Everyone had an amazing time. The event was awesome I am so glad that
we decided to have it outside in spite of the weather. Your team did a great job, the food
was great, we had a blast playing softball/volleyball, and it was a really good event. We
definitely want to do something like this on an annual basis. Special thanks to you for
getting all this set up. We received the digital pictures and it reminded us of how much we
enjoyed ourselves. We look forward to doing business with you soon."
- Big Ten Networks |
Book Early
Now that you’ve selected the details of your event, it is imperative to start
the process of booking your event early.
Certainly one of the key ingredients to a great event is booking the
location and date of your choice.
With thousands of proposals sent each year, you must request your proposal early – no later
than February of each year and preferably sooner. Plus, if you book early enough,
WCF is the only company in the industry to provide you with a
CUSTOMIZED PICNIC WEBSITE including your logo, itinerary, menu, maps and even an
area for post-event digital photos taken by WCF during the picnic. Returning clients have
their photos posted from last year’s event. Visit PicnicsInChicago.com/client_site to view a
sample website.
5 GREAT WAYS TO SAVE ON YOUR SUMMER PICNIC!WCF offers a variety of innovative and creative ways to save on your next summer outing. Here are just a couple great ways to save:
Call your sales representative today to find out about THREE MORE GREAT COST-SAVING ideas! |
Now that you are ready to book your outing, here are some key factors when selecting the company to best execute your next summer event…
Award-Winning Experience: Selecting a company with the experience to handle every aspect of planning the event, selecting trusted quality vendors and making your event run seamlessly with no hassle for you is a key element to a successful event. For example, taking advantage of WCF’s experience gained from executing over 1,600 picnics and outings is priceless. Voted Chicago’s #1 Team Building and Entertainment Company for 3 consecutive years, WCF is the best in the industry at finding the right venue for your needs, selecting the best trusted, quality vendors and creating an interactive and engaging environment for all ages by providing the right number of staff and activities throughout the event.
Activities for All Ages: Find a vendor who provides activities for all age groups attending the event. A key element of WCF picnic packages is separately targeting each age group to meet its specific needs. To ensure each group has entertainment, WCF divides the entertainment into four main categories: “Interactive Relays”, “Facilitated Traditional Sports”, “Passive or Walkup Entertainment” and “Entertainment Add-ons”. Regardless of each attendee’s interests, WCF provides an array of activities capable of entertaining everyone.
Premier Venues:
Location! Location! Location! Location is the key to an event and an element
that requires a planner with access to the right venues. WCF has access to the best private
venues in Chicago –
CITY & SUBURBS. From the incredible facilities at the University of
Illinois at Chicago (UIC), located within blocks of the Chicago Loop, to locations throughout the
suburbs,
WCF has access to the premier picnic grounds in the Chicagoland area. If
desired, WCF transforms your company’s property into your own private picnic grounds.
Hassle-Free Planning:
Find a vendor that allows you to focus on enjoying your event and mingling
with your employees and co-workers. WCF is a great example of a company that handles every
detail. From acquiring permits and selecting the caterer to adding interactive entertainment
and facilitated activities, WCF’s team handles all the details of your event so you don’t have to
worry. WCF is a “one-stop shop” for coordination of your entire summer outing. You just
sit back, relax and enjoy the event. Best of all, you get all the credit!
Cost-Conscious Planning: Many options exist for cost savings that still allow for an amazing event. Find a vendor who knows how to meet your budget but not reduce the value of your event. While WCF can’t fit every budget, it utilizes its years of planning experience to maximize your summer picnic budget and provide your company the best RETURN ON ITS INVESTMENT.
Solution: Select a WCF Interactive Summer Picnic! WCF offers award-winning experience, activities for all ages, premier venues and knowledge to provide the most effective, cost-conscious planning in the industry. Taking advantage of WCF’s experience gained from executing over 1,600 picnics and outings is priceless. Don’t settle for anything less!
Make sure your employees have something to look forward to this year and book your 2010
summer outing now with WCF. The sooner you book, the more value you receive on your
investment throughout the year. For more information on utilizing WCF’s team of
expert summer outing planners, contact your sales representative today,
Request a
Proposal
or
Visit WCF Online
.
-
Murrel Karsh
773.486.7403
-
Alexa Wierzbinski
773.486.7436
-
Maureen Murray
773.537.7521
-
Alexis Schlade
773.537.7522
-
Jeff Kaplan
773.537.7523
-
Blair Schlader
773.537.7524
