Creating Luxury Experiences on Any Budget

Luxury is a mindset, asserts Neen James, and when we acknowledge that it is more important than expensive material goods, designing luxury experiences becomes more accessible.

"Our audiences' expectations have far outpaced the budgets that we have available," said the client-experience expert and keynote speaker on a recent Northstar Meetings Group webinar. "And we're being asked to deliver luxury on a budget right now."

How can we reconcile those rising expectations with those tighter purse strings? Keep in mind that luxury experiences should be frictionless; attendees should feel like they are important and being taken care of. Adding details and moments that enforce that idea doesn't have to break the bank.

Here are six tips for infusing luxury into the event agenda:

1. Systemize thoughtfulness 

"There are easy things we can all do," said James, "but they require us to think ahead about what we can do to make each person feel more seen. You need a system to make it happen, and I call that systemized thoughtfulness."  Once you establish the systemic approach, little details become more easily replicated at scale for everyone there. Successful examples include:

• Personalized name tags with a pertinent graphic, such as an author salon for which each name tag has a picture of the author's book cover.
• Digital welcome signage with guest names. This can take many forms, from the personalized parking spaces for guest lecturers and prospective students at High Point University, where James is an expert in residence, to displaying attendee names on the jumbo ballpark scoreboard for an offsite event, as Northstar and Giants Enterprises did at San Francisco's Oracle Park for Destination California in August.
• Handwritten notes from the hotel general manager or company CEO. These can be presented to attendees at check-in.
• Letters to the partners of incentive-trip attendees. When incentive participants can bring a plus-one, thanking the partners for supporting these prized employees shows everyone they are seen.

2. Engage all five senses

Welcome signage and gorgeous entries are key, but don't stop there. Think personalized walk-up music that can be customized as playlists to savor later, and don't forget about scent. "Our sense of smell is one of our most heightened senses that deepen our sense of connection to a brand," James pointed out. "Think about the signature scent at Edition Hotels: As soon as I set foot in one, I instantly know where I am."

3. Design for primacy and recency

This is an idea from adult education: We remember the first thing we hear and the last thing we hear. "If you apply those adult-learning principles to the event experience that we create, think about the first and last touchpoints," James suggested. And then map the full attendee journey, looking for places to add what James calls "Champagne Moments" — when you take something ordinary and make it extraordinary, just by adding little touches to elevate the moment. Consider the hotel that hands you cookies and a bottle of water as you leave the property — a practice perfected by the Waldorf Astoria Pedregal in Los Cabos, known for providing the ultimate in luxury service. Think about the importance of that last touchpoint as your attendees depart.

4. Personalize gifting

"Gifting marketplaces" have become a trend at incentive events, where attendees are able to choose and customize the keepsakes that speak to them. Personalizing gifts based on a little homework and research about the guests beforehand makes the biggest impact. But when resources or attendee numbers don't allow for that, giving the participant a choice on-site likewise contributes to this custom experience.

5. Create white space in the agenda

"We tend to be so busy cramming in things," James pointed out, "where perhaps luxury is also about removing some things." For a business event or incentive, your attendees are giving you one of their greatest assets — their time. Give some back to them. Show your gratitude for their presence by allowing them the luxury of some unstructured hours.

6. Show your work

It's common to think of luxury experiences as something running so smoothly that attendees needn't worry about anything behind the scenes. While that is true, the work it takes to pull it off doesn't have to be invisible to all stakeholders. "When you're doing this amazing amount of detail, don't keep it yourself," urged James. "Share your work so that people understand the incredible value that you're delivering."

Delve deeper into the luxury mindset

Check out the full webinar, "Redefining Luxury for Today's Events," for more tips and mindset shifts with Neen James, who also provides a wealth of resources at Luxury Is a Mindset. You can read more about the evolving meaning of luxury from Renee Martinez, who spoke at Northstar's Luxury & Wellness Meetings in Healdsburg, Calif., this past spring. And we hope to see many of you at Northstar's Luxury Meetings next week at the Grand Wailea in Maui, where we'll explore themes around luxury branding and local impact with Jack Richardson from Maui Nui Venison, and designing for energy and wellness with Megan Nolan.