Can You Entertain Corporate Clients at Sports Events?
If you have been invited to corporate entertainment days before, you will know their quality can vary quite considerably. It is often the same venue used every time, with the same people, food and activities. If youre lucky enough then you might have been on one where the hosts make a real effort, or do something outside the box. Sporting events are a pretty safe bet for most corporate hospitality days, but even they have weaknesses. Here are the main pros and cons.
Pros. Sporting events are generally quite laid back and there is no pressure on the host to entertain as the sportsmen and women do that job themselves.This allows everyone to chill out a little more and get on with the important things, like telling each other how great they are. Also, most sports can be observed without paying too much attention to what is going on, making these types of events perfect if business discussions need to take place as well.If you try and do the same watching a play or on a high speed powerboat, you will find that it is not so easy.
Cons. Unbelievably, sport is not enjoyed by everyone equally. Some people will be over the moon watching the horse racing at a Cheltenham hospitality event, some people will be indifferent, and some will likely be so bored they either fall asleep or start talking to themselves. You obviously cannot please everyone, but it is worth checking if most people are fans of underwater hockey before you book the tickets. Another risk of taking people to sports events is, believe it or not, that they will have too much fun.There will be people who are very passionate about their sport and when they get into supporting mode, nothing else around them matters. Enthusiasm and competiveness are great qualities to unleash on team building days, but they are not so desired when the goals of the corporate entertainment day are networking and maintaining client relations.