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Internal USA Planning Tips

All events at the ÌìÃÀÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½ deserve special attention and care regardless of their size. For our USA colleagues who are planning events with attendance of 75 or fewer guests, listed below are a few things for you to consider:  

 USA has a lot of great underutilized venues that are ideal for smaller events. Here is a listing of some of our favorites.

 When possible, avoid dates or times when large University-wide events are scheduled, otherwise your smaller event may run into unavoidable parking or other operational challenges.

 Make sure your event is scheduled in the with a detailed event description. By doing this, your event will have the opportunity to appear as a featured event on USA’s homepage.

 If budget is a consideration, avoid scheduling your event during meal times, i.e. plan for 10:00 - 11:00 am rather than 8:00 – 9:00 am or from 2:00 - 4:00 pm rather than noon – 2:00 pm.

 After you have selected your date, time, and location, develop a communication plan.

For special events, we recommend this communication strategy:

 Three weeks or earlier: Formal invitations

 One week: RSVP date – This timing will assist you in making an accurate catering order

 Week of: Pre-event communication

 Not later than 72 hours prior: Post-event communication, including thank you notes (if applicable)

For an internal meeting, we recommend this communication strategy:

 One month prior or earlier: Email with a preview of the meeting topic

 One month prior or earlier: Meeting invitation

 Two weeks prior: Meeting reminder

 One week prior: Reminder with materials

 Not later than one week after: Post-meeting communication, including a survey (if applicable)

 If you are looking to provide light fare without breaking the bank, consider a menu with bite-sized elements. Please work with Aramark directly to receive accurate pricing.

Depending on the nature of your event, you may want to consider these event planning additions:

 Schedule a consultation with our dynamic Marketing and Communications team to develop a robust communication strategy.

 Personalize thank you gifts to participants.

 Schedule our University photographer for the event so you can include pictures in your post-event communication, as well as use for future marketing.