Event Cost Savings: Signage

Creating signage for events is an easy task that every planner can do with ease. When planning an event, it is important to have the correct information available and an easy-to-read format for attendees. However, the display and choice of materials is widely varied. Often the client budget is a big factor in how elaborate signage is at any given event.

RDL takes pride in working with our clients in all facets of planning the logistics of their meetings, conferences, or events. Client budgets are always very important and looking for cost savings measures for our clients are options that we like to share. Signage can be a huge expense and the message is the same; directions & information for attendees. Signs can be as large as billboards, they can be multiple colors, illuminated, 3-dimensional, magnetic, and in every size and shape imaginable. Banners and large foam-core signs are beautiful and depending on the number of signs needed to assist attendees in getting from place to place and knowing what is happening in each venue can be huge.

Here’s some information for many different and unique options for event signage.

Signage can also be very moderated and still be quite effective, depending on the venue, the client and the number of attendees. RDL planners often reduce the cost of big expensive signs by using slip in sign holders.

The slip in sign holders have borders in many colors that can compliment our client’s theme or colors. These sign holders have a plastic center for a 8/5x11 pre-printed sign. This style sign is easy, efficient and inexpensive for our clients. These slip in signs also have large red arrows to assist attendees with directions to venue meeting rooms and other events. Signage provides directional assistance to elevators, up and down stairs, around corners, and down long hallways.

Just a little bit of information that I thought would be interesting to share. Great to know of something that other planners may not be aware of & to know that this form of signage is cost inexpensive and efficient.

~ Cyndy Hutchinson • Executive Director, RDL enterprises

A New Way to Do Business with the Federal Government

As meeting, conference and event planners, it is always a challenge to find ways to work with the Federal Government. The newest strategy we have seen in requests for quotes has been for NO COST contracting. This means that the planner is required to recoup all of the costs incurred in planning the event, usually including the meeting site costs. This is done through registration, exhibitor, and sponsor fees. The challenge is to determine reasonableness in building a budget based on anticipated costs and projected income, including no charge to government employees. This is, of course, much easier when you have a meeting that will draw your anticipated number of attendees, exhibitors, and sponsors. Sometimes the government gives you a range of attendees, which is another challenge for budgeting.

I know the government agencies are looking for ways to save money, but we must caution ourselves, not to lose money in the process of contracting with the government. One of the recent bids we did required no more than a 10% profit to the contractor. In building a budget, that is easy to project, in reality I am not sure how that works.

We find this to be a new and interesting trend. We have seen it in the private sector for a long time, but now the government is engaging in this practice, without a full understanding of the consequences. When bidding, you don’t have a contract with a meeting site, an audio-visual vendor, a drayage company, or a caterer. This means that much of what you use to determine a registration fee to propose to the government is based on your experience and best guesses as you are projecting costs.

We will keep you posted on how this trend as we continue in our efforts to work with the Federal Government.

~ Linda Begbie • Executive Director, RDL enterprises

Adult Learning Styles in the Context of Meetings and Conferences

While this is not something that many meeting planners need to worry too much about, it is nonetheless an important piece of what we do. After all, one of the reasons people attend meetings is to learn something. In this post, I’d like to take a quick look at adult learning and what that means for training sessions.

There are, essentially, three styles of learning (for adults or children): Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic. Visual and Auditory learning styles are somewhat self-explanatory. These are learners who prefer to assimilate new information either with their eyes or their ears – they want to see or hear the material – and will process information best when it is presented in those formats. Kinesthetic learning is movement based. People who learn this way do best when they can physically interact with the information somehow, such as through discussion or exercises. Sometimes, a fourth style is included: Environmental. Environmental learners do best when they are in comfortable surroundings. How you present material to them is less important that the environment around them when receiving that information.

When I am asked to do a training, I try to make sure that I have, in addition to my lecture (for the auditory learners), handouts or a PowerPoint presentation of some kind (for the visual learners) and, when possible, samples of what is being discussed (for the kinesthetic learners). The environmental learners are harder to accommodate since they may not even be aware themselves of what factors they need to best learn. So I try to make sure that the space in which the training is happening is as comfortable as I can make it – which is tough to do when you may only have folding chairs and limited control of the room’s temperature…

Another piece in all of this that is often overlooked has to do with the differences between adults and children in how they approach learning. Adults typically have substantial experience that they bring with them. That experience shapes how they approach the material. Although they often come to a meeting or training with beliefs and attitudes already set, they can be a great resource for a trainer to tap into. This diversity of experience also allows adult learners to help each other – and not simply rely on the trainer to make it all make sense to them.

Adults also tend to be more outcome-oriented than children. Adults want the training to relate to and address their needs – whether those needs are personal or professional. They also want to see results quicker than children, who are often happy enough to accept the teacher’s word that the information will be useful later.

All of this means, as a trainer, you need to be more flexible in your teaching methods than you might think. Adults come to learning situations with so much more than children – more experience, more beliefs, more tools to learn with, more expectations – and a good trainer will be able to incorporate many of these things into their classes, making the experience more productive for all of the students. They need to be able to find different ways to present the same material since one size most certainly doesn’t fit all when it comes to adult learners. Having said that, keep in mind that everyone is capable of learning using each style. What we’re talking about here are preferences, so if the material is not suited to one style, you don’t have to force it. Prepare for as many styles as you can and be ready to use the knowledge base that your students already have. Your trainings will be more successful the more you can tailor them to the needs of the participants.

At any given conference, you will find each learning style represented. See if you can distinguish what people’s preferred learning styles are by how they approach the sessions, what they say and do, and what they take away. If you can figure out what styles your attendees have, you can help your speakers, presenters, and trainers do a better job of reaching them with the information they have come to the meeting to get.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Why is hotel food so expensive?

Lately, there has been a lot of chatter in the blogosphere about government excess and the $16 muffins and $8 cups of coffee that the Department of Justice had at a couple of their events (Here is the article that touched it off). Mind you, the article leaves out a lot of details behind the numbers and, instead, focuses on the particular items that are sure to fire people up. After all, they need an attention-grabbing piece to sell the news and including the details explaining how those figures came to be would have turned off most readers. The Meeting Professionals International (MPI) blog posted a response to it here, so I won’t go into that particular issue.

However, I have heard complaints for many years – from conference attendees and funders, mostly – about how expensive hotel food is. It certainly seems that way. $8/person for a coffee break, $22/person for a lunch, $34/person for dinner – you can certainly eat quite well as an individual at those prices, especially when you find out that these prices are “plus-plus”. Let’s examine each of these examples one by one. I’ll start with dinner, since that is the one most often referenced in conversations on this topic.

Dinner, at a hotel, typically includes a soup and/or salad, bread, the entrée (with sides), dessert, and coffee service. All of that is included in the $34/person. Now it isn’t fair to compare this to a fast food joint, like McDonald’s or Carl’s Jr. The two types of meal service aren’t even close. Meals served at conferences are more like eating at a restaurant – and a moderately nice one at that. If I were to get the same menu items at a middle-of-the-road restaurant in the same city as my conference, the prices (before tax and tip) might break down like this:

• Soup (or Salad): $5
• Bread: usually included for free
• Chicken Entrée: $16
• Dessert: $7
• Coffee or Tea: $3

Add that all up and you have…$31. Suddenly, the hotel’s pricing does not seem so out of line as it did before, does it? Yes, it is still a bit higher, but it is not shockingly so, which is what most people react to.

Lunch is very similar to dinner. For a restaurant lunch comparable to what a hotel might serve, you’re looking at prices something along these lines:

• Soup (or Salad): $4
• Bread: usually included for free
• Sandwich Entrée: $10
• Dessert: $5
• Coffee or Tea: $2

The total for a similar lunch at a restaurant is…$21? Yep, we’ve saved an entire dollar compared to the hotel’s pricing. Not much of a difference there…

Finally, let’s look at the $8 coffee. Yes, I know I said I wasn’t going to into it here but this is the one that seems to generate the most ire from certain folks and it is one area where your local coffee shop is way below the prices charged by hotels. Let’s look at in more detail…at $8/person for coffee service, what do you get? You get coffee service for a fixed amount of time (usually 1/2 hour), during which your attendees can pretty much drink as much coffee or tea as they want. How many of them do you think have just one cup?

When I order “in bulk” for coffee (to save money), I know that one gallon will give me 16-20 cups, depending on the size of the cups used by the hotel (see this post for more details). Will I order one gallon, then, for a group of 20 people? Probably not. I will want to have some extra available in case they drink more than I anticipated, even if this results in leftover coffee that no one drinks.

When ordering a break package, such as coffee service billed “per person” instead of by the gallon, the same principle is at work. The hotel does not want to run out of coffee (it makes them look bad), so they need to prepare more than they think people will drink. Plus, coffee service includes tea and decaf. The hotel needs to make sure that there is enough for people with those preferences as well. Your corner coffee shop (even Starbucks) can make coffee one gallon at a time and still promptly serve their customers. A hotel, trying to serve coffee to several hundred people all at the same time, must make much larger batches.

The upshot of all of this is that there is the potential for considerable leftovers (aka “waste”) with coffee service. Since the hotel must, at least, cover costs for providing it, they must take that into account – which results in higher prices. Even your corner coffee shop does this; their level of “lost product” is simply much smaller. In fact, every business that serves food must take wastage into account with their pricing or they will quickly be out of business. That’s basic economics.

So, does this mean that hotel food in not expensive? No, it’s still pricy – and I still think it’s expensive when I compare it to preparing a meal at home. However, when I compare it to eating out, I find that the prices are not too far off from what I would pay in a restaurant. Restaurants and hotel both need to cover not just the cost of the food, but also the costs of rent, equipment, staff wages, maintenance, and a myriad of other expenses that go into providing a service to the public – which means that it will always be more expensive than what it costs me to make the same dishes at home (assuming I even know how to make and have the time to make said dishes…).

So, the next time you hear a complaint about how expensive hotel food is, look at similar options before joining the chorus. You might find that the claims are right on track – or a bit overblown…

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

How much would a Meeting Planner charge to produce my event?

That’s a tricky one to answer and there is no way I could give a realistic estimate without knowing details. So – let’s look at how the Meeting Planner would come up with an answer for you. It mostly comes down to two main factors…

To begin with, it depends on how the planer expects to get paid. Do they work on commission or do they use a “fee for service” structure? If they are “fee for service”, do they charge by the hour or by the job? Or, do they mix the difference fee options? [For more on how meeting planners get paid, check out this post.] Each approach yields different answers in terms of how much you would need to pay the planner, though the amount earned by the planner often ends up being roughly the same.

The second piece of this puzzle is the event itself and what you items you want the planner to handle. This is, in many ways, the greater of the two factors as well as being the more complex of the two. A couple of things you may recall from earlier posts: event RFPs outline the basic structure of the event and staffing (who staffs the event and how many people you will need) helps determine the planner’s physical presence at your event. But these areas only scratch the surface of what a planner will want (need!) to know about your event before they can give you an accurate estimate of cost… What more will they want to know? Well, once you get past the basic information about when, where, and how many people, a meeting planner will want details about each task that you want them to do. Each task requires a different amount of work and that amount is potentially different for each event – even for the same task.

For example, if you want the planer to handle registration, then information about how many people you expect to attend, what fees they will pay (if any) and who collects those fees, who produces name badges, etc. will all be useful for the planner to know in building a quote for you. Similarly, asking the meeting planner to handle all of your food arrangements will involve needing to know how many food functions you will have, how many people you anticipate attending each one, and meal restrictions or guidelines. And, an event for twenty people will require different things than an event for several thousand (though there are many similarities). Basically, the more information you can provide for each task you wish the meeting planner to do for you, the more accurate a quote they can provide.

When RDL works on a response to an RFP, we examine each task area that the potential client is asking us to do, while looking at how that task fits into the “big picture” of the event. We then start building the estimated “fee for service”, using a grid that outlines each task area with the common jobs within each area (and, no, I can’t share the grid…sorry). The grid allows us to estimate the hours required for each job and for each level of staff expertise, then calculate a total for the event. One of the nice things about this approach is its ability to take in account overlapping task areas when pricing an event. For example, the budget management task area includes many jobs and responsibilities that also appear in areas like site selection, food ordering and management, attendee reimbursements, and audio-visual services, just to name a few. If we are handling multiple areas for a client, we can often reduce the charge for those services below what they would be if you simply ordered services off of a “menu”. The whole costs less than the sum of the parts…

If all of this seems a bit overwhelming, don’t worry about it too much. Remember, meeting planners – especially the independents – are used to doing this on a regular basis. They can get you a cost estimate fairly quickly. However, be ready to answer their questions in as much detail as you can so they can give you a more accurate response.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Why would you serve dessert at an afternoon break?

It is such a simple idea, serving the dessert from lunch at an afternoon break, yet it is a strategy that is often overlooked by novice planners. Indeed, most planners I work with when they are new to the field tend to treat each meal function as a separate event, unconnected to any other on the schedule. Although this is true to some extent, when it comes to lunch and the afternoon break, you have a golden opportunity to save some money while providing timely snacks for your group.

A typical draft agenda schedules lunch from 12:30 – 1:30, with a break (that usually includes more food!) set to occur somewhere around 2:30 or 3pm. Now, I love to eat, especially when someone else is paying for it, but this ends up being a lot of food in a fairly short amount of time. Your attendees will have just had a (hopefully) filling lunch, including dessert, and you are now offering them more food – which is likely to be just as sugary and as high in calories as dessert…

Some people believe that, in a situation like this, people will self-regulate and eat less at the break than they would if the break were served later. From my observations over 17 years, though, that does not seem to generally be the case. People still pile up their plates with cookies (or whatever else is served). They then snack on the pile for a while and end up leaving most of the plate sitting on a table somewhere – uneaten! Not only have we failed to have people take less food but we have also generated a lot of wasted food – and spent a fair amount of money to do so.

The two primary solutions I offer to clients are (1) to change the time of the afternoon break and/or (2) to serve the dessert from lunch at the afternoon break. If they also need to rein in their budget, then I really will push for option #2. In fact, I will often recommend serving dessert at the PM break even if the break already is, or can be, scheduled for a later time.

Pushing the break back a bit in the schedule lets folks have a bit more time to digest lunch (and possibly dessert) before they are presented with more food. However, serving dessert at the afternoon break, in conjunction with a time shift or not, does more than just spread out the calorie intake.

People do eat a bit less at lunch (simply because you are providing less) and their stomachs will not be as full if you omit dessert from lunch. With less calories consumed at lunch, you attendees will more likely be ready for dessert when you serve it later in the afternoon. And, since dessert is typically included in the price of the lunch you provided, you are not spending more to have it brought out at the break. [So long as this option is arranged ahead of time, most hotels are quite willing to work with you on it and do not charge extra for serving dessert separately.] So… not only have we saved some money by not serving a whole new set of snacks but we will also, hopefully, find ourselves with less food left over both after lunch and after the break.

While this solution does not work for all groups in all situations, it is one more option to be aware of that you can use to trim your food costs while still providing your event’s participants with an enjoyable conference food experience – and I frequently recommend it to my clients.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Choosing the Right Venue

When working with various clients to plan a meeting, conference, or event of any kind, one of the big pieces is the site selection. Site selection is a process with a purpose. The site has to have the correct parameters for the event that will be held there.

The size of the plenary session needs to be adequate to comfortably fit all the attendees in a comfortable setting and one that makes sense for the topic and attendee participation, if any is expected. The meeting planner also needs to take into consideration if any large screens are going to be used, what media will be used, will the attendees be able to see easily, and what room set-up is preferred.

Meeting “flow” is another area that is important for each event. The number of meeting rooms and the size and arrangement of the meeting space to be utilized can have a large impact here. How large is the General Session room? How many breakouts are needed? Where are they located? Are they on the same level as the rest of the event? Can attendees access them easily? Can the rooms easily accommodate the audio-visual equipment needed?

And, how far away is the food? Yes, that is always an important question for everyone! RDL staff never likes to use the same rooms for meals that meetings are being held in when they can avoid it but we do want it close by. (Having meals in a separate space gives people a chance to get up, stretch, and move a bit. Plus, the change of scenery can be good for a mental break as well.) And attendees don’t like to be too far away from the food either. Considering all the flow and potential uses of space before selecting a site is incredibly important.

Another important thing to consider when selecting a venue for a client is the location of the event. Is it convenient? Is it located close to public transportation? For those flying to the event, where is the airport in relation to the venue? How about the subway/train? And, for those driving in, what parking options exist? Take into consideration ADA access & limitations, such as the location of elevators in relationship to sleeping rooms & meeting space. Where are the restaurants and the recreational facilities and how easy is it to access them?

One of the final, but vitally important, considerations for many clients is the price. What will it cost to hold the event there? How much are the sleeping rooms? What is the cost of the food & beverage? Is there a cost for the meetings space? Is the venue willing to work with us to meet budget limits? Can the client afford it?

All of these items are important and will help guide the client towards selecting the most appropriate venue for their event. Keep these suggestions in mind and enjoy your next event!

~ Cyndy Hutchinson • Executive Director, RDL enterprises

Advantages of Technology-Based Meetings

Last month, I wrote about the advantages of face-to-face meetings. In all fairness, I must point out that technology-based, or “virtual” meetings also have some advantages as well, especially in certain situations. Here are the main ones I have come across.

• They save time.
• They save money.
• There is more flexibility in the “when and where” of the meeting.
• Allow for multi-tasking and increased productivity.

Not having to travel to a meeting or conference, especially if it requires air, train, or extensive driving, certainly saves time. The time not spent on travel can be put to use in the office or at the job site working on other projects. It also saves on costs since you are not paying for transportation and, if the meeting requires overnight accommodations, it will save you the cost of a hotel stay, as well as meals and other incidental expenses.

In terms of flexibility for when and where the meeting is “held”, this really only makes a difference when the numbers attending the meeting are low. A Board meeting, for example, or a team meeting might be good candidates for making into virtual meetings. Conferences operate at a different level. Even if you were to make one into a virtual event, the sheer number of “attendees” reduces flexibility when considering “when”. As for the “where”, the participant does retain control over that – they could log into the event from work, home, or any location with the appropriate technology (i.e. a computer with internet access) – so I can see that as an advantage, if the participant is able to stay focused on the meeting…

The multi-tasking and increased productivity issues are, to me, a little harder to justify as being advantages. While people believe that they can multi-task, is that really the best way to participate in a meeting or conference? You only have so much mind-power available at any given time. Attempting to multi-task really means dividing your attention. If your attention is divided, how much of the information from the meeting are you really retaining?

I can see an argument for increased productivity being an advantage but that is mostly connected to the time saved by not traveling. Since it can be difficult to get serious work done while on the road, not traveling can increase bottom line productivity – but this seems to be more a function of the “It saves time” position than an advantage in its own right.

Each time an advance is made in virtual meetings technology, I see articles declaring the demise of the face-to-face meeting – and, yet, those meetings continue to happen. Virtual meetings are great for short meetings with few participants and limited agendas or goals. Face-to-face meetings are usually better when you are bringing large numbers of participants together for interactive sessions or networking. The reality is that there is room for both types of meetings in our industry and neither one can completely supplant the other – so keep your options open and find the one that is right for your event…

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

What are Base Prices and Inclusive Prices?

The simple answer (to me, anyway) is that Base Price and Inclusive Price are on opposite ends of the same equation – with tax and other charges in between. So how does that work if you are catering an event?

On a typical menu with catering pricing for a hotel, you will see a price listed next to each item or package. Often, that price is followed by a “++”. As discussed in my post on hidden charges, the “++” (or “plus-plus”) represents taxes and services charges that are added to the Base Price that is listed on the menu. If you cannot find the rates on the catering menus, ask your CSM for that information – you need to know it!

Now, let’s look at an example (warning – math ahead!)…

I’ve chosen to serve a dinner that is listed as $50 per person on the menu. Remember, that is the Base Price for my choice. For this example, taxes are 7.75% and the hotel will add a 20% service charge to the bill as well. That gives me an Inclusive Price of $64.65/person to serve that menu option. So how did I get to that number? Here’s the equation:

Inclusive Price = Base Price x (1 + Service Charge Rate) x (1 + Tax Rate)

Plugging numbers in yields…

Inclusive Price = $50 x 1.2 x 1.0775 = $64.65

So, if Base Price is the amount without tax and service charges figured in, then Inclusive Price is the amount with tax and service charge included.

Here is a simple price calculator that I’ve cooked up in Excel that you can download and play with. It will calculate either Inclusive Price from a known Base Price or Base Price from a target Inclusive Price. The only other information you’ll need to know is the tax rate and service charge amount and it will do the rest.

By the way, does the Inclusive Price appear excessive to you? If so you’re not alone. It seems that way to many people when they compare it to the cost of eating out. However, the same dynamic is at play there, too – people usually just aren’t consciously aware of it. The restaurant menu lists the Base Price for each item; you pay taxes on top of that, and tip on top of that. If you were to order a $50 meal, by the time you add tax and tip to the bill, your final tab will be similar to the amount calculated above (though, obviously, you can control how much to tip…).

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

4 Advantages of Face-to-Face Meetings

When the economy is as tight as it is, many companies and government agencies see meetings and conferences as easy places to eliminate spending. Training budgets are slashed and, in some cases, agencies are outright forbidden to attend or support conferences even if there is little or no cost to the agency. However, this approach is rather short-sighted in my view – and not just because I’m a meeting planner.

True, there is the potential to save time and money by cutting trainings or by reducing or eliminating participation in face-to-face meetings. But, the way I look at it, much more is lost. Here are four advantages of face-to-face meetings that often get overlooked when too much attention is focused solely on fiscal issues.

1. People prefer to do business – and better business deals are often done – with people they have a relationship with and building meaningful relationships is much better done in person. And, the social interactions that take place during a live event help to build those relationships. In fact, in recognition of the importance of social interactions, many conferences build in time for networking and relationship-building. Yes, you can build relationships with others through virtual events but it takes much longer to accomplish than through face-to-face interactions. How much more time (and money) does it take to find and build new, meaningful, business relationships compared to maintaining and strengthening the ones you have?

2. Meeting face-to-face allows you to read body language, see facial expressions, and get a better “read” of others present. Non-verbal cues are important to human interaction: you can look them in the eye when conversing, note changes in body posture, observe what they are doing with their hands, etc. When you can instantly “read” the other person, you can react more appropriately to the conversation – and the situation. This is crucial if you are trying to build consensus, lead a group, or persuade potential partners to agree to your position – or trying to build a professional relationship.

3. Face-to-Face meetings allow participants to engage in more complex thinking, particularly “strategic” thinking, especially when you have more than just two or three participants. In a face-to-face setting, conversation can flow naturally, moving from one topic to another with relative ease as participants share information and build upon ideas and concepts already shared. As the number of participants grows in a virtual meeting, it tends more towards becoming a lecture-style presentation instead of an interactive discussion, which ends up stifling creative and constructive conversations. Conferences, in particular, involve large numbers of people – too many to effectively participate in a virtual event.

4. Fewer Distractions. This may not seem to be the case but consider how easy it is to “tune out” on a conference call, or work on another project at the same time, or walk away from the conversation. The ability to multi-task is often cited as a reason why people like virtual meetings but turn that perspective around. Do you really want the other party (or parties) to set you aside during the conversation so they can work on something else? When you are meeting with people face-to-face, it forces them to be more engaged in the discussion and it is easier to tell if they are no longer engaged so you can move on to the next issue or shift the discussion as appropriate.

A successful meeting is dependent on many things but the manner in which the meeting takes place is an important factor. Do you meet in person, or simply connect by phone or video chat? For many things, a phone call or an email may be all that is needed but, if you want to build long-term, meaningful relationships (whether personal or professional), you need to do more than that. You need to be there, live and in person…

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

How can I get free meeting space for my event?

I love this question! It is a very common one, especially from first-time clients that I’ve worked with. I think that is partially because it is an obvious cost that impacts an event’s bottom line and it is one that many properties are often willing to waive. However, since hotels (and other meeting venues) are in business to make money, the real question to my mind is – under what circumstances would they give me free meeting space? If I can answer that question, then I just might get free space for my client’s event…

To figure this out, I start with something called the Rooms-to-Space Ratio (sometimes called Space-to-Rooms Ratio). Simply put, this is a comparison of the percentage of guest rooms in the hotel that a group will use, compared to the percentage of meeting space that the group needs. For example, if you are using 50 rooms in a hotel that has 500 total guest rooms, then you are using 10% of the guest rooms. Similarly, if you are using a ballroom that is 5,000 square feet in size and the hotel has 20,000 square feet of meeting space, then you are using 25% of the available space.

A good rule of thumb is that if your guest room percentage is equal to or higher than your meeting space percentage, the hotel will be willing to give you the space for free (or sharply discounted). The greater the difference is in favor of guest rooms, the more willing the hotel will be to give you the space for free. Now, there are some key modifiers to the ratio (such as the contracted rate for the guest rooms, when you want to use the space, and which specific rooms you want to use) but examining the basic percentages is a good place to start.

What happens if the group has a poor Rooms-to-Space Ratio (lots of space and few guest rooms)? Now you have to pull out the big guns – and your group history. Show the hotel that the value of your business is high enough and they’ll negotiate with you on the space rental fees. Your group history can give you the documentation you need to make your argument stick. Remember what I said about them being in business to make money? I know of groups who use a lot of meeting space and fill relatively few guest rooms – but they get good discounts on room rental because their planner could show (from their group history) that attendees who did stay in the hotel would spend a lot of money in, for example, the bar and the restaurant. Hotels are willing to take a loss in one area (space rental) to gain a larger profit in another (outlets). Incidentally, this is also why many properties do not charge a room rental if you are doing a lunch or a dinner in the room. The money they make by catering the event more than offsets the money they “lose” by not charging a rental fee.

OK, so what if the group has a poor Rooms-to-Space Ratio and a small economic impact for the hotel (or no group history)? Here is where you might have to get creative – and flexible with your dates. Can you meet during slow periods at the hotel? This could be a certain day (or days) of the week or certain times of the year. When demand for space is low or nonexistent, a hotel is much more willing to let you have the space for free simply to get some business into the property, even if it is not as profitable as they might like. After all, if the hotel has no events, then those profit centers produce no income at all. Another option to consider is to look for gaps you can fill in the hotel’s schedule. Perhaps they have a group that is using a lot of guest rooms but little meeting space. If that is the case, your large meeting space needs and small guest room requirements might fit perfectly – and they’d be willing to comp the space as an incentive for you to book with them.

I have frequently heard in industry trainings that “everything is negotiable”. That is true – to a point. There are limits but you can always ask... However, if I know what the other side is able and likely to do, then that does give me a slight edge in negotiating. At the very least, it allows me to understand the constraints that my opposite numbers in sales have to work within, as well as allowing me to demonstrate knowledge that reveals me to be a good partner for them to work with (at least, I hope that’s how they see it). I have also found that knowing what is possible and being realistic about the things I ask for when negotiating with hotels has led to more successful contracts (i.e. getting more of what I want) than starting out asking for the sun and the moon.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

How can a hotel deliver great service to a meeting planner?

This is a common question I get from hotel sales managers, CSMs, GMs, and others – both before I book a group and while that group in in-house. In fact, the question comes up so often during pre-cons that I actually have a script I use just for those meetings. So, what is my usual response? Here it is, in a much shorter – and slightly altered form…

The key to delivering great service to a professional meeting planner is to deliver great service to the event participants.

Why is that?

The tendency for many hotel staff is to treat the meeting planner (and any designated VIPs) very well, which makes some sense for a couple of reasons. First, the meeting planner is often a single individual, which makes it easy to single them out for great service. Even when you add in the planner’s staff and event VIPs, you’re still talking about a relatively small group for hotel staff to identify. Second, the planner and VIPs are seen as being the decision-makers for where events go in the future so, as the thinking goes, treat them well and they will return. Both of those reasons are sound enough by themselves but I feel that they leave out the most important component – the attendees. An event’s attendees are, in my view, a main reason the event exists; if they don’t come, there is no event.

Remember, too, not all VIPs are labeled as such. You never know who is attending the meeting. Someone who is attending one event may be a decision-maker for another event that is sponsored by his own agency or company (I have had people like this at some of my functions). Provide great service to that person – especially when they are just a “regular” attendee – and you just gave yourself a leg up to get their business down the road, too.

If a hotel can win over the meeting participants with their service, the chances of getting that group to return to the property in the future go up considerably. I have actually had properties take such good care of my folks that I’ve practically been ordered to use that hotel again, even though my own experience with them was less than stellar.

On the flip side, a planner who takes unhappy participants back to the same venue risks losing attendees – which can have a huge impact on the event’s bottom line, especially if people pay a fee to attend. If they do take that group back to the same property, the planner had better seriously address the issues that made it unpleasant for the attendees – and make that known to the group.

I know the hotel will take good care of me (and my VIPs) – that’s easy – but I want them to take good care of my attendees, too. That is as important to me, if not more so, than just looking out for me and my VIPs.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

What is the difference between a Split Set and a Double Set?

When this question came to me, I went looking for an “official” definition of the terms and found…none. So – I will present my definitions of the terms and, hopefully, a bit more information about each as well…

First off, definitions. How do I define these terms?

Both sets share the fact that you are placing more than one type of seating in the same room; the difference is in how and when they are used.

Split Set: This refers to a room set in which there are multiple types of seating being used at the same time in the same room. For example, I have a group that uses a U-Shape configuration (a variation of Hollow Square) and Classroom seating in the same room at the same time. The members of the group sit at the U-Shape to conduct their business, while the Classroom seating is for observers and staff who are there to support the work being done. Another example would be setting up a convention hall with Classroom seating in the front and Theater seating along the sides and in the back. Everyone there is part of the same session, listening to the same speakers, but they have more than one seating style to choose from.

Double Set: I use this term to refer to a room with more than one set (but usually just two) where the two types of seating are not used at the same time. As an example here, I may request one half of a ballroom to be set up with Classroom seating for the meeting but have the other half set up in Rounds to be used for lunch service. When possible, I will often create a visual barrier with plants or privacy screens to separate the two spaces. Yes, they share the same room but they are used for two different purposes.

As you can see from the examples, there are certainly plenty of times that you might use either a Split Set or a Double Set. But can you do both? Of course you can! In fact, I have done this myself on more than one occasion. The beauty about most meeting spaces at hotels and convention centers is that they can be used in a wide variety of ways – how you use the space is limited only by your imagination (and certain legal codes…).

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

A Closer Look at Space Requirements for Event RFPs

Time to examine in more detail another area that is a must to include on your event RFPs – Space Requirements.

When I discussed the major areas that needed to be covered by your RFP, I said that you needed to provide an outline of the space requirements for the group and gave a couple of details that go into that outline. Let’s look at those items a bit more closely and see what we can add to them. And, remember, you will need to provide this information to the venue for each function room for each day of your event.

1. How many rooms will you need and how will they be used? This is usually pretty easy to figure out but can throw a couple of curves at you. If you have a general session and four concurrent breakout sessions for your one-day event, you might be tempted to simply put that you need five rooms. However, the venue may want to know if the general session room can be used for one (or more) of the breakouts. The answer to that will change your space requirements. Does your program have the flexibility and time to do a “change-over” from one set to another like that? Will you be providing lunch or dinner or holding a reception – or all of the above? Will those food functions need to be served in their own spaces or can they use rooms already held for the meeting portion of your agenda? All of these questions affect the answer to “how many rooms do you need?” After all, if you don’t know how the space you’re requesting is going to be used, how can the venue properly prepare for you?

2. What types of room sets will each room need and for how many people? This is a critical component of your RFP. Since each type of room set takes up a different amount of space, providing this information allows the venue to figure out how much space they need to commit for your general session, each breakout, or any other function you might hold as part of your overall event. For more about room sets, check out these posts: types of room sets, what is the best room set, and how to calculate room capacities.

3. When will you use the space you are requesting? Do not just assume that the venue knows that you need the space from 8am to 5pm – tell them. Likewise, if you know that your general session is in the morning only and your breakouts are only in the afternoon, let the hotel know so they can block out space accurately for you. If you need a 24-hour hold on a room, you had better say so. Otherwise, you may find that the venue has sold the space you are using during the day to another group to use for their dinner. In many cases, this is not an issue but I will always ask for my “office” room to be held on a 24-hour basis. Another example: if I have an extensive audio-visual setup, I do not assume that the venue will automatically reserve the space for me overnight. I will ask for a 24-hour hold – and explain why I am requesting it.

I also stressed in my previous post the importance of making realistic estimates of your event’s attendance and space needs. This is where your group history is invaluable to you. Even if you do not share all of the historical details you have for the group, that history will guide your requests. You will know what they have used in the past, what trends exist (if any), and when a particular space request is outside the bounds of what the group historically has done.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

What is the best room set for a meeting?

Well…that depends on the meeting. There really is no one style that is best in all situations. The “best” style of room set is dependent on how much space you have to work with, how many people will attend, and the purpose of the meeting. Take the time to look at your meeting in detail, and the answer will often present itself – especially if you are familiar with the basic room sets and when to use them.

In this post, I examined five “standard” room set categories that are used for most meetings and conferences. Today, I’d like to take another look at them and consider when and why you might use each one.

For a typical meeting, Classroom (or Schoolroom) seating or Theater seating are the most commonly used. These sets work best when the meeting is presentation-centered, meaning that the focus of the meeting is on the presentations. Of the two, I prefer to use Classroom seating since it offers participants a place to set their drinks and a surface to write on. Theater seating, though, is great for maximizing the number of seats you can get into the room.

If you need the meeting participants to be more actively involved in the meeting, then I would consider using a set that allows everyone to sit around the same table as much as possible. This means using either a variation of Hollow Square or a variation of Rounds (Banquet seating). Rounds can be done as “full” or “crescent” and are good for when you have a mix of lecture-style presentations with some small group work – and you need to do it all in the same room.

Hollow Square, as a general category, covers (in my mind) any room set that creates a rectangular workspace with the meeting participants along the outside. If the number of people is small, then you could do this as a Boardroom Table or as “Conference” seating. As the number of people who need to sit at the table increases, you eventually reach a point where the middle of the table “disappears” and you have a Hollow Square. A U-Shape seating arrangement simply removes one side of the square, which then becomes the front of the room. Hollow Square and its variations are good for meetings in which the participants need to engage each other on a regular basis throughout the day and any presentations are there to support their work. Board meetings, planning group meetings, and strategy meetings are all examples of meetings that would use this type of seating. A word of warning, though, about this style of room set… If you get above about 40 or 50 people, it no longer becomes practical for everyone to sit at the table. The set takes up an enormous amount of space and it becomes increasingly difficult for participants to see or hear people on the opposite side of the table. Technology (microphones, video monitors, etc.) can mitigate this somewhat, but you still reach a point at which that fails as well.

For those rare occasions in which you do not need (or want) seating for the meeting, you can use Reception seating. This style allows you to provide small tables, called “highboys” for people to use as writing surfaces. It also encourages shorter meetings since people are less inclined to take a long time if they have to stand through the entire meeting. I have often seen this approach suggested as a way to shorten staff meetings for that very reason.

So, which is best? None of them. As I mentioned at the start, many factors go into making that determination for each meeting. Is this a lecture-type of meeting, with a series of speakers presenting from the front of the room? Will the attendees need to interact with each other to do group exercises? Do you even need seats?

And, how much space does each of these sets take? Check out this post for a discussion about seating capacities, or you can download this one-page cheat sheet showing how many people can fit into a room for each style of seating.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

How many Registration Counters are Needed for My Event?

While I’ve not come across a hard and fast rule to answer this question, I believe that we can still give ourselves a good rule of thumb to apply as a starting point.

In a previous post, I examined the question of how many people you needed to staff your event and, if you recall, the rule of thumb given there (1 staff per 100 attendees) was geared towards knowing the number of people you would need to staff your registration counters. But – does that estimate also apply to the registration counters themselves…?

Yes and No.

As with staffing levels, 1 per 100 is a good place to start. In this case, though, we’ll use one registration counter for every 100 registrants. Why? Well, I use this as my starting point mainly because each staff person will need some space within which to operate and it is difficult to have too many people all working the same counter. Another reason, quite honestly, is that it makes the math easy and I can make a quick estimate if necessary.

When it comes to actually ordering registration tables or counters, though, I take a good look at what the check-in process will entail. Will attendees simply come by and pick up a badge then go into the meeting or is there more to it than that? Will they need to sign in and/or sign out of the meeting? Are there additional materials that they will need to collect on check-in? If so, how are those materials to be handed out – as a package, singly, attendee chooses what they want, etc.? All of these questions affect how much space you will need to check people in to your event – and, therefore, how many counters you will need. Even the size of the name badges can affect the amount of space you need.

A good way to roughly calculate the space you will need is to set up a mock registration counter in your office. Just pick a table and lay out ten to twenty badges, plus any additional materials they will need to receive on check-in, as if you were conducting your event check-in right there. That will allow you see how much space you will need for everything. You will need to extrapolate a bit to figure out your total space requirements – but it will give you a rough approximation.

Then, think about how long it will take to hand them everything – time how long it takes you if that helps you. Remember, the longer the process takes, the more people you will need to make the process go quickly and efficiently. If you need additional people, you will most likely need more space. If, on the other hand, you am only handing out name badges and there are no other materials or activities taking place at check-in, you could probably get away with one counter for 200 people – and just need one staff to manage it.

So, as usual for many of my posts, the ultimate answer is “it depends” when we look at how many registration counters are needed for a particular event. However, you can still use the “1 per 100” rule to get you started.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Five Questions to Answer about Guest Rooms on Your RFPs

Previously, I gave an overview of the kinds of information you should include when creating an event RFP. I did not go into a lot of detail then about each section but, rather, just gave a brief overview. This week, I’d like to look at one of those areas in more depth – Guest Rooms.

Although the only information required for the RFP is how many rooms on each night you need rooms and what nightly rate you are looking for (or cannot exceed), there is, in fact, much more information you can (and should) share with prospective bidders if you know it ahead of time. Here are five additional questions for you to consider when compiling your RFP details.

1. How many ADA rooms do you need and what types of accommodations are needed for those rooms? For example, I worked with a group for a while with two members who were wheelchair-bound. I needed to make sure that they had roll-in showers available in their rooms. If you have attendees who are blind, deaf, or otherwise impaired, it is incumbent on you as the planner to make sure that the facility you choose can accommodate their needs – especially if they are regular attendees to your event. In general, though, you should be sure to select ADA compliant properties just in case any attendee for your event requires one.

2. Will you provide a rooming list or will guests be calling the hotel on their own to make reservations – and who pays for the room charges? While this rarely affects the hotel’s ability to meet your needs, it does help them to understand the relationship that will exist between the venue, the planner, and the guests.

3. Since hotels have some rooms that have a single bed and others with two beds, another piece of information you can share is how many rooms you will need each night in which configuration. In other words, list how many single rooms and how many double rooms will you need? If you also have guests who will stay three or four to a room (triples and doubles), you should share that information as well.

4. Do you need a “pet-friendly” hotel? If so, you’d better ask for that up front or you and your guests could be in for a shock if the hotel does not allow pets and they plan to bring them. [Note: Service Animals are NOT pets and, by law, are allowed everywhere their owner goes.]

5. Will you need any smoking rooms and what is the breakdown of smoking vs. non-smoking rooms? This may seem like an odd one to include these days, with so many hotel chains going completely non-smoking but, if you have a group of smokers, you need to make sure that the hotel knows that you will need smoking rooms (or at least, smoking areas). In addition, many foreign groups or groups traveling overseas still prefer or require smoking rooms.

Make it your practice to gather data on your attendees and their use of guest rooms – not just at your primary (host) hotel but also at alternative sites as well if you have access to that information. As with so many things in our industry, the more you know, the better prepared you are to meet the needs of your group and have a successful event.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

What is a CVB and how can they help your meeting?

CVB stands for Convention and Visitors Bureau. When we looked at common acronyms in the industry, this was one that definitely needed to be in that list and, if you are new to meeting planning, this is one of those terms that you absolutely must learn. Why? What’s in it for you as a planner?

Well, for starters, CVBs exist for the sole purpose of bringing business to their city and region – from individual travelers all the way up through citywide conventions. They have the resources and knowledge to help you find the right venue or the right services to support your event. You do not need to know the region in depth – that’s their job. Every first and second-tier city has one (some areas have more!) and most third-tier cities have them as well.

They can also assist you in selecting a venue for your event – helping with everything from initial determination of meeting specs and lead distribution to collecting proposals and aiding with site inspections.

They are a resource for every kind of service that you could need for your meeting or conference. If they do not have members who offer the kinds of services you are looking for, they can help find them. I will often use the CVB to help me find AV providers, caterers, decorators, and other specialty services – especially if I do not know anyone in that area already who provides the services I need.

If you need information on events going on while you are in town, the CVB can provide that to you – everything from dining options and shopping centers to museums, sporting events, and theaters. Remember, the Bureaus are geared to help individuals as well as groups so, when I need to know what options exist for my meeting attendees before or after my meeting is done, the CVB gives me a great place to start to find the things that will interest my group.

The kicker for me, though, is the cost – free. That’s right, free! How CVBs are financed varies by bureau but, for me as a planner, there is no cost for most of what they offer in the way of assistance.

It is worth noting that Bureaus are usually funded by a combination of taxes on hotel rooms sold and disbursements from their cities so, yes, I do “pay” for the service through taxes on guest rooms for my groups but that tax will be charged whether I use the CVB or not – so why would I not use them? If in doubt, ask them what they can do to help you for free and what comes with a cost. The stuff I’ve mentioned above, though, is all provided for free.

Another bonus is that many of these resources are available online (also free of charge) and the CVB web sites are a great way to get an initial “feel” for a city and what they might have to offer your group in the way of attractions, dining, entertainment, etc. Look for the “meeting planner” links on their sites. You can get valuable information about venues in the region, as well as submit a Request for Proposals (RFP), check out their convention and events calendars, or locate local vendors for the services your event needs.

Check them out. You may be surprised at how much a CVB has to offer you…

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

What is a “Pre-Con”?

“Pre-Con” is short for pre-conference (or pre-convention) and can refer to any meeting that occurs before the main conference or convention. However, for meeting planners and hoteliers, the term has a particular meaning that is instantly recognized by any who have been in the industry for a while. We use the term to indicate a specific kind of meeting that takes place before the conference, one between the meeting planner and the venue. So why is this special meaning important? What happens at these meetings that make the term stand out in the hospitality industry?

At its most basic, a pre-con is a meeting in which a representative for the group producing the meeting meets with a representative from the venue in which the meeting is being held for the purpose of reviewing the details of the event to ensure accuracy and completeness. This meeting gets everyone on board and “on the same page”.

A typical pre-con begins with the venue welcoming the group. Introductions are made of all of those present from the hotel side and their role in making the event a success. The planner will introduce their team as well. I think of this part of the pre-con as the “big picture” section. We review the goals and objectives for the event and discuss the keys to making the event a success. This section is not always needed and whether or not it is included is often a function of your needs and preferences as well as the size of your event. The larger your event, the more likely this will be included in some fashion. For small functions, an informal round of handshakes may suffice before you move on.

The next portion of the pre-con, which I call the “nuts & bolts” section, usually involves a much smaller group than the “big picture” piece. Where the “big picture” piece can involve as many as 20 people, the “nuts & bolts” piece will usually not involve more than five or six – and I have often had just two or three people (including myself) for smaller meetings. This portion of the pre-con is where the details of the event and the BEOs are discussed in…well, detail. Everything is reviewed to ensure that everyone knows what is scheduled to happen when, what goods or services are to be provided, and who the responsible parties are. This portion of the pre-con is the part you should not ever skimp on – take the time to do it and do it thoroughly.

For large events, I make sure to meet with my CSM far enough in advance to make sure that there is time to inform every department of any changes and get them “on board” with my group’s requirements. Typically, holding the pre-con the day before the event starts provides sufficient time for this, though I have seen pre-cons done as many as three or four days ahead of time. If I am managing a small event, do I still do a pre-con? Absolutely, though it may just be a quick review of the BEOs with my catering manager the night before my meeting starts. In any case, though, I never do a meeting or conference without conducting a pre-con prior to the beginning of the event – and neither should you!

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Healthy Meeting Options – Meals & Snacks

When planning meals and snacks for meetings, it can be hard to provide healthy options to participants. Actually, the hardest part is getting people to choose healthy options but, as the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink. So what’s a meeting planner to do? Make sure the options exist. Here are some of the ways I strive to provide healthier meal and snack options for attendees at my meetings.

1. Make sure that fruit and/or vegetables are available as much as possible within the constraints of the menu. For me, this usually means whole fruit for breaks, particularly in the afternoon, since they last longer on display and can easily be taken by those who want a healthy snack later on. I typically include a vegetable-based item for receptions.

2. For any meal where fowl or red meat is a main component, be sure to include a vegetarian option. For lunch buffets, this could mean including entrées that are based on non-meat proteins such as beans or tofu, or alternate meats such as fish, depending on the needs of your diners. At receptions, including multiple dishes that do not contain meat gives participants additional choices.

3. Control meal portions. This is nearly impossible to do with buffets, but is quite easy to do with plated lunches (read this post for more info on plated vs. buffet meals). You can control portions at receptions through choices of items or by having servers walk around the room instead of simply putting all of the food out at once (which I discuss briefly here).

4. Talk to the chef about lean meat options so that those who choose meat dishes still get a healthier meal. The chef can often even work with limited budgets to still make this happen.

5. If possible, choose snacks that are low in fat and salt and that contain no added sugar.

Now, I don’t always use every one of these ideas but even choosing just one or two of them will help you provide healthy meals or snacks for your events. Use the ones that make sense for your budget and particular situation – and, above all else, that make sense for your group. If the attendees won't eat a particular item, then providing it is a waste of food and money. However, that does not mean I can't provide healthy options to that group…it just means I need to work a little more to find something they will like.

~ Karl Baur, CMP • Project Director, RDL enterprises

Ed. Note: A follow up post on beverages - the other half of F&B - can be found here.