Company Parties on a Budget

With the current state of the world economy finances are tight everywhere. Companies however still feel it's important to reward staff with some down time and a little fun by having a Year End Function.

Thinking about the things you'll have to buy to pull off a good party might make you think twice. The list becomes a deal breaker with invitations. decorations, food, drinks and more to consider. With careful planning and some innovative ideas planning a party on a small budget is possible. We have put together some cost saving ideas to help you out.

Invitation: Don't spend unnecessary money on designing and printing beautiful invitation. In reality most people will only look at it once and all your hard work and money will end up in the trash. Send email invitations instead, not only will you save money but it will be much easier to manage all the responses.

Hidden costs: To avoid hidden costs that might creep up on you after the event try and explore all the costs by making sure you get the following information beforehand: - Avoid overtime. If people are having a good time they might want to stay that extra 45 minutes to make the night last, but you will most probably pay dearly in overtime costs for the venue and staff. If you suspect that the celebrations might go long, work overtime costs into your budget. - Staff Tipping. Even if you are fairly conservative with your tipping this cost will definitely add to your final bill so make sure you factor this into your budget. - Unplanned incidents. Somebody breaks a glass, your boss decides to invite two more VIP guests at the last minute. Unexpected things always happen so its a good idea to have a little extra in your budget just for such incidents.

The perfect day: Planning your party over the weekend might seems like to most obvious choice for your year end function but unfortunately this will also be the most expensive with venues in the Johannesburg area. Most venues and suppliers in the entertainment industry charge a premium rate on these evenings. You will also find that since these are the most popular nights that it will be the busiest times and you will need to book a venue well in advance.

Themes the best way to go: If you host a party with a theme it will take a lot of headache out of the planning but also add a lot of fun to the celebrations. Many function venues will offer specific theme evenings that you can book as a package that will not only save you cost on decorations but also save you time on working out the details.

So there are no more excuses get on your dancing shoes and let's have a party!