When planning ANY event (whether it is a board meeting for 20 people or a three day conference for 200) choosing the right venue is one of the most important pieces in setting the tone and feeling for the rest of the event.
According to One Magazine there are 7 must haves in a venue needed to properly facilitate your event.
1. Location-the saying of "location, location, location" is for me probably one of the most important aspects in choosing an event space for my clients. It must be easily accessible, close to public transportation, be close to a major city, and offer other things for your clients to do or see around that location. People are too busy these days to jump on multiple flights, grab a rental car and then have to drive to their final location; only to get there and be bored to tears because they are in the middle of nowhere. Make sure when choosing a venue for an event you think about these things before finalizing on an event space.
2. Value-this does NOT mean cheap. This means am I maximizing on what I am getting for the price I am being quoted? If you have a "low" hotel cost but are then being charged for all of these extras "incidentals"-that $89/night quickly becomes $139/ night. If you are paying for 100 guests that's a difference of $5000 for your client. Make sure you know what your actual cost of the venue!
3. Sense of place-this is a pretty simple concept. If a client wants to come here to Washington D.C. they want to experience the Washington D.C. So having their conference in the city 2 blocks from the White House or the Capitol is probably a better choice for you than hosting you conference in a hotel 20 miles outside of the city.
4. Local food and experiences-part of the "going green" movement is to try and lower the carbon footprint of your entire meeting and one of the most delicious ways to do this is by trying to serve "local" food whenever you can. Not only are you allowing your clients to experience the local cuisine you are helping out local farmers, and ensuring a smaller carbon footprint to your overall meeting.
5. Wired rooms-in this technological age having internet access (preferably FREE internet access) is a MUST for busy executives. If having internet access in your hotel is not an option make sure you know where there are some "hot spots" locally to point out to your guests.
6. The right tech staff-piggy-backing on number 5 most meetings and conferences now have a lot of technological demands. A meeting will literally come cruising to a halt if your guest speaker needs their laptop connected to a power point projector, and the screen goes black! You will need to make sure the venue has a great A/V team that can in and make sure everything is working smoothly.
7. Adequate Storage-this is probably not something you would normally think about when choosing a location, however for large meetings or conferences it is one of the first things I inquire about. You need to know there will be a place onsite to store your conference folders, registration materials, last minute suit cases for that conference attendee coming it at the last minute, and the personal items of your staff. Nothing will make a meeting look unprofessional like having clutter visible.
One of the benefits of hiring Capitol Event Firm (http://www.capitoleventfirm.com) for your next event is that we check out venues and locations whether or not we have an event that will be suited for that venue. One boutique hotel or space might not work for one of our clients but perhaps it will be a perfect fit for another.
The last Friday of every month we will highlight a venue/hotel that not only meets the above 7 requirements (as stated in One Magazine) but have a uniqueness factor that will surely make your next event AMAZING.
As always I hope you have an eventful day!
Zaiba
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