Spring is the season of growth, renewal, and fresh starts – which makes it the perfect time to host a conference. It’s also the beginning of the second half of many companies’ financial years and the ideal time to reassess the trials and tribulations of the first half and plan to tweak and re-organise to make the most of opportunities during the run down to Christmas.

The good thing is that, because spring is warmer, it’s easier to get back to a more active lifestyle and spend more time outdoors. Of coruse, that makes it the ideal time to plan a spring conference at Granny Mouse where we can add some fun outdoor time and team building activities for you.

It’s always a great idea to add a few spring time themes to your conference to inspire new ideas and inject additional energy for your delegates or team.

Some ideas that we have to offer for a spring conference:

• Go with “athon” themes –do a walkathon, a bikeathon or a hikeathon. That way, you can create a great sense of community, using your imagination to get participants in a goal setting mood, whilst encouraging them to bond in the great outdoors.

• Fine weather makes it a good time for a treasure hunt in the beautiful grounds at Granny Mouse Country House & Spa. Provide your team with simple paper clues to help them to find treasure in return for prizes. Create fun clues and make it a Midlands adventure, searching for specific landmarks. At Granny Mouse, we can assist by strategically placing Granny Mouse placards to match your clues – e.g. the mouse is hiding amongst the grapes (the wine cellar)!

• Mix and match at the end of a hard day or debate and planning – bring a mixologist who can concoct cocktails. Each team will then have to make the same cocktail from memory. The Granny Mouse team is happy to form part of the judging panel because we won’t be biased and cannot be bribed!

• Add a little colour at the Granny Mouse Camelot Spa where our therapists are on hand to demonstrate nail striping – and then get delegates to try it blind folded out in the beautiful Granny Mouse gardens. This is often rather comical and gets delegates outdoors to enjoy the perfect spring midlands weather!

Info sourced from https://www.eventbrite.com/blog/inspiring-event-themes-ds00/

Like a photographer, a good wedding DJ may cost a little extra but will make your day particularly memorable.

He’s the guy who’ll be holding everything together when no-one is looking or the girl who will make sure that everything flows seamlessly from the grand entrance of the special couple, to the speeches, the cutting of the cake and that all important first dance.

Shop around! Ask for recommendations from friends and family or even chat to our team at Granny Mouse. We are all well versed in hosting weddings and will definitely have some great options for you.

Once you have your list of possible candidates, check out each DJ’s website and or social media handles – if they look suitably unprofessional, chances are, their performance could be the same.

But don’t leave it there. Before making your final choice, we suggest that you meet up with those on your short list before making a formal booking. This is not just about appearances, but also about gauging whether they will not only gel with you and the wedding party but the friends and family that you will be hosting during the reception.

We suggest that you choose a guy or a girl who feels part of the process, someone who can not only think on their feet and gloss over any unplanned glitches that threaten to disrupt proceedings but also actually entertain your guests on your behalf.

Your DJ also needs to know the timelines of the evening. Most experienced wedding jocks – together with our Granny Mouse wedding coordinator – need to work together so that they are, quite literally, singing from the same hymn sheet.

If you make sure that your DJ knows the order of events well ahead of time, there will be no awkward silences or unexpected interruptions. You’ll probably find that an experienced DJ will even offer some advice and suggest tweaks that will make his job easier and the proceedings run that little bit more smoothly.

Most important of all, plan the music for the night upfront, making sure that there is something for every generation. From the outset, identify the special music for that all important first dance and then indicate which songs you want and which ones you definitely don’t want played.

Your jock also really needs to get the pronunciation of the important guests (i.e. the bride groom and the wedding party right). There’s nothing worse than a mispronounced name especially if it’s that of your future father or mother-in-law – yikes!

The DJ needs to also know how to gather the bridal party, introduce the toasts and ensure that everyone making speeches knows how to use a microphone. His job is to encourage guests to participate during traditional ceremonies such as the throwing of the bouquets and garter and then, seamlessly, get the reception back on track again.

It also helps to have a DJ who works in sync with the photographers and videographers. He or she needs to work closely with the hotel coordinators to ensure that the music is tastefully adjusted to accommodate dinner, for example.

Your DJ is also your partner in practicality and technology.

Do you need wireless mics for speeches or special lights? Make sure you get these extras included in any quotes.

Every top notch DJ knows that it’s important to ensure that all wiring is safe and he or she should have safety tape so guests don’t find themselves tripping over straggling cords or worse. Make sure that your DJ has plenty of time to set up for the reception and that he or she does sound checks. There’s nothing worse than those terrible buzzes or ear splitting squeals that interrupt proceedings. Equally, you don’t want anyone trying to make themselves heard using a microphone that refuses to work.

Apart from ensuring that you have a DJ with reliable equipment, make sure that he or she has planned for the unexpected and has back up in the form of additional cords, amps, computers, CD players or turn tables.

In this day and age where all equipment is high tech and electricity is often in short supply, make sure that your DJ has access to a generator. At Granny Mouse, he or she can chat to our staff so that he knows exactly what to do and how to access the generator that kicks in in the event of an unexpected power cut.

Another thing that you need to pre-arrange with both the hotel and DJ is exactly when the evening will finish. If your DJ can prepare guests for this and avoid being pushed into “over time”, you will have no nasty surprises and disappointments – as well as no unexpected charges for extra time.

Remember to negotiate payments upfront. Some professional DJ’s ask for a deposit and the balance a week in advance. Others are happy to wait until after your wedding. Try and avoid having to settle up on the big night as this can disrupt your enjoyment of your special evening.

Finally, a word of warning – the best wedding DJs are in demand and are often booked up well in advance so don’t leave this part of your reception planning to the last minute. Instead, check availability and book early.