14 Jul 10 Is Your Business Ready to Plan Its First Event?
If your business seems like it is on the verge of making it big but needs something to carry it over a hurdle, then consider planning a major event. Events can include various departments, partners, suppliers, customers, or even a combination of elements of these different groups. Here are a few key signs that you need to start planning an event:
• Squeezing efficiency out of departments is becoming harder – It might be that the departments are on the verge of losing their self-motivation to perform at their best. Threatening to downsize or outsource only creates a workforce that is willing to work just enough to not lose their jobs. A nice company picnic event at the park might not cost much and it could inspire loyalty that is impossible to put a price on.
• Getting new customers to commit seems difficult – A tour complete with local business meetings, brunches, and seminars could inspire potential customers to take the leap and buy.
• Suppliers are becoming less reliable – In down economic times it pays to not only track companies surreptitiously via D&B and other services, but it pays to plan meetings and look the other party square in the eye. Never underestimate the value of a gut feeling when looking suppliers and partners in the eye.
Tags: Amp, Brunches, Business Meetings, Business Plan, Company Picnic, Economic Times, Efficiency, Elements, Gut Feeling, Hurdle, Jobs, Leap, Loyalty, Nice Company, Outsource, Self Motivation, Seminars, Signs, Verge, Workforce
23 Dec 09 When Las Vegas Fails, You Win!
Have you noticed that your company is no longer sending you to Las Vegas, Nevada for conventions, business meetings, or stress-break weekends? Las Vegas has noticed.
- During the first three-quarters of year 2009, the Las Vegas visitor head-counts are down 3.9% that they are aware of. All visitors to the area are not counted individually in this estimate.
- During the first three-quarters of year 2009, unemployment is registering at 13.9% for the unemployed that are still able to get unemployment benefits.
- During November 2009, the city of Las Vegas ranked number 5 in the United States for housing foreclosures. This number is down from their rankings of the number one city for foreclosures almost every month since year 2007.
- The Las Vegas school system is cracking. As unemployed people turn to colleges for new skills, the colleges cannot handle the overloads. Classes overfill quickly then become unavailable. As families leave to keep their student funding, foreclosures continue, and elementary school registration drops.
What does this mean for company who is planning their next business meeting? GO!
The greater Las Vegas area is offering wonderful incentives to business travelers all over town, in all types of industries. Great efforts are being made to attract enough money to ride-out this economic disaster. Consumer services everywhere are upgraded as the old minimum-wage employees are replaced by unemployed college graduates. There has never been a better time for business travelers to host a meeting in the Las Vegas area; economic disasters breed great service and bargains.
Tags: Bargains, Better Time, Business Meeting, Business Meetings, Business Travelers, City Of Las Vegas, Conventions, Economic Disaster, Economic Disasters, Enough Money, Foreclosures, Incentives, Minimum Wage Employees, School Registration, Three Quarters, Unemployed College Graduates, Unemployment Benefits, Vegas Area, Vegas Nevada, Vegas Visitor
16 Dec 09 How To Save Money On Business Meetings and Conferences
One of the biggest problems that business meetings have is a loss of control over participants who would rather be at home cleaning their bathrooms. Even participants who enter a business meeting with good intentions can become bored and restless if machinery is malfunctioning or there are pauses in the presentation due to an agenda that isn’t working out as planned.
An interesting way to guarantee quick results at a business meeting is to hold your meeting in a place that offers desirable after-meeting entertainment options that cannot happen until all work is completed. When your meeting is composed of busy individuals who have someplace to be, they will settle down and do their best to be helpful towards finishing the work-at-hand in a quick and productive manner.
The art of combining a structured business trip with desirable participant activities requires some creative thinking and a calculator. In reality, a business meeting can be held in any appropriately outfitted conference room that comes complete with reasonably priced comfortable accommodations, choices in cuisine, and an easy-access location that allows for all transportation concerns.
Cruise ships have comfortable lodging, elegant varieties of free food, no transportation needs after reaching the point of departure, and an ideal conference room that is available with state-of-the-art equipment for passengers to use. These floating hotels also offer quality entertainment options, health spas, room service and space for traveling family members to enjoy themselves too.
With a few quick clicks on the calculator, it is easy to see how the price of a cruise meeting will beat the traditional lodging, restaurant, and transportation costs of a business meeting from many locations inside of the United States today. Even with airfares involved to get to the points-of-departure, with the vacation industry discounts being offered right now, a cruise can be the most economical way to conduct your next business meeting.
Tags: Art Equipment, Business Meeting, Business Meetings, Creative Thinking, Cruise Ships, Free Food, Good Intentions, Health Spas, How To Save Money, Industry Discounts, Participant Activities, Point Of Departure, Points Of Departure, Productive Manner, Quality Entertainment Options, Reaching The Point, Rsquo, Traditional Lodging, Transportation Concerns, Transportation Costs, Vacation Industry
26 Oct 09 The AIG Effect
Many corporations are squirming under public scrutiny. Meetings are an essential element of corporate business; however, no one wants to be perceived a spendthrift when it comes to event planning. Ironically, teams are under more pressure than ever and get away meetings are important to corporate health.
The AIG effect refers to public outcry over frivolous spending by the American International Group, Inc. just days after receiving billions of dollars from Congress. When word got out about the $440,000 trip to a luxury resort, the public cried, “Enough!” The travel industry took a big hit and meeting planners have shied away from splashy locations for conventions and business meetings.
The good news is that regional convention centers benefit. To the public’s mind, holding a convention in Philadelphia is far more austere than holding the same event in Las Vegas. Events held on the waterfront are less popular now than ones held inland. Golf may still be part of the package, but chances are corporate golfers will pick courses that are out of the limelight.
The AIG effect isn’t completely negative. Even though planning purse strings have been tightened, events still take place. Buffets are replaced by sit down dinners and wines are less expensive. People travel by car rather than plane to events. A tough economic time reminds us all that business reputations are a valuable commodity and must reflect the times.
Tags: Aig, American International Group, American International Group Inc, Buffets, Business Meetings, Corporate Business, Corporate Health, Economic Time, International Group Inc, Limelight, Luxury Resort, Meeting Planners, On The Waterfront, Public Outcry, Public Scrutiny, Purse Strings, Regional Convention, Reputations, Spendthrift, Vegas Events
12 Oct 09 Unique Event and Meeting Venues
When was the last time you held an event somewhere other than a hotel or convention center? There are other options, some of which are quite affordable. Any place that has enough seating for your group and can meet their needs is a potential event site.
Theaters aren’t just for plays and movies these days. Most of them are more than happy to be considered for an event. In fact, many movie theaters include an ad promoting the idea along with the upcoming features. Theatres are quiet, private, and they might even open the concession stand for your event. Private theater owners are as open to creating new revenue as chain theaters. Explore both possibilities and compare costs and available services.
Museums and public art galleries are feeling the economic pinch of the recession. Most of them have spaces that are ideal for business meetings. Using a local site gives your client the benefit of getting out of the office without expending a great deal of cash. Sometimes a fresh site will inspire fresh ideas in your team.
Don’t limit yourself to the same list of meeting places no matter how grand and exciting they might be. The more choices you offer clients, the more clients you may have.
Tags: Available Services, Benefit, Business Meetings, Choices, Concession Stand, Economic Pinch, Local Site, Meeting Places, Movie Theaters, Movies, Museums, Plays, Possibilities, Private Theater, Public Art Galleries, Recession, When Was The Last Time
09 Oct 09 Combine an Incentive Reward Trip with a Conference
It’s no secret that business meetings are often a combination of business and pleasure. People are working harder than ever to keep companies solvent. Rewarding employees is a bit more complicated; they deserve a nice trip to an exotic location yet it’s important to keep up appearances to the public. Try combining events, the reward trip with a conference. A corporate cruise event can fill both those needs.
Sea travel is a great way to build team spirit while traveling to an exotic location. An incentive cruise makes an ideal place for a business meeting – after all, how far can your people wander off? Food is available almost 24/7 and there are numerous activities to break up the intensity of the conference. It’s also private and while there is much to do, there is great opportunity to focus solely on the matter at hand.
In addition, when you come into your port of destination, that’s when the fun begins. Everyone feels a sense of accomplishment by completing the demands of the conference and they are ready to cut loose and have a bit of fun. The company saves money because the mode of travel has absorbed part of the conference costs, including food and lodging.
Tags: Accomplishment, Bit Of Fun, Business And Pleasure, Business Meeting, Business Meetings, Business People, Corporate Cruise, Incentive Cruise, Incentive Reward, Intensity, Mode Of Travel, Money, Nice Trip, People Working, Rewarding Employees, Sea Travel, Team Spirit, Traveling
05 Oct 09 Meetings at Sea
It’s no secret that business meetings are often a combination of business and pleasure. People are working harder than ever to keep companies solvent. Rewarding employees is a bit more complicated; they deserve a nice trip to an exotic location yet it’s important to keep up appearances to the public. Try combining events, the reward trip with a conference. A corporate cruise can fill both those needs.
Sea travel is a great way to build team spirit while traveling to an exotic location. A cruise makes an ideal place for a business meeting – after all, how far can your people wander off? Food is available almost 24/7 and there are numerous activities to break up the intensity of the conference. It’s also private and while there is much to do, there is great opportunity to focus solely on the matter at hand.
In addition, when you come into your port of destination, that’s when the fun begins. Everyone feels a sense of accomplishment by completing the demands of the conference and they are ready to cut loose and have a bit of fun. The company saves money because the mode of travel has absorbed part of the conference costs, including food and lodging.
Seasite.com, the first online cruise portal dedicated solely to serving the cruise meetings market. And the timing couldn’t be better because cruising slashes 25-40% off the cost of a land-based meeting or incentive trip, helping event planners adapt to today’s shrinking budgets. The single, most comprehensive source for savvy, do-it-yourself planners and novices alike, Seasite delivers all the tools, ideas and resources needed to launch a successful incentive cruise event or meeting-at-sea.
Tags: Accomplishment, Bit Of Fun, Budgets, Business And Pleasure, Business Meeting, Business Meetings, Corporate Cruise, Cruise Portal, Event Planners, Incentive Cruise, Incentive Trip, Intensity, Meeting At Sea, Mode Of Travel, Nice Trip, Rewarding Employees, Sea Travel, Seasite, Slashes, Team Spirit
29 Jul 09 Lead Generation for the Self-Employed Meeting Planner
Whether you are a meeting planner or a freelance chicken coop cleaner, one thing is clear: you need to market your services, communicate with clients, and turn leads into sales. The first two are getting easier every day. The Internet and email has helped immensely with reach-out efforts of all businesses that use it. However, turning leads into sales is still done with the personal touch. Here are some ways to boost sales by what sales experts call lead nurturing.
Lead Quality
The first thing you need to do is determine if you lead is ready to buy–in your case, ready to book an event. If you get most of your leads through the internet, have a form available for your leads that ask when they think they will be ready to commit or if they are just shopping for ideas. Word it in a way that makes them feel comfortable telling you the truth. If you work by phone, have the questionnaire handy to ask them verbally. (more…)
Tags: Business Meetings, Chicken Coop, Freelance, Future Communications, Handy, Incentive Travel, Intensive Conference, Internet Email, Lead Generation, Lead Generator, Marketing Efforts, Meeting Planner, One Thing, Personal Touch, Questionnaire, Red Widgets, Sales Lead, Shopping, Truth, Voice Mail
10 Jun 09 Meeting Planning for Success
You can hardly conceive a large corporate body not holding some type of meeting planning or conference. In fact, such meetings and conferences are the key to the assessment of the present status and formulating plans for the future in any large, medium, or small scale organization.
The only difference is that the size and shape of the meeting differs from organization to organization based on the nature, size, and shape of the organizations themselves. It may also be an inner circle or core group meeting, a general body meeting, or a participatory meeting with guests from various sectors. However, in any of these cases effective meeting planning remains an essential ingredient to success, and the professionalism of the meeting planner must equal the company’s achievements.
Mastering the art of contributing to company growth and leading business meetings successfully is an area where your presence will be omnipotent. A good knowledge of the meeting process and its impacts will pay life long dividends. What analytical and interpersonal skills are essential in corporate meeting planning? A membership in with Meeting Planning International MPI provides a greater help in arranging such professional meetings. Whether you are a meeting planner in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Las Vegas, Orlando, Boston, San Diego or any other city MPI can help you plan more effectively. (more…)
Tags: Business Meetings, Conference Europe, Conference Presentations, Core Group, East Spring, Education Congress, Effective Meeting, Essential Ingredient, Inner Circle, Interpersonal Skills, Meeting Planner, Meeting Planners, Meeting Planning, Mpi, Professional Education Conference, Professional Meetings, Professionalism, Profit Association, Scale Organization, World Education
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