Three Fun Networking Ideas and Conference Venues To Hire in Perth

As an event planner, we know it can be hard to come up with fun networking event ideas that everyone will enjoy.

Keeping the conversation flowing and energy levels high also requires thoughtful planning around your choice of venue, which will likely determine the type of ambience, food, drinks, and activities available.

There are an abundance of conference venues in Perth CBD, but if you’re looking for a change of scenery and range of sizes and styles of meeting rooms for hire, you’ll want to check out our function spaces at the Tradewinds Hotel. 

Whatever type of networking event you have in mind, here are some creative ideas and pointers on how to make it a roaring success!

Impress your guests with a seated dining affair and dazzling speaker in our large conference room

What business professional can say no to the prospect of a delicious catered lunch while being entertained by a guest speaker? If you’re hosting a large conference-style or lunch and learn event, you’ll want to book the Plympton Room at Tradewinds. 

Located adjacent to our Garden Courtyard, with incredible views of the nearby Swan River, the Plympton Room has a maximum seating capacity of 200 with audio visual equipment available for hire.

We also offer a Conference Package which details what choice of food and drinks are available. Freshly prepared and served by our friendly and attentive staff, you can rely on us to ensure your business networking event runs smoothly and leaves a positive impression on your guests.

If you’re hosting a multi-day event, you may also be interested in our Fremantle accommodation options for your guests to stay in overnight.

Need to warm up a smaller group? Start with an ice breaker in one of our corporate function rooms

Ah, the nail-biting moment when you approach a complete stranger and introduce yourself. If only there were a less awkward and contrived way of swapping details…

To make the networking process less painful and more personable for a smaller group of attendees, why not kick things off with an ice breaker game? 

Here are just a few popular examples of ice breaker games you can try:

“Never Have I Ever”

You’ve probably heard of this party game, but to the uninitiated, it’s a straightforward one:

1. Get everyone in the room to sit / stand in a circle with a drink in hand.

2. Each person has to take a turn saying “Never have I ever…” followed by an interesting or offbeat thing they’ve done. Everyone who has also done what the speaker described has to drink.

3. Keep going around the circle until your first round of drinks are finished!

Back-To-Back Drawing

Another classic ice breaker which gets people talking and laughing together, the Back-To-Back Drawing is a communication exercise that requires paper, markers, and your guests sorted into pairs:

1. Get each pair to sit down, facing away from each other.

2. Give one person out of each pair a picture or word (for example, a picture of an elephant).

They then need to describe what it is they see to their partner, without using any words that immediately give it away, and the partner has to try drawing whatever they think is being described to them.

Setting a timer for this part of the exercise will also add a bit of pressure and sense of competition between the pairs.

3. Once their time is up, each pair has to reveal their object and drawing to see how well they communicated with each other.

Conversation starter cards

A simple yet effective option is to prepare and pass around some conversation starter cards with ice-breaker questions, such as:

1. What’s your favourite sport / hobby?
2. What’s your special talent?
3. What book would you like to live in?
4. If you were trapped on an island and could only bring 3 things to survive, what would they be?
5. What’s one thing you’ve been procrastinating about recently?

 

Once you’ve chosen an exercise, you’ll need to find a meeting room that’s suited to your event. For smaller, more intimate events, we recommend booking our Heritage Room.

Throw a themed sundowner at our most popular function venue, the Rooftop Terrace 

For an effortless crowd-pleasing event, you can’t go wrong with a rooftop sundowner. Adding a theme can lend a more casual air to your networking drinks – just make sure it’s something easy to dress for and appropriate for the occasion.

Whatever theme you choose, our Rooftop Terrace is the perfect spot for your guests to meet and mingle, with capacity for up to 220 people to enjoy some cocktails and canapés while the sun goes down over the river.

Need more help planning or coming up with unique ideas for your upcoming event? At the Tradewinds Hotel, we have six conference rooms for you to choose from and a team of experienced staff who are happy to help you organise your corporate event.

For more assistance and information around room availability and pricing, get in touch with us here to request a quote or call us on (08) 7111 1723.