How to Make Your Event More Socially Responsible
Incorporating social responsibility into your next event is an exciting prospect that will leave your attendees full of heart and feeling good. In this article, we’ll discuss how you can make your events more socially responsible and helpful to the community at large.
We’ll start by defining what “social responsibility” is, exactly, and what constitutes a “socially-responsible event.”
Definition of Socially Responsible
Investopedia offers a straightforward definition of the concept of social responsibility: “Social responsibility means that businesses, in addition to maximizing shareholder value, must act in a manner that benefits society.”
The concept of social responsibility is more important than ever, as a growing number of consumers, investors — and, for that matter, employees — are attracted to buying products from, investing in, and working with companies that aren’t just interested in profits. Indeed, the public wants to know that the corporations they interact with have a “do good” philosophy to help the world and society at large rather than just profit from it.
Here are four points to keep in mind when making your event more socially responsible:
Your event isn’t just about profit, business, and making money. It’s also about benefiting and helping society.
Your event includes elements that seem to be the “opposite” of making a profit. You do things because they are “good” and “helpful.”
Your event maintains the philosophy of “do no harm,” so you take measures to limit the use of electricity, reduce trash and waste and educate attendees about good socially responsible practices.
Your event promotes volunteerism, conservation of the environment and giving to worthy causes.
Now that we have a better understanding of social responsibility and why it’s important, let’s explore two simple ways to put these ideas into practical practice.
1) Boost Your Event’s Non-Profit Attitude
Whatever the size of your event, the occasion will be a gathering point for people and businesses from a wide variety of economic strata. These people and organizations may want to do something good in the form of a donation to a worthy cause. Consider choosing a non-profit or charity group that you’ll highlight, promote and accept donations for at your event.
Browse DirectRelief’s catalog of charity groups in need of donations to find a non-profit organization that aligns with your event and attendees.
Let your chosen non-profit organization be the mascot of your event and take every opportunity you can to promote the group and the good work it’s doing in the world. As an extra showing of goodwill, consider donating a portion of your event profits to this cause or matching donations.
2) Include an Event Volunteer Activity
Let’s say you’re planning a three- to five-day event. Now, imagine reserving half of a day or a full day of your event — or tacking on an extra day — in which attendees will be involved in some volunteer projects.
Here are some ideas for these kinds of project:
Send attendees in small groups to local schools to give a presentation to students.
Break into groups that write sweet notes and cards that will go to a local nursing home.
Make special crafts — like painting plush toys or making sock puppets — for children at the cancer center.
Have a sign-up form for attendees to participate in a Habitat for Humanity project.
Send small groups out shopping to buy holiday gifts for the homeless or for children in need.
The “feel-good” vibes that come from volunteering in groups will build lasting ties between your event attendees, and this can lead to valuable networking relationships. In this respect, it’s a win-win for everyone.
3) Create an Environmentally Sustainable Event
Building environmentally sustainable practices into your event is another way to boost the corporate social responsibility of your next occasion. Here are some ideas:
Include a reusable water bottle in every guest’s goody bag and encourage guests to use and refill their bottles with filtered water that you provide.
Encourage guests to return their lanyards, badge holders, and other items so you can reuse them at the next event.
Avoid putting dates on event-branded materials so you can reuse them at next year’s event.
Hold your event at a “clean energy” venue that utilizes energy conservation strategies.
Use recycle bins that require guests to sort their trash into recyclable, compostable, and landfill items.
Source food, drink, and other materials from local vendors. This will reduce the energy costs of transporting the goods to your event, while also supporting the local economy.
Donate leftover food and other unused items to a local charity instead of simply throwing it away.
4) Use Fair, Ethical, and Inclusive Labor Practices at Your Event
Treating the employees that staff your event fairly and ethically is one of the most important ways to ensure your corporate responsibility. Aside from adhering to all federal, state, and local labor and anti-discrimination laws, you might want to consider the following:
Create a sexual harassment policy: The policy should clearly define appropriate and inappropriate workplace behavior. The policy should also provide a clear course of action for lodging a complaint should an employee feel uncomfortable on the job. Make each employee sign the policy.
Ensure the diversity of your hiring practices: This article is an excellent resource to ensure that your hiring practices are as diverse and inclusive as possible.
Compensate your staff generously and give them bonuses and perks: Paying your event staff above-average wages and offering them an event completion bonus an excellent way to boost morale and ensure staffers remain until the end of the event. Little perks can also go a long way to keep staff happy. Consider giving staff free meals, letting them keep their event t-shirts, and offering them one of the goodie bags that the attendees receive.
Are You Planning a Socially Responsible Event in Los Angeles?
Magic Box @ The Reef is a socially responsible company that offers a wide range of event services to cover all aspects of event preparation and production in the Downtown Los Angeles area. If you’d like to build more social responsibility into your next occasion, we’re your go-to source for ideas and services to make your next event the most “feel-good” happening of the year.
Sources
https://www.tinypulse.com/blog/10-foolproof-ideas-for-your-company-volunteer-day