Where do you hold your Business After Hours? A local bank? The Chamber office? A restaurant? All good options but few of those will drive someone to attend based on location alone.
If your Business After Hours attendance has been tanking recently, consider finding places that feel like a peek behind the curtain and a room full of possibility at the same time.
So what do you do when your dreams for something unusual come true? What if it’s something like a cemetery? Recently, a chamber pro had this very request from a member. Is a “death garden” too creepy for networking?
While it shouldn’t be an automatic no, it’s also not an automatic yes either. It’s an invitation to lead like a chamber: thoughtful, welcoming, and protective of the brand you’re building for the whole business community.
How to Respond When a Member Wants to Host in an Unusual Setting?
1) Start with gratitude, not a gut reaction
Your first response sets the tone. Even if your inner narrator just yelled, “ABSOLUTELY NOT,” you can still respond like a pro.
Try:
“Thank you for offering to host. I love that you’re thinking creatively. Let me run it through our event criteria so we can be sure it’s a great experience for members.”
You’re affirming their generosity while making it clear there’s a process.
2) Remember the headline truth: BAH is a chamber event
As Chamber Pro Della Schmidt from Greater Mankato Growth and Greater Burlington Partnership reminded the group, Business After Hours is “first and foremost a CHAMBER event,” and location decisions should follow clear criteria, not awkward pressure.
That framing helps you hold boundaries without sounding like you’re judging the business.
3) Use a simple “Unusual Venue Checklist” to protect everyone
You don’t need a 14-page policy. You need a repeatable filter that makes decisions feel fair.
Unusual Venue Checklist
- Brand fit: Does this feel like “community + commerce,” or will it become “chamber did something weird”?
- Member comfort: Could a reasonable portion of members feel alienated, unsafe, or pressured to attend?
- Respect and tone: Can the host execute this in a way that’s not offensive, trivializing, or in poor taste?
- Safety and accessibility: Lighting, walking surfaces, ADA access, restrooms, parking, signage.
- Alcohol logistics: If you serve alcohol, is it legally appropriate here? Who carries the liability?
- Noise and flow: Can people actually network, or will it be a tour line with name tags?
- PR risk: How would this read in a headline? How would it sound to a sponsor? But don’t assume unusual will always turn off sponsors. Sometimes it’s just what they’re looking for.
- Programming potential: Can you anchor it with an experience that makes the venue make sense?
If it passes these checks, you’re not “being edgy.” You’re being intentional.
4) Offer a conditional yes with guardrails
A great middle path is: “Yes, if…”
Examples:
- “Yes, if we host it in the reception space, not among graves.”
- “Yes, if we frame it as history, community legacy, and services people should understand before they need them.”
- “Yes, if we keep it respectful and avoid gimmicks that could offend.”
Guardrails keep your chamber from getting dragged by one badly planned moment.
5) If it’s a no, make it a thoughtful no (and offer alternatives)
Sometimes it truly won’t fit. When you decline, be clear and kind:
“Thank you again for offering. For this particular venue, we’re concerned it could limit attendance and comfort for a portion of our members. I’d love to find another way to feature your business, like a morning coffee in our office highlighting your services, a lunch-and-learn, or a behind-the-scenes tour with limited capacity.”
You’re not rejecting the member. You’re curating the chamber experience.
If you don’t have an event hosting criteria, you should create one proactively.
Real World Experience: Chamber Pros Ring in About the Cemetery Idea
In the Chamber Pro Facebook group, the loudest consensus from chamber peers was this can absolutely work, and in many communities it already does. Several shared that cemeteries, mortuaries, and funeral homes have hosted successful events with strong attendance and surprisingly positive feedback.
Here are the themes worth stealing.
“Make it meaningful, not cheesy”
A funeral director who’s also a chamber exec noted there’s “zero need for it to be ‘spooky’ or kitschy,” because education and history can carry the night. Others echoed the same idea in different ways. Cemeteries can be places of celebration and remembrance, not just sorrow.
Translation: if you do this, don’t turn it into a haunted house unless you’re very sure your community wants that vibe.
“Theme helps, especially if it fits your culture”
Multiple pros immediately saw the marketing hook: Halloween, Dia de los Muertos, a tasteful “celebration of lives” angle, or community history. One chamber does a cemetery mixer every year because it’s beautiful and includes scenic space where the community already gathers. Some cemeteries have walking paths and meditation gardens. If they’re inviting it can introduce your members to a hidden community wellness gem.
Translation: if the venue already functions as a community space, you’re not stretching. You’re spotlighting.
“History is your best wingman”
A powerful idea that came up more than once was to use the cemetery’s local founders and prominent families as a bridge to civic pride and community identity. One chamber described costumed interpreters portraying notable people buried there, tapping into the cemetery foundation’s existing historical programming.
Translation: if you can connect the venue to your town’s story, it stops being “a cemetery” and becomes “a living archive of local leadership.”
“Interactive elements make it unforgettable”
This is where the pros got fun in a way that still respects the setting:
- scavenger hunts. Divide into teams and find examples of things listed. (example prompt: find someone born in the 1800s)
- trivia about traditions and interesting facts
- short tours (with clear boundaries)
- photo moments with vehicles like a hearse
Translation: you’re not just hosting networking. You’re hosting an experience. That’s what makes people show up.
“Not everyone will love it, and that’s okay”
A few pros cautioned that cemeteries can be a tough sell, and one shared a story where the event got weird because the host’s humor and tour choices weren’t handled well (think: wine in the casket room).
Another smart nuance: if it’s in a building on the property, it may feel more approachable than being out among graves.
Translation: your job isn’t to make everyone happy. That’s impossible. Your job is to plan it well enough that it’s respectful, safe, clearly aligned with your chamber’s reputation, and showcases your member in a way that helps bring in business.
A “Yes, and here’s how” Cemetery BAH Framework
If you greenlight it, here’s a clean structure:
- Name it carefully: “Business After Hours: Local History and Legacy” (not “Spooky Networking Night” unless that’s truly your chamber’s brand and it’s that time of year).
- Set expectations in the invite: mention terrain, lighting, footwear, accessibility, and tone.
- Create zones: check-in and networking area, optional guided walk/tour, food and beverage area.
- Offer an anchor moment: a 5–7 minute welcome + one short story about local history or community leadership.
- Keep the end respectful: thank the host, invite connection, end on community pride.
Handled well, it becomes “the event people still talk about” for the right reasons.
Unusual Places That Can Be a Big Draw (without sending anyone into an existential spiral)
So, maybe a cemetery isn’t right for your chamber. Here are a few creative venue ideas that tend to convert curiosity into attendance. If you have members with these types of businesses encourage them to host a BAH:
- A historic theater backstage
Members love a behind-the-scenes tour, great photo ops, built-in conversation starters. - An airport hangar or aviation museum
Big wow factor, strong sponsorship potential, and it feels “economic development” in the best way. - A greenhouse or plant nursery after-hours
Beautiful setting, easy refreshments, and a calm vibe that makes networking feel less forced. - A makerspace or fabrication lab
Let people try something small: laser engraving demos, 3D printing, quick tours. Innovation energy is contagious. - A marina, boatyard, or waterfront deck
Instant ambiance. Just plan for weather, parking, and sound. - A library event space (after closing)
Unexpected, community-centered, and perfect for a “business + workforce + learning” angle. - A fire station training room
Strong civic pride, built-in storytelling, and a great way to connect public service and business community partnership. - A museum gallery
It elevates the feel of the night without requiring a fancy venue budget.
Unusual venues work when they feel like a gift to attendees, not a test or shock value.
