1. Book your venue as soon as possible
2. Top rentals will book up quickly too!
3. Popular caterers will be difficult to schedule without advanced notice
4. Planning ahead helps you avoid stress
5. You’ll have more time for creative development and theme-planning
6. Inviting guests early will mean more positive RSVPs
7. You’ll have more time for fine-tuning
8. Booking earlier means more savings and discounts
9. Customization and branding always require additional time
Contact Pop! Events Group for All Your Picnic & BBQ Needs!
1. Book your venue as soon as possible
In charge of planning a BBQ or picnic for a family fun day at your company this year? First thing’s first.
Why the rush? The simple fact is that taking this step right away will make the rest of the event a piece of cake to organize with Pop! Events Group. If you still need convincing, though, here are 9 specific reasons why booking your picnic venue early is a smart idea!
The best outdoor spaces/picnic venues are always booked far in advance.
Great outdoor venues can be difficult to find in the Toronto area. Let us help you in finding the perfect outdoor venue/picnic space for whatever event you’re looking to throw. However, take our word for it, these event spaces and locations book up fast!
Of course if you want a stellar location for your picnic or BBQ, your smartest move is contacting Pop! Events Group to secure your dream venue. In fact, even if you’re not 100% sure of the exact date/guest count you’ll want to put your event space on hold, venues that allow you to tentatively book are great for this very reason. For example, if you are waiting to hear back from a group of people, employees or other guests, be sure to mention this to your event planner so cancellation policies and plans for your favorite venues can be put in place. If it is possible, get yourself in the books tentatively for now and let them know as soon as possible!
2. Top rentals will book up quickly too!
Activities and games at your picnic or BBQ will further enhance the fun and teambuilding that employees and their families experience (and that’s what it’s all about right?).
Of course, games that require equipment such as mini golf and VollyBomb, need to be rented ahead of time. These can book up fast, which means knowing your venue and planning ahead for the game and activity elements is key. Hiring Pop! Events Group to arrange these elements of your outdoor event is a great place to start.
We’ll work with you to discover just the types of activities you’re looking for. We can even help you organize food and snack carts! For example, during your company BBQ or picnic, you may decide to rent an ice cream cart with yummy ice cream flavors, sprinkles, chocolate, whipped cream, and more to choose from. Design your own sundae, or try ice cream sandwiches! Other food station and treat rental ideas include our LollyWaffles station, Mini Donut Station, and Large Pretzel Station — all stellar choices, depending on your picnic theme!
3. Popular caterers will be difficult to schedule without advanced notice
Like venues, booking the best caterers in the area will be extremely difficult to do if you haven’t planned in advance. Some of the most popular and in demand caterers in Toronto can be booked for summer events a year in advance! The best rule of thumb is too book as far in advance as possible and if your guests really love their food don’t put off waiting to re-book!
4. Planning ahead helps you avoid stress
Corporate event planning requires many facets and factors to be considered because there is such a wide array of people to take into consideration. When planning an event, it always seems like everyone wants to weigh in, you’ll naturally want to please as many people as possible, don’t let the stress seep in.
There are two ways to curb the stress: First, get a solid team together that will help by providing tips, advice and fresh ideas — it’s always a great idea to work with Pop! Events Group! We make family fun picnic event-planning a breeze.
Next, reduce stress by starting earlier (yes, we’re saying it again — it’s too important not to mention!).
Not seeking professional help and waiting too long to begin planning your company picnic almost certainly makes the process unnecessarily difficult and taxing on you. So book your venue early, then call Pop Events! Group! We’ll handle the rest.
5. You’ll have more time for creative development and theme-planning
It’s crucial to allot enough time to decide on an event theme and creative scheme for your Toronto picnic — much more than a few hours!
That is, if you want a perfectly planned picnic theme and design, you’ll need at least a few weeks to talk over ideas and let them brew before making a final decision! Plus, you and your team need time to discover what your options are and marinate on new ideas your team has and let us help by building upon them.
From food and decorations to entertainment and activities, you’ll want to be cushy about the time you designate to lay out options and pick the best ones based on your budget and timeframe.
And again, it all starts with the venue! Once you’ve chosen and booked a place for your picnic or BBQ, make sure you have at least several weeks or months to discuss theme development, create an annotated schedule for the day, and organize other key elements that will either make or break this family fun day!
6. Inviting guests early will mean more positive RSVPs
Your staff and other guests will of course have their personal schedules booked far in advance. Therefore, if you wait too long to invite them to your event, you may end up with numerous “regretfully decline” responses.
If you’d rather have a lot of “accept with pleasure” responses, request their presence early
7. You’ll have more time for fine-tuning
You thought that “a few weeks” or “one month” was enough time to decide on entertainment, the caterer, and games and activities. But guess what? You probably need even more time than that! That’s because perfection takes time and we make sure all of the T’s are crossed and the I’s are dotted before your event is finalized.
Questions often go unanswered until the last minute. RSVPs may be turned in late. And the weather may change on a dime. The finalization of these details can always be hammered out, however, if you’ve given yourself that added little cushion of extra time.
8. Booking earlier means more savings and discounts
Did you know you can actually receive extra savings and discounts when you book your venue — and other vendors — early? It’s true!
There’s always a major advantage for venues like campsites, pavilions, and conservation sites when they can plan their schedules ahead of time. They’re better able to plan ahead, know when they’ll be required to prepare and clean up their sites, and calibrate their prices. There’s no worse feeling than having an amazing event planned out in your head and then finding out you waited too long and half of your ideas cannot be executed. If you want to throw an amazing event you have to be prepared, organized and 2 steps ahead of everyone else who is vying for prime picnic event spaces. The same goes for caterers, entertainment, and activity rentals too.
If you did end up making the crucial mistake of waiting too long to plan your event, we are able accommodate for last minute event planning. Last minute events tend to be stressful, with limited choices and most importantly, you’ll usually end up paying more
9. Customization and branding always require additional time
Finally, if you’re interested, keep in mind that any customization of signs, banners, t-shirts, merchandise, or other items will require extra time to be completed. In fact, all branding requires added time, so always allow for this.
You might even want to add additional time onto your initial planning window to account for possible errors in printing. Give yourself enough of a window to proof your merchandise and have it redone if necessary.
Of course, at Pop Events! Group, we’re definitely partial to a warm and sunny outdoor picnic or barbecue (and we think your employees will be too!), but just to be sure, run through the following questions so you can feel totally confident about your choice:
- What’s the forecast look like? Now that the weather’s looking brighter and warmer, an outdoor picnic makes perfect sense!
- Will kids be present? If it’s a family-based event, consider that kids will do better outdoors as there’ll be more room to play and be loud — and less things to (accidentally!) break or destroy. Pssst! Parents will love this too!
- Is the goal team-building? If your aim is to get your employees to bond, build relationships, and learn to work better together, outdoor picnics are ideal! The atmosphere outdoors is relaxed and stress-free, providing the perfect location for laughing, joking, and getting to know one another!
- Planning games and activities? You technically can have relay races, inflatable slides, and organized team building activities inside — but they’re always better outside! If your team building event is meant to be big, loud, and boisterous, outdoors is best.
In general, the following gatherings make excellent outdoor events:
- Company Picnics
- Company Barbecues
- Corporate Teambuilding events that include sports, games, and other physical activities
- Corporate Family events
- Any casual company event during pleasant weather
Contact Pop! Events Group for All Your Picnic & BBQ Needs!
Planning outdoor family fun corporate events isn’t always easy, but hiring the best event planners Toronto companies trust will help you get off on the right foot and nail your activities, food carts, venue, games, and other arrangements!
At Pop! Events Group, we are widely known as the top corporate event planners in Toronto, and our clients are continually happy with the results they get when they work with us. Not only can we connect you with the perfect activities, entertainment, and more — but we’ll take all the stress out of creating the ultimate picnic/BBQ family fun event for your employees!