Over the past few weeks our industry has been faced with the real possibility that government regulations would hinder corporations from using meetings as a legitimate business tool. As you know, several events have come under intense media scrutiny because they were being held by companies that were in so much financial trouble that they were reaching out to the US Treasury for support.
There is much debate on whether the coverage of these events was fair but regardless, they have created an environment of outrage and potential regulation that we fear will have unintended consequences. Last week, congress approved the following language within the stimulus bill:
20 ''(d) LIMITATION ON LUXURY EXPENDITURES.-The board of directors of
any TARP recipient shall have in place a company-wide policy regarding
excessive or luxury expenditures, as identified by the Secretary, which
may include excessive expenditures on (1) entertainment or events; (2)
office and facility renovations; (3) aviation or other transportation
services; or(4) other activities or events that are not reasonable
expenditures for staff development, reasonable performance incentives,
or other similar measures conducted in the normal course of the business
operations of the TARP recipient.
What this means is that the Secretary of the Treasury is going to establish a definition for ‘excessive or luxury’ expenditures. It is likely these regulations, while not having a legal bearing on non TARP companies, will influence the meetings policies of many organizations. This process will take weeks or even months and will give ample time for our industry to make our voices heard. What the industry has done to begin to address this issue is create a voluntary set of meeting guidelines to act as a model for companies and hopefully the Treasury Department.
These voluntary guidelines and speaking points are available through The American Hotel and Lodging Association. Read the points and understand the restrictions being placed upon the meeting industry. It is your duty, as a meeting planner, to inform your clients on pending legislation that may affect them tomorrow or in two years.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Getting your Money's Worth on Events
Ok, so I have this client who is planning his first city wide event. After researching many different city venues and packages, the client has decided on one specific city. While the city offers a great stadium (this is a softball tournament) for the event, the entire package is not complete.
What is missing or not right about the fit? Rooms, Money, Traffic flow, Crowds, etc... A package needs to meet many different criteria, not just one. Many times you'll be working with a client who is dead set on using one specific brand or venue. How do you get the client to see the whole picture?
Show the client the connection between money and experience. Experience plays such a big role in event development. Do you have the right venue, city, hotels to make your attendees want to come back? The last four words are key - "want to come back".
Yes, the stadium, in my case, may be a perfect fit (for future years, just not this year). Keying on that point, the Convention and Visitors Bureau confirmed that due to two large special events, on the same week, that they can offer no hotel rooms within a 60 mile radius. Ok, red flag! Remember, experience plays a HUGE role in whether an attendee or team comes back to your event. No rooms, very crowded restaurants and heavy traffic flow. Do you see a potential problem or problems?
Ideas for stearing your client in the right direction:
1. Itemize the entire package - what do we need to have to make our event a success? How many rooms? Are our dates "set in stone"? Do we need citywide support? Are any other events in town that we will be competeing with on space?
2. Prioritze the Package - Ideal venue, Alottment of rooms in desired price range, city support, etc.
3. Explain the cost ratio and experience factor to your client. Know your client - what are his/her hot buttons? Is your client a visual person? Is your client a numbers person? Knowing your client will help you present the best options in terms they can understand.
4. Do a site visit - always. Driving the site, especially with a city wide, may help the client see the negatives and postives of each venue. Also, this is where experience comes into play. How does the client truly feel at the venue, city, hotels, etc?
Last but not least, remember that the client makes the final decision! We, as site selectors and meeting planners, do whatever we can to proivide the full picture. If the client is not given the full picture, we have not done our job very well.
I'll be back with event planning and site selection articles and tips, to help you save your client or your business money.
What is missing or not right about the fit? Rooms, Money, Traffic flow, Crowds, etc... A package needs to meet many different criteria, not just one. Many times you'll be working with a client who is dead set on using one specific brand or venue. How do you get the client to see the whole picture?
Show the client the connection between money and experience. Experience plays such a big role in event development. Do you have the right venue, city, hotels to make your attendees want to come back? The last four words are key - "want to come back".
Yes, the stadium, in my case, may be a perfect fit (for future years, just not this year). Keying on that point, the Convention and Visitors Bureau confirmed that due to two large special events, on the same week, that they can offer no hotel rooms within a 60 mile radius. Ok, red flag! Remember, experience plays a HUGE role in whether an attendee or team comes back to your event. No rooms, very crowded restaurants and heavy traffic flow. Do you see a potential problem or problems?
Ideas for stearing your client in the right direction:
1. Itemize the entire package - what do we need to have to make our event a success? How many rooms? Are our dates "set in stone"? Do we need citywide support? Are any other events in town that we will be competeing with on space?
2. Prioritze the Package - Ideal venue, Alottment of rooms in desired price range, city support, etc.
3. Explain the cost ratio and experience factor to your client. Know your client - what are his/her hot buttons? Is your client a visual person? Is your client a numbers person? Knowing your client will help you present the best options in terms they can understand.
4. Do a site visit - always. Driving the site, especially with a city wide, may help the client see the negatives and postives of each venue. Also, this is where experience comes into play. How does the client truly feel at the venue, city, hotels, etc?
Last but not least, remember that the client makes the final decision! We, as site selectors and meeting planners, do whatever we can to proivide the full picture. If the client is not given the full picture, we have not done our job very well.
I'll be back with event planning and site selection articles and tips, to help you save your client or your business money.
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