Corporate events of today are a very different affair to those of a few decades ago. The need to keep guests entertained, rather than simply direct them to the bar, is more important than ever.
There are more people opting for a lifestyle without alcohol than ever before, leaving the potential for disgruntled guests if that's the focus of your event. Today's young adults are an excellent indicator of where drinking habits are going in the 2020's. Between 2019 and 2023, the number of young adults that don't drink alcohol rose from 14% to 21% - that's a 50% rise in just 4 years!
Guest expectations have also risen, particularly if they're loyal customers or anyone your company has a reliance on, and the pressure on event managers to deliver something truly memorable has never been greater.
Corporate event entertainment ideas
Thankfully, there have never been more choices available to companies wanting to put on an event that guests will thoroughly enjoy (and will want to come back to!).
If you need an event to truly "wow", you can easily arrange it with the right budget and mindset - and the best events almost always pay a company back in terms of customer loyalty, revenues and what it says about your brand.
Escape rooms
You've heard of escape rooms and you may well have been frustrated trying to get out of one! However, they're not limited to your local industrial estate or the repurposed shop on your local HIgh Street; they're a fantastic entertainment idea for corporate events.
Companies can bring an escape room to your event, tailor and theme it to your brand and the atmosphere you want to create, and you'll sit back and watch as people queue to get into it - and then celebrate when they get out of it!
You can assign prizes to times - giving the team that gets out of the room fastest the winning prize, and perhaps even rewarding the team with the slowest time.
VR (Virtual Reality) Headsets
Give your guests the experience of a lifetime by letting them immerse themselves in the world of VR!
From roller coasters to cliff hanging adventures, there is nothing like watching a guest flail around the centre of a room whilst they think they're about to plunge down a 100ft vertical drop on a roller coaster that even the best of engineers couldn't create.
You can even use VR headsets to let people run around or explore your own offices without ever being near them, there is almost no end to the creativity that can be deployed and the brand or product visibility opportunities that good VR experiences can give you.
Your guests will love VR. It doesn't matter if they're stone cold sober or about to be refused their last drink at the bar, VR headsets always attract everyone to them, from the meekest to the loudest of guests.
Live music band
The old ideas are often the best, and there is little else more likely to get guests up and dancing than a live band. A good band offers the additional atmosphere needed to encourage those that are the last to the dance floor, but they also deliver a human element that a playlist from even the best of DJ's can't compete with.
You obviously need to consider your guest list, the type of music that might appeal to them, and then you've got perhaps the biggest challenge - finding a good band.
Our advice is to head to Facebook and look up local wedding groups. That might sound off, but they'll always be packed with plenty of people that have engaged the service of live bands - and they will usually be brutally honest about who to choose and who to avoid. They're an exceptional source of genuinely good recommendations for corporate event bands.
We've been to corporate events where a local band put on a fabulous performance, but we've also been to a major brand event where a well known international band with a string of hits was performing. We've seldom experienced anything quite like it and the sheer pull of the band name had everyone up and dancing in a way we've never seen!
360 Video Booth
You'd expect us to have this on the list, but there is nothing more in demand for corporate events than a 360 video booth. They're even more special when they're the only one of their kind in the UK!
Booth's can be given that extra impact by having them branded with your company logo and colour scheme, presenting high visibility and corporate "wow factor" that can't be achieved with many other typical entertainment ideas.
Guest after guest flocks to a good 360 video booth. Whilst most might cater for 2-3 people at a time, ours can have 8-12 people in shot at the same time. It creates an incredibly social atmosphere and you'll be laughing your socks off at how some people behave once you get them in the booth!
Brand the videos with your corporate theme too, framing every single video that your guests then share on social media - instantly with a QR code! You'll never achieve even close to the type of real-time visibility that a 360 video booth with live sharing gives with anything else.
Visual Artists
This is one that few companies think of. Bringing an artist in to your corporate event creates an air of intrigue and blatant nosiness like few other entertainment providers can match.
What will the artist do? The possibilities are wide and varied, but let's begin by getting you to think about the hilarious caricature-style pencil drawings and paintings we've all seen whilst on holiday. Now imagine that at your event with the people you work with and your customers!
Alternatively, a good artist can give your silhouette style pictures, paintings that adopt a theme close to your brand (or only use your brand colours!), or sketching key moments at your event. How about presenting award winners with a cartoon-like sketch of the moment they won their award and went on stage?
Not only do guests love to receive their own takeaway picture, but you'll find them laughing and joking as they look at those given to other guests.
Mixology class
Despite our introduction to this blog, and the mention of alcohol becoming less popular today, Mixology presents an excellent opportunity to keep guests engaged and entertained. There's something about the appeal of a good mixologist that draws guests to an area in numbers.
What's more, mocktails can be made just as extravagantly as a true cocktail, giving you a fully inclusive entertainment idea.
Finding a good provider of the service means they can adapt to your venue, your guests, set the right tone and level of humour - topped with the flair and showmanship that leaves all your guests wanting more.
Mixology classes mean that everyone can take something from the event, from learning how to create the perfect Mojito to how to perform a crowd-stopping trick whilst shaking up the best Tequila Sunrise they've ever tasted.
Corporate comedian
Everyone loves at laugh, particularly at the expense of the company CEO or MD! Corporate comedians can transform the most dour of events into something that guests and hosts will never forget, and it doesn't have to be a PR disaster!
The world has changed and corporate comedians are well-versed with listening to the needs of a client and exploring how far they can push boundaries. You set the tone, you put the guidance in place and they'll come up with a set of comedy that will bring laughter and social enjoyment to any event.
We've seen the best and worst of corporate comedy, from the MD that wanted to be clever with the comedian (and failed miserable), to the CEO that embraced it and completely changed the customer perception of the company for the better.
Putting a smile on the face of event guests is easy for the good comedian. It is even easier for that smile and laugh to be very associated with you as a brand, leaving a positive impression that lasts well beyond the time the curtains close on your event.
Arcade entertainment
Our 360 video booth isn't the only high-tech gadgetry that can bring smiles, joy and hours of amusement to any corporate event. There is a huge amount of choice with other electronic and mobile arcade entertainment.
If your guests think they're a budding Lewis Hamilton, let them prove it by bring a full Formula 1 Simulator to your event! They're simply epic.
For the guest that doesn't want to sit in the drivers seat, what about a mobile bowling alley? You'll have some guests that won't ever want to leave it, proving that the Strike King or Queen and wanting to challenge all-comers for the entire evening.
Perhaps you have guests that recall the dawn of the arcade age? That's why arcade machines providing endless fun with Pac Man, Space Invaders, Galaxian and much more have been brought into the corporate entertainment arena; they're astonishingly popular.
Light show
Fireworks are great, who doesn't love them? However, they're also somewhat limiting from a seasonal and weather perspective, and not everyone wants to be out in the freezing cold or pouring rain to watch something they've seen a hundred times before.
That's why an indoor light show makes for an amazing encore or star attraction for corporate events. You'll be truly blown-away by how impressive these can be, and if you have the option of branding light shows and ensuring your logo or theme is front and centre of an experience your guests won't forget in a hurry.
You can even give your guests wristbands (rather like Coldplay introduced to their concerts) or badge that light up and are controlled from a central point, so every guest becomes part of the show. The technology available will make your jaw-drop and it is almost certain to be something your guests have never seen before.
3D effects, holographic extravaganza, and a venue full of awe-struck faces make a light show something that any corporate event manager should be thinking of.