Meeting Planner Tip of the Month Archives - Page 4 of 6

Posted on March 5, 2017

How to Save Money On F&B and Conference Room Rental

1. THEY’RE EQUAL FEES…Food & Beverage (F&B) minimums and Meeting Room Rental are equal fees and you should not have both in your hotel contract. A hotel has a minimum revenue amount that they expect to get out of their breakout rooms/ballrooms on a certain day/time. As long as you fulfill that with either meeting room rental or an F&B minimum, you are fulfilling the hotel’s revenue needs for that meeting room. 2. DON’T OVERPAY… Make sure that if you fall short of your F&B minimum that you don’t...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on February 20, 2017

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

How to Save Money on Event Transportation

KEEP THEM CLOSE: Shuttle costs are high so schedule special events as close to the bulk of the guest rooms as possible or seek convention facilities or hotels with as many rooms within walking distance as possible. -- USE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION: Educate attendees on all public transportation options available in a city, particularly if there’s a stop right at the convention center or the hotel. Often, it’s quicker than taking a shuttle through downtown and cheaper for attendees than a cab or Uber. DISTRIBUTE...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on January 30, 2017

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

How to Lower Your Audio Visual Costs

Helpful tips for meeting planners from seasoned professional, Mark Dallman. HELPFUL TIPS: "How to Lower Your Audio Visual Costs" IDENTIFY MATCHING SETS - Put sessions or breakouts that require the same type of seating in the same rooms so you don't have to pay for reset costs. LESS SIGNAGE - Prepare meeting room signs listing all meetings in the room throughout the conference to cut down on the number of signs needed. TEAR DOWN THOSE COSTS - Often Audio Visual (A/V) companies will charge the...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on January 22, 2017

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

How to Avoid or Reduce Your Hotel Attrition Liability

DON'T GUESS...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on January 20, 2017

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

7 Great Hotel and Resort Recommendations for Your Next Group or Conference

Hotels and Resorts for Groups and Conferences I book over 100 meetings and groups per year for my HPN Global clients into hotels and resorts all over the World. I’ve traveled around the World and I’ve been in the hotel business my entire life. Below are some great hotels and resorts that I would recommend you let me search for your next group or conference. JW Marriott Austin – This hotel just opened up earlier this year with over 1,000 guestrooms...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on January 5, 2017

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

How To Drive Additional Revenue and Attract New Sponsors

SEEK SPONSORSHIPS FROM YOUR CITY/VENUE…work with your host city and/or venue to assist in sponsoring welcome banners, coffee breaks, wi-fi access, etc. SHIP IN SOME SPONSOR DOLLARS…give shipping companies exhibit space in exchange for discounted shipping charges. DECORATE YOUR SAVINGS…offer booth space to local venues and decorators in exchange for goods & services during your event. SEEK MEETING CO-SPONSORS…Join forces with a complementing organization to help increase your attendance, improve buying power, diversify the mix of registrants but make sure the two organizations are...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on December 20, 2016

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

HELPFUL TIPS: How to Avoid No-Shows at Your Next Event

COMMUNICATION IS KEY…you must be a good communicator which includes not only a good RSVP tool but being proactive with a pre-event communication follow up. KNOW WHO’S NOT SHOWING UP…you can’t fix it if you don’t know about it so make sure to track your no-shows and which groups or segments they belong to. SET UP A STANDBY LIST…airlines and hotels have mastered the no-show percentage so never turn away people wanting to attend your event, put them on...

by Mark Dallman

Posted on November 10, 2016

Meeting Planner Tip of the Month

More Hotels = Lower Hotel Group Rates

It was exciting to hear that the San Diego Port Authority has approved a total makeover of the Seaport Village area near the Grand Hyatt San Diego including an additional 1,000 hotel rooms for the city. This project will also include a 480-foot observation tower which will be a fantastic to an already beautiful city. This article though is a trend that is GOOD for meeting planners. We have seen hotel group rates coming down in major markets such as...