Tips and ideas for more successful meetings management.
TOP TIPS FOR CONFERENCE PLANNERS
Our latest five tips for buyers
1. When negotiating with venues, it pays to fit in with their off-peak days/weeks; to hint at repeat business; guarantee ‘extras’ (e.g. open bars and banquets), and always to talk terms (i.e. haggle) only with the decision-maker.
2. If you have conference entertainments to organise then you can save money by avoiding the costs of professional artists on one night by instead opting for amateur talent (staff)contests and practical events (e.g. wine tutoring, cookery demonstrations or cocktail mixing).
3. Ensuring meetings value arises from aiming to be a big/worthwhile booking for the selected venue; by playing one hotel off against another for the business; by negotiating down the cost of add-ons (e.g. presentation equipment/open bars), or simply by refusing to go above your specified total budget.
4. Given the increasingly unpredictable weather in the UK, you may think twice about a riverside venue (if recently flooded); or select rail-reachable destinations in mid-winter; or opt for a country house venue is mid-summer when heatwaves are always possible (and so it’s cooler than in town!)
5. Getting the most from a venue ideally requires a site visit; discussion with decision-making senior managers; advance checks on the bedrooms and meetings suites that you will be allocated; a ‘dummy run’ to assess possible ‘noises off’ or other disruptions; and a one-to-one with the chef to inspire his or her highest standards.
Read Part
A - Top Tips 1-16
Read Part B - Top
Tips 17-26
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