Hippo Events Blog - How To Make My Event Stand Out

Out of the tens, if not hundreds, of events you have attended or organised, how many of those could you confidently say stick out in your mind for a specific reason? Ask yourself how many you walked away from and actively wanted to tell everyone about – be it the event as a whole, or about something specific that happened. How many do you still talk about today? I imagine the answer is ‘not that many’. Most were probably just another fish in the sea.

So now reverse it. Think of the most memorable moments you’ve experienced at events. I bet the words you are thinking about are much different; unique, exciting, didn’t know existed, innovative, refreshing, to name a few. How would you like your events to be described in these words?

To continue the ocean analogy, wouldn’t you like to be the dolphin in the sea? In other words, the experience people tell everyone about, that they never forget and want to go again. To achieve this is simple: your event must stand out.

This blog doesn’t look at events where tickets are sold to the public, otherwise we’d be looking at some significantly different pieces of advice. Instead, we concentrate predominantly on conferences and training events, where the majority of delegates may have been to the same or similar events in the past. So, how do you get your event more memorable than the rest? You can make your event stand out from the crowd with just a few small adjustments.

Let’s start with the fundamentals. If you really want to make your event stand out choose a unique venue (We can help!) which no one else has tried. This doesn’t have to mean a warehouse with exposed brick walls, it could be the newest hotel or a venue with renovated meeting space, adding to that fresh outlook as your venue reflects your content.

And then let’s consider your seating arrangement for your event. On Hippos ‘About’ section on our website we provide a downloadable file which states the more common forms of set up. Why not consider something completely different? A round circle with a central stage, soft lounge furniture, a runway set up, or even small pods. This would provide a completely different look, whilst also providing a different feel to the delegate.

But why not combine these with an exclusive experience of some form? Did you know it’s possible to combine an event at the IMAX theatre in London with a private viewing of a film not yet released to the public? Providing a talking point or an experience that most wouldn’t perhaps wouldn’t treat themselves too is a great way to differentiate your event from others.

Then there is the actual logistics and deliverables at the event itself. Think carefully about how you can modify the basics from which the attendees are used too. Let’s take a Q&A session as an example. Most conferences conduct a Q&A session with a handheld mic being passed around the audience. There’s plenty of ways to modify this. Try a soft box mic which can be thrown around the room instead of a handheld, or try asking the other attendees to answer the question asked. Alternatively, gather all the questions and roll our Q&A answers post-event via videos.

In addition, consider the food and beverage elements to your event. The actual food offered can be different – bento boxes are fast becoming a trend due to their differentiation from standard buffets. Think about the actual food offered, the presentation of the food and the personalisation of the F&B elements within your entire event – it doesn’t always have to be Danish pastries and blueberry muffins … although, they are delicious! This can be easily implemented at any type of event – Roadshow, Team Building or Corporate Conference!

And finally, budget permitting, consider how you can integrate technology. We are all geeks for technology when it comes to new and innovative products hitting our high streets, so why is the mentality any different for our events? The answer is, it’s not. Holograms, VR, sensor integration, wareable technology, robots, drones etc. are not seen at ‘every other event’. Yours can stand out and the point where attendees say ‘I remember when I first saw this at ….. ’.

Be the dolphin.