Saturday, November 29, 2008

Selecting the Best Value Venue for your Event

By Greg McKenzie

Getting the best venue can either make or break the success of the event. Everyone who attends is relying on your choice. Its a difficult task even at the best of times, but if venue occupancies are running high it can be even harder! There are several tricks to look for and it is very easy to get this wrong.

A key factor when choosing a venue is availability. If you have waited until the last moment to organize then your options could be very limited, as well as more costly. Plan well in advance and make the booking as soon as you can. Don't forget to keep track of what booking you have made as you need to keep in mind the cancellation policies, to avoid any additional charges to yourself.

The general area of the event is usually self-evident. There are some things to consider when picking the exact location, such as what travel arrangements will be required. If travel eats up too much of your budget you will pay for it in other areas such as food. Central city locales and rural conference centers each have their advantages and drawbacks to consider.

Consider that the style of the location you pick needs to blend with the atmosphere you want the event to present. There is a lot of variation in venue locations from franchised hotels to unique privately owned specialty type venues. Style comes at a price so keep this in mind when budgeting. And remember that cheap accommodations may require you to spend more in decorations.

The cost of a venue weighs heavily in the decision-making process, and it can be quite different at various times of year and various levels of availability. When it's time to negotiate the rate, you find difficulty lowering the rate for just one event, but there are some techniques that you can use to make your position stronger! You can read more about this in the article we wrote recently on rate negotiation. When you're planning your schedule, remember that you need to allot time for set, and space for eating, if your event calls for it.

Will you be arranging accommodations for your guest? If the venue has bedrooms you need be sure you are not carrying too much liability. A reduced attendance could cost you dearly. If no bedrooms are available you will have to decide if the accommodations are going to be your responsibility, as this can become quite a challenge. Its often helpful to outsource the process of accommodations to companies that offer this service for free.

It is clear that this type of room that the venue has is a practical factor that needs considered. If you are holding a conference, how many break out rooms will you need? Will they allow you to use the bar or lobby? Its usual to set up a visit to the site so that you can judge if the venue is suitable.

Trawling through the internet can be one option for finding the best venue, however there are a number of free venue finding services which take away the pain of the process. They can offer a free service as the hotel will pay them a small commission and they will inevitably also manage to get a better price for you!

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