5 Event Trends To Leave In The Past - CIM Magazine

Cheap wine!

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock somewhere since the 1980s, you would know that, since then, Australia has pulled itself up by the Blundstone bootstraps and developed a discerning palate for decent wine. Adults attending events shouldn’t be assaulted by sickly, eye squinting sparkling wine or a vicious Savvy B. Work with your suppliers to put together a pleasant, varied beverage menu that can suit any budget. Your guests will thank you! 

Aerialists and Stilt Walkers 

Stop it. Unless your event theme is Circus or Carnevale, I don’t want to see anyone hanging from the ceiling with no purpose. There are so many interesting and creative ideas you can incorporate in to your entertainment budget, let’s mix it up! There should always be a reason for your entertainment – if it doesn’t make sense to your event to have an aerialist, then spend the money elsewhere.

Let there be (ambient) light

Lighting is everything. And so often event planners get the lighting wrong. We need all spaces at events to be well and appropriately lit. There’s no point having a beautiful Charcuterie and Fromagerie if the room is so dark your guests don’t even know it’s there. People need to be able to find the food and to be able to see what they’re eating. That doesn’t mean that they want to be sat eating their dinner in a 7/11 either! Lovely, soft ambient light is the way forward.

Amateur Hour 

If you have a great idea for interactive entertainment or you want to do a brand reveal with a group of dancers – GREAT! Just don’t get the local Primary School to do this for free, get professionals. If you plan a surprise act and your guests have absolutely no idea what is going on, then your plan has failed and you will damage your clients brand and yours.

Promo Metal Drink Bottles 

More and more we are focusing on the sustainability and carbon footprint of our events. This is a wonderful thing. The solution is not to replace thousands of plastic water bottles that become landfill with thousands of metal flagons that become landfill. Event planners really need to broaden the scope of their sustainable offerings.