5 Tips For an Affordable Company Retreat
Introduction
Taking time to plan a company retreat can be really helpful for your team’s relationship while staying affordable.
In-person retreats or offsite’s are a way, create deeper relationships cross your company and not just team while painting the vision of where the business is going and how they are an integral part of bringing the vision to life.
But we understand that retreats and offsite’s can be expensive. Don’t worry! That’s why we’re here to share some affordable retreat planning ideas for small businesses. Let’s dive in!
Plan ahead for a budget-friendly company retreat:
To make your retreat more affordable, it’s important to plan ahead. This means doing research on different options that fit your budget. Some types of retreats and venues are more affordable than others, so it’s a good idea to do some digging and find the best deals.
A lot of things about a company retreat (or offsite) are tax write-offs (learn more about tax write offs for retreats), but it still helps to think about these things ahead of time so you’re prepared.
If you think about hotels or rental properties as limited inventory… you have the most inventory 12 months before you want to host 30+ employee retreat vs 30 days before a retreat. You can imagine that hotel meeting space is booked or limited with the a shorter planning time, hotel rooms pricing is more expensive (because demand is high) and overall everything is more limited and more expensive.
Plan 3- 6 months ahead for company retreats and offsite’s to get the most affordable deals on your company retreat. (And if your team doesn’t have the bandwidth to plan that far ahead, outsource the retreat planning to Bella Events so all the details are thought of without taking up capacity from your team’s precious time)
Planning for a week in Fiji is very different than planning for a weekend in Myrtle Beach.
With the right planning, you MIGHT be able to get to Fiji without too much hassle 🙂
Get creative with team-building and conversational activities:
One of the most important parts of a retreat is the activities. But you don’t have to spend a lot of money to make these great!
There are plenty of low-cost team building and bonding activities that your team will love, and we know the best ones that AREN’T cheesy (but sometimes a little cheesy-ness is nice…).
By mixing lower cost actvities with 1 (or 2) nicer activities give a balance to the budget while achieving the same result. Lower budget activities could be.. Creating smores house (See this You Tube Video), board games, or Trivia night.. you know.. like you would do at a pub on a Thursday night? Are low cost but REALLY fun options to fill some time, that spark conversation across team thats NOT talking about work, while also staying budget friendly.
Paid one (or more) of these lower budget activities with a nicer activity like Cooking Class, Collaborative Art Project (to hang in the office), Improv Class, or this Metal Works Class
Think about it: when else does your team get to focus on getting to know each other instead of the daily grind? Rarely!
Would your team work better if they trusted each other more? ABSOLUTELY.
Consider affordable types of catering for your company retreat:
On a retreat (or offsite), you’re responsible for feeding your people, and you want to give them good options that don’t break the bank.
Surprisingly, sometimes a private chef CAN be the cheapest option, depending on your group size (they even do the dishes!)
You can save money on food by doing a potluck-style meal/ DIY catering. Costco membership, anyone??
While I mention ANY meal..I wouldn’t recommend this for EVERY MEAL Breakfast and lunch are really easy to pull off with a trip to CostCo. Which allows for nicer dinner options.
Choose a low-cost retreat format:
There are lots of different types of retreats (or offsite), and some are more expensive than others.
International retreats, for example, can be really pricey (and a wonderful perk). But there are other options that are more affordable for your company retreat. Did you know that you can save money by choosing a retreat location that’s close to your business? You don’t have to go far to have a great offsite.
There are lots of affordable and more creative local venues that would be perfect for your team. (psss.. we can help you find them)
For example: in Ohio, there’s a state park called Hocking Hills. This park has a really nice lodge with plenty of sleeping rooms and a meeting space while also being located at the trail heads of some amazing waterfall trails (some are even ADA compliant) which has a little something for everyone. The state park is about an hour from Cleveland, Columbus and 2 hours from Cinncinnati– Making this location a lower cost but wonderful option to get your employees out of the office and into some nature for relationship building.
What about virtual retreats or offsite's?
You would think way to save money on your retreat is to use technology. Virtual retreats can be used in a pinch for team bonding and training, and they’re often a lot cheaper than an in-person option.
Of course, virtual retreats won’t produce the same benefits as an in-person retreat. But you could also find this to be a waste of money. It could be a couple thousand to have a painting class or murder mystery dinner set up virtually which is very cost effective… BUT you are not achieving the same magic you get from traveling somewhere, getting your team out of their every day environment, and embrace the meeting/office shake up.
We’ve been on virtual meetings for so long by also hosting a retreat virtually would be seen as a waste and if you havent created connections by now– hosting virtually would yield the same results.. So while in person retreat/offsite sounds pricey…
What is even more expensive is not creating relationships across team and continuing to have disjointed communication across teams and with management.
Conclusion:
Corporate retreats should be FUN for everyone involved, including your CFO. Planning a retreat for your small business doesn’t have to be expensive. By planning ahead, getting creative with activities, considering all types of catering, choosing a low-cost format, and using technology, you can create an affordable and effective retreat that your team will love. Give it a try!