Scene: A close up of a woman’s face. Sweat covers her upper lip, eyes-wide in fear. Suddenly, the camera shakes and cuts to black, we hear a blood-curdling scream, and then, silence.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that the above is straight out of your favourite horror film. While it’s not a Hollywood blockbuster, it is a nightmare of sorts: a *tale of a corporate event gone very, very wrong.
Here’s how our spooky tale begins:
The Cursed Corporate Event
Premise:
Sam is the star of our corporate event horror story. Unbeknownst to her, what begins as a normal day soon goes very, very wrong.
Scene 1: The backseat of an Uber, interior
Sam is stuck in traffic on the way to the set-up for her corporate event. Gridlock has the city at a standstill. Her driver tells her that the earliest she’ll be at the venue is an hour from now. Sam is many things, but a master of time management is not one of them. Her delay will have a knock-on effect with potentially dire ramifications: if she’s not there to oversee set-up, the corporate event equivalent of a portal to hell is bound to open up: disorganised staff who have no idea what they’re doing.
Scene 2: Contd.
Traffic starts to move freely, and Sam checks her emails while her driver takes a detour to get her to the venue on time. A notification pops ups, informing her that the chair supplier has had to cancel as his warehouse has been robbed of all of his stock. Hands shaking, Sam begins Googling alternate chair suppliers, and much to her horror, realises that she’ll have to fork out an extra couple of thousand if she wants her guests to have seats. She gulps, and agrees to the exorbitant fee.
Scene 3: An upscale boutique hotel, exterior
The Uber pulls up to the venue, and Sam jumps out before the car can come to a complete stop. Guest mingle outside, frustrated as they wait for the doors to open. “What a terrible way to start the day”, a VIP says to his fellow attendees. Sam grimaces in apology and starts to sweat as she wonders what the hold up is. She discovers the problem: the printer has run out of ink and staff are having to write out name badges by hand. The crowd of attendees grows restless as they’re made to wait. Sam’s hands shake and she apologises to the queue of guests.
Scene 4: Hotel ballroom, interior
Sam scans the room as guests enjoy their drinks, some more than others. “Finally”, she thinks to herself, “I can relax”. But, dear reader, fate has not done toying with Sam just yet.
Suddenly, a flame shoots up into the air as a curtain goes up in flames. An inebriated guest stumbles backwards. “Oops”, he says, looking forlornly at the Vape that has exploded in his hand. Guests panic and run out of the building. Sam is nowhere to be found.
Scene 5: Boutique hotel, exterior
We see Sam being comforted by paramedics. Guests form a crowd outside, taking photos of the burning venue, which they post to Twitter and Facebook. #WorstCorporateEventEver is now trending, while brand’s reputation lies in ruins.
End
*This story is entirely a work of fiction.
Make sure your corporate events don’t up like the nightmarish scenario above – contact us to find out how we can ensure your corporate event is a resounding success.
