12 Jul 10 Choosing Destinations
When it is time to plan a meeting, there are plenty of possibilities. The brochures and promotional materials make sound arguments in favor of many different venues, but ultimately a single venue must be selected for a single event. Here are some ideas to help you effectively reduce the number of options being seriously considered:
• To go all the way or not – If you are too busy to plan every little detail, look for all-inclusive options that handle some or all of the planning for you. This can lead to significant time savings and surprisingly, as well as a tangible amount of money saved.
• Local or long distance – There are both local venues and venues in other cities. If all the participants are from your city, then a local venue might make sense unless travel and attendance is to be considered a perk. If customers are the focus of the meeting/event, then go where they are.
• By land or by sea – Do not discount cruise ships as venues for meetings and events. In fact, cruise ships make amazing destinations for many different kinds of events. Remember that cruise events are more appropriate for certain audiences and companies than other.
• Consider price – Price is important, but that makes apples to apples comparisons difficult.
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02 Jul 10 What Does Your Choice of Venue Say About You?
Meeting and event planners often have many choices in venues whether they know it or not. While the boss or powers that be might specify a particular venue, it should not be assumed that such specific requests mean that the powers that be are not open to other ideas unless explicitly stated. Knowing what your choice in venue says about you is important; perception is reality after all. Consider the following when thinking about different venue possibilities:
Hotels – Hotels are tried and true venues for meetings and events, but they also show a lack of imagination and a commitment to doing things the traditional way. Traditional businesses tend to behave in very specific ways and are not fond of change.
Cruise ships – Cruise ships show an amazing flair for the dramatic and an appreciation for the finer things in life. Hosting meetings and/or events on a cruise ship shows that you value the other party/parties, and that you are not bound by the confines the old ways of doing business.
Convention centers – Convection centers generally have big and small chambers, but even hosting in a small chamber gives the appearance of a large organization with significant reach.
BBB conference rooms – Many local BBB offices have chambers that can be rented, and they lend a significant amount of credibility at bargain basement prices.
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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.
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05 Jul 09 Creating an Idea Factory
When you have an event to plan, the last thing you want to do is run out of ideas. Here are some ways to ignite the creative fires when you’re tired, pressed for time, or your creativity is running on fumes.
Map It
Word your problem concisely–three words or fewer–and write it in the middle of a large sheet of paper. Place related words or concerns around it and connect anything that is related with a line. Continue doing this in layers until you hit the right word or term. There is software that will help you do this if you would rather be on the computer. Do a web search for “mind mapping software” and related terms. (more…)
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