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How To Use a Theme To Build a Business Meeting
While it is easy to dismiss the idea of having a theme for a business meeting as corny or as a waste of money, the fact is that meetings with themes have both better attendance, and a greater number of people actually paying attention.
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Business New Haven
11/22/1999
By: Susan Banfield
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Which meeting would you be more inclined to forego in favor of dinner with your in-laws: one whose grand finale would be a chicken dinner with the company sales manager as keynote speaker - or a meeting billed as a Mardi Gras gala, whose evening festivities would feature Cajun cooking and New Orleans jazz?
Most people would be more likely to keep their commitment to the latter of the two.
Another scenario: In which workshop would you be more likely to drift or doze off: one centered around a PowerPoint presentation displayed on an overhead projector - or one in which the presenter wore a tie-dyed T-shirt and you took notes with a fluorescent pen on a psychedelic pad? Here again, most people would be more inclined to remain attentive in the second of these scenarios.
While it is easy to dismiss the idea of having a theme for a business meeting as corny (come on - a Hawaiian luau motif for the annual sales meeting?) or as a waste of money, the fact is that meetings with themes have both better attendance, and a greater number of people actually paying attention. Both are outcomes worth striving for.
There are any number of themes that can produce a successful, entertaining meeting. For starters, the two themes alluded to above - Mardi Gras (or simply New Orleans) and a '60s event - are fun, catchy and fairly simple to pull off. Another that is a perennial favorite is an oldies theme. Hawaiian luaus might seem corny, but in fact they lend themselves well to a theme meeting, as there are plenty of foods and decorations that are obvious and popular. Sports themes are another reliable crowd-pleaser.
When trying to decide on a theme for your meeting, keep in mind that there must be ways to carry it through with the following: food, music, props and decorations. With a luau, you can have baskets of exotic fruits. For a Mardi Gras meeting, Cajun fare is the obvious choice. An oldies evening can feature hamburgers, french fries and a make-your-own sundae bar.
Props and decorations play a very important role in carrying through a theme. Travel, music or sports posters on the walls are an easy way to start. Be sure to have little favors and giveaways as well: Have bead necklaces at everyone's seat for a Mardi Gras meeting; psychedelic pads are good for the '60s; fuzzy-dice key rings make good oldies giveaways; leis are obvious for a Hawaiian theme; use pens shaped like baseball bats for a sports evening.
If possible, encourage audience participation. Dress is an area in which it is often easy to do this. People have fun dressing '50s style or '60s style.
If you feel you cannot pull off a full-fledged theme, but would like to do something to enliven an upcoming meeting, consider humor. Perhaps you can hire a stand-up comedian to come in and do a routine to kick off the evening. The person can be clued in about the boss' little quirks or company inside jokes so that they can do a personalized routine.
Of, if you feel you lack the flair needed for putting together a theme meeting, but still feel you would like to go this route, you can hire someone to do it for you. Your telephone directory lists companies that specialize in meeting and events planning.
Call up several and find out what they can do and what they charge. Get references to check if you can. Sales personnel at larger hotels and conference centers also frequently have experience with this sort of thing, and will be happy to help you build a theme meeting - and look like a winner in the process.
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