- Determine why a meeting is being held (i.e., to introduce new organization heads, create a new methodology, launch new product or build camaraderie, etc.). Understanding the purpose will help you separate the group’s needs from its wants and identify what they can do without.
- Decide what type of property should be used based on the group’s needs for space and extra-curricular activities like golf, team-building programs, etc. (e.g., downtown property, airport facility, conference center, suburban hotel or resort).
- Look for a property that offers complimentary shuttles.
- In negotiations, ask for free Internet access for attendees and for resort fees to be waived, if applicable.
- Be flexible with your dates. What days of the week and time of the year you choose can significantly affect your costs.
- Look at Sunday arrival vs. Monday arrival, and the difference in cost between Thursday through Sunday vs. Monday through Thursday events.
- Look at properties during “off-season” dates.
- Ask your sales contact what dates they need filled.
- Book, schedule and set up your meeting rooms to so they can be used more than once.
- The general session room can be used later for a breakout session, especially if it’s set in a crescent shape.
- Time the breakouts so that one or more of the rooms can be reset for a banquet or reception later in the day.
- Rather than allowing participants to expense their meals to the organization, plan for their F&B. Reuse any items you can (e.g., coffee, morning pastries, fruit or prepackaged break items, dessert from the buffet) so you’re not purchasing duplicate items.
- Eliminate any timing elements that might incur additional costs (i.e., make sure that your set-ups and breakdowns won’t drive labor into overtime; sometimes booking a room an extra day will prove to be more cost-effective than paying overtime and give you an extra venue to use).
- Remember audio/visual can be costly, so if you can, travel with your own equipment, like projectors and whiteboard markers. If you can’t, negotiate to reuse the same equipment in multiple rooms or piggyback on another group’s set-ups to defer costs.
- Learn from your peers. Click here to read about specific cost-saving measures you can take that will help you improve your meeting’s bottom line.
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