Small Business Saturday is right around the corner. For those who do not know what Small Business Saturday is, it’s the day we are encouraged to shop at local small businesses in the area and is always the Saturday after thanksgiving; this year it falls on November 30th! To all small businesses out there, this is not only a celebration of your customers, but its also chance to showcase your company’s accomplishments. Why not throw or host an event at your business on Small Business Saturday and create a memorable occasion for your customers and local supporters.

At Thrive Creative Group we understand that while the idea of hosting a party is great, the task itself can be daunting. To help we have created a timeline to get you focused and on the right track to creating an awesome Small Business Saturday event that your customers will love! Below is the first step to take:

1 Month Out: Take control & get organized (October 30, 2013)

Creating a Guest List: It’s a month before and now is the time to start creating an distribution list of customers, friends and family (preferably email’s). Some of you might be scratching your head as to how, but if you start to collect and save email addresses during check out, or register an account with an email subscription site, then you will be good to go!

Create an Event Plan: Create helpful guides and lists to constantly update throughout the course of planning:

• A master to-do list that highlights every thing that needs to be completed.
• A budget and cost sheet to keep you on track, money wise.
• A shopping list for supplies, including even the smallest of things.

If you plan on having an event that needs vendors make sure to reach out to them early. Some vendors you might want or your event could be DJs, photographers, florists or caterers.

Use Social Media:  While your still a month out, getting the word out early on your event to customers and followers on social media is always a good thing. Even if you do not have details on the event, posting to your social media outlets will get the word out that you are having some type of event on Small Business Saturday. A post like this is perfect to get your customers attention, “CompanyX is hosting a Small Business Saturday event on November 30^th, stay tuned for more details”.

Tune in next week for Step 2 in our “How to make your Small Business Saturday Memorable” series. Something to keep in mind  before then is to start thinking about design for invitations, your website, and social media profiles to help bring your SBS event together!

Does your business need help planning  your SBS event!?

Let Thrive Creative Group assist you!

Email  for more information