Rightly so, wellbeing has come to the forefront of the media and people’s thoughts. Gloria Steinem once said that “Everyone is unique, and each experience is different.” Every guest’s experience of the same event is unique to them, which is why it is important to incorporate wellbeing and be inclusive to all.
According to research from Event Brite there are over a million business events each year in the UK alone, from glitzy premieres to intimate meetings. Whatever your budget, there are small changes which you can make to ensure your guest’s experience is enhanced and the positive legacy of your event is increased.
The Word on the Street team has brainstormed five easy ways to help you incorporate wellbeing into your events.
Making sure all dietaries and allergens are catered for, should be standard practice. Ensuring there are healthy options and a well-balanced menu will satisfy a wider audience and make your event more inclusive whilst also increasing productivity and reducing stress among your guests.
Lunch is a delicate balance, not enough food and expect loss in concentration, lack of energy, and low participation throughout the afternoon. Too much food and refined/sugary carbohydrates can make you sluggish and sleepy. Spend time with your suppliers or even get a dietitian involved to develop the right balance for everyone to enjoy.
Not everyone drinks or wants to drink alcohol. There are so many great tasting alternatives these days, be it o% beers, spirits or more interesting cordials and juices. Making sure you have plenty of interesting options available and visibly on offer means people might not feel obliged to go with the crowd.
You may also find that people feel better for it in the morning and are more productive!
Having a presentation? Not everyone feels comfortable sitting in the front row.
Mix it up! Why not have some beanbags at the front, some traditional seating in the middle, clusters of sofas and soft seating at the side with some poseur tables or high level seating at the back? If people are more comfortable then they should be less distracted and contribute more productively to the session.
Building a schedule for your event or program? Why not start the day or include an optional walking or running tour? Give guests the opportunity to get some fresh air, get the blood pumping and best of all, see the local sights.
Taking guests to a new venue, city or country is all about encapsulating the culture and making it an experience as well as it being a great backdrop. Giving people the opportunity to engage with that location will lead to them investing back into the rest of your event and having a more positive event legacy.
The benefits of starting the day with exercise are countless, from improved moods, to increased energy, less stress and increased attentiveness.
Events are designed to be sensory and stimulate the mind however this can be overwhelming and lead to fatigue.
Be it an overload of content or meeting countless new faces it is important to give people the opportunity to zone out and recharge. This could be breaks in the schedule to get some fresh air or alternatively a safe zone within your event.
Having a safe space or area for guests to utilise can give them somewhere to escape the sensory overload, maybe do some reading, listen to some music or even take a nap. It can also give people the chance to speak to someone safely and confidentially.
Ultimately, incorporating wellbeing can help make a wider, more diverse, audience feel more welcome at your event. By investing in your guests, you are demonstrating their worth, making them feel more appreciated. In turn people will contribute more positively and put more energy back into the event and you.
Creating a positive legacy is all about leaving all your stakeholders with positive emotions, making your event live long into the future. Thinking about the wellbeing of guests should be a huge part of creating that legacy and making the event memorable for guests.
The benefits are clear: look after people, and they will look after you.
Contact the Word on the Street team
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