I know it's only May, but all those super organised PA's, EA's and Event Organisers are already booking their corporate Christmas functions!  Key dates in December are already booking out at many of our venues and I thought it was a perfect time to talk about ideas for 'event extras' and how to raise your function above the norm.

Begin planning your function with a party planning checklist.  Once a venue and menus have been decided on, it's time to start thinking about decorations.  Some venues will provide a Christmas tree, basic decorations and organise all the extras for you, while at others you may be required to bring your own.  It's a fun way to start your event with a group of you decorating the tree, putting up balloons and Christmas crackers on the table; it gets everyone relaxed, enjoying themselves and in the Christmas spirit.  On the other hand, it's great to be able to just walk into a venue and know everything will be set up ready for you and you didn't have to lift a finger!

Organise arrival 'Christmas Cocktails' or an arrival glass of bubbles for each guest - a fun, welcoming way to get the evening started.

Centrepieces are a great way to distinguish your function as being special and something as simple as a small bunch of flowers in the middle of the table can really brighten up a room and make it feel extra special. 

Enlist the help of the Function Coordinator at the venue where you are holding your function.  Chances are, the venue will be able to organise many of the 'event extras' for you.

If you are interested in talking about options for your 2012 Christmas event, contact Functions & Events.co.nz on info@functionsandevents.co.nz

 

 

1.    Remove the hassle of searching for a venue - let us know your function requirements and we will find a venue to best suit you.

2.  A variety of venues to suit different occasions - Christmas parties, corporate meetings, presentations, seminars, birthday parties, engagements, anniversaries, product launches and general celebrations, we've got it all covered.

3.  Loyalty Membership - become a valued customer and earn loyalty points for every function you hold at a Functions & Events.co.nz venue.  For every dollar you spend you receive one point, with 8 points being worth $1.  Redeem your points at any time - reward your staff and clients or use your points for your next function.

4.  Relaxed venues with professional service and comfortable surroundings.  Our experienced staff pay the utmost attention to detail to ensure all your requirements are met and your guests have a truly memorable experience.

5.  Extensive selection of menus - we cater formal sit down meals, buffet meals, finger food and canapes as well as our a la carte menus.  Our chefs will work with you to create a menu that will delight and impress with any special dietary requirements catered for.

With those 5 fabulous reasons to book your next function or event at one of our venues, contact us today to arrange viewing of venues or to book your next function.  info@functionsandevents.co.nz or call 573 0078

We all know our staff are what really sells our products or services.  That's why it is important to invest time and effort to ensure they are trained properly.  Too often a waiter will have to run back to the kitchen to confirm what the daily specials are, or a customer service assistant will um and ah about the qualities or advantages of the product they are trying to sell you.  A well thought out and organised training program can change all of that and boost your sales and reputation.  Here at Functions and Events.co.nz we have an inhouse training manager who is dedicated to running training programs for front and back of house staff.  We have noticed an increase in the levels of enthusiasm of staff once they have completed one of our courses and an increase in sales.  With positive results like this we will definitely be continuing with our training!

The phrase 'team building' seems to inspire groans and eye rolling amongst most people I know, but it doesn't have to be like that!  Team building can be so fun and is really a great way to get to know your colleaugues and build better working relationships.

There are plenty of companies out there providing team building activites, however you don't need to get all fancy to organise your own team building sessions.  Pubs all around Auckland run quiz nights that are really fun to get involved in and there's nothing like a bit of healthy competition to generate a good laugh and give you the chance to learn more about the people you work with. 

Cocktail making sessions is another fun activity.  Book a private room at a bar and ask the bar tenders to help you with planning.  Give your team a list of ingredients they will be able to use, get them to create their own cocktails and then make them.  A relaxed setting and a few drinks will bring everyone together for a thoroughly enjoyable time. 

If you're interested in organising team building for your team, check out www.motivaction.co.nz an Auckland based team building company with loads of experience or contact Functions and Events info@functionsandevents.co.nz

I don’t know about everybody else, but I’ve always been a bit nervous attending networking events.  It can be very difficult to walk up to a complete stranger and strike up a conversation; what if they don’t want to talk to you, or worse, what if you get stuck in a conversation you can’t get out of?  Networking is not an innate ability, but a skill that can be learned through practice. 

I realised this last week at an evening networking event at The Zookeeper’s Son in Royal Oak.  I decided this networking event was going to be different.  My plan was to march up and start talking to people then move on once our conversation was exhausted.  And you know what?  It worked!  There were around 30 – 40 local business owners and representatives at the event.  Everyone was interested in drumming up new business for themselves and learning about what’s on offer in their local community.  Many people were visiting The Zookeeper’s Son for the first time, so they discovered a great new local and I saw many of the attendees discussing new business opportunities with their new contacts.  Personally, I got to talk with a range of interesting people and generated some great leads.  I will definitely be giving networking events another go!

HOT TIP – Go into your next networking event with confidence and a positive attitude.  Be ready to promote your business and hear about others.  You may not get measureable business from your first event, but you will increase awareness.  Happy networking!

Happy New Year everybody! The teams at Functions and Events are ready for another big year and have a lot of things in the pipeline.

We are already working on packages for Auckland’s big events coming up such as pre-game hospitality packages for the Bledisloe Cup at Eden Park and the New Zealand v Ireland rugby match, we have function space in the heart of the Viaduct for the Volvo Ocean race allowing those who get in quick enough to book prime location to welcome those for the Auckland stopover not to mention we will also be at convene to showcase the many venues we have throughout Auckland and Christchurch.  It’s going to be an exciting year and with the help of our clients we hope to make it a memorable one.

Handy Tip:  Social Functions – When organizing a function, ask for input or ideas from your guests. You don’t want to be booking a venue that half your staff or colleagues despise or find it hard to organize their transportation to and from. Also, think about the smaller things, do people have enough time to get there after work, does everyone know the dress code and what time do you expect everyone to arrive? As the last thing you want is for the bulk of the food to come out when barely any of the guests have arrived.

What a fantastic year we had last year at Functions and Events!

Rugby World Cup turned out to be a great success for our venues and was great for those corporates that organized their functions from multinationals such as DHL right through overseas agents from England, France and South Africa to name a few. With events such as corporate hosting on the viaduct, pre-game hospitality only a stone’s throw away from Eden Park right down to dining in exclusive dining rooms all over Auckland for those who wanted something a bit more intimate while watching those last teeth clenching knockout matches.

With Christmas queries coming through by the dozen shortly after the final whistle there was no time for the team at Functions and Events to wind down – with all kinds of events such as cocktail parties in The Elephant Wrestlers sun kissed courtyard, social drinks and nibbles in the bustling viaduct, ladies lunch in the new Merchant Bar and Kitchen in Albany right through to intimate sit down dinners for 60 in the stunning Bridgman Room with Valley Rooftop Terrace our clients definitely found themselves spoilt for choice.

BUT IT DOESENT STOP THERE!

With 2012 bringing wonderful and exciting new things the team at Functions and Events are working hard at offering client packages for Bledisloe Cup and other Eden park Events not to mention day time corporate and business meetings in our fully equipped and exclusive function rooms if you’re planning something this year and want to have a stress free time doing it – contact us now and let us cater to your taste, needs and budget!!!

Handy tip for the New Year: When dealing with clients in today’s modern society, too many people are hiding behind their emails while trying to build relationships. Try giving your valued clients a courtesy call to see how things are and if they are happy with the service they are currently receiving– you will be surprised at the new opportunities that will arise. These may be referrals for companies and contacts that are interested in your services through to finding out further details about your client and what processes they make when making decisions which will help you find ways to further apply your goods and services to their company.