01 Sep 10 Ship Charters For When You Need to Call The Shots
Cruise events are an obvious choice for many companies and organizations, as well as an obvious fit for certain needs. The problem that many organizations planning cruises run into is that they do not necessarily want the cookie cutter cruise that takes x number of days to stop at y number of ports in a specific order. The solution is simple: ship charters. Here is what you need to know about booking ship charters:
- Ship charters can be very cost effective – Booking an entire ship might seem expensive at first, but charters are almost always more cost effective than renting cabins on a generic tour when everything is factored into the equation. Why? Simple: it is an extra tour for the cruise company and one in which they are presented with a chance to build a long lasting relationship with many high-powered guests and clients.
- Ship charters let you have incredible flexibility – Want to book a 4 am spinning session so everyone has time to shower before the breakfast seminar at 7am? No problems. Want specific menu items planned? That can almost certainly be arranged with a little preparation and advanced notice.
- Stop where you want to stop and when – Most ship charters are generally very flexible in terms of where and when stops take place so long as no scheduling conflicts exist. See what you want to see and when, it’s your call when you charter a ship.
Tags: Breakfast Seminar, Charter, Conflicts, Cookie Cutter, Cruise Company, Cruise Events, Cruises, Extra Tour, Fit, Flexibility, Ports, Relationship, Ship Charters
09 Jul 10 The Value of Great Gifts
Businesses often find that offering affordable trinkets as incentives makes participation at meetings and events more personal. Furthermore, the trinkets and gifts often prove to be tangible reminders of the relationship between the participant and host, but that means that there is a potential for both good and bad gifts to make an impression. Here is how to decide which kind of gift or trinket you need to consider:
Saving is good, but too much of a good thing is a bad thing – It is important to stay on a budget, especially for a company looking to enhance their bottom line. It is also possible to be too frugal, and that can ruin the investment in the meeting or event itself while still costing money.
Branding – If a company buys trinkets and wants recipients to know where they came from in a year, then they need to associate that item/trinket with the brand. This is easily done with simply adding a logo, which is rarely expensive.
Buy in bulk – It might be intimidating to look at pricing for branded or even non-branded trinkets until you discover that bulk prices are available for almost everything.
Needs and appropriate gifts – Choose gifts that will be appreciated. A USB key might be great for a meeting of staff accountants, but the IT gurus probably have more USB devices than they need and are unlikely to appreciate anything but the most high-tech of gizmos.
Tags: Bottom Line, Budget, Buy In Bulk, Gizmos, Great Gifts, Gurus, Incentives, Investment, Meetings And Events, Money, Participant, Participation, Personal Gifts, Relationship, Staff Accountants, Tangible Reminders, Trinket, Trinkets, Usb Devices, Usb Key
16 Apr 10 After the Meeting is Over
Everyone enjoys and needs positive feedback. Negative feedback can be very hard to take, especially if it is not constructive. For example, we are all quick to tell our supplier if the order is wrong yet seldom send our compliments when things run smoothly. Do you seek feedback and if so, from whom?
Have you ever included a customer satisfaction survey in an event packet or asked guests to fill out a feedback form before they went home? This can be a good way to get a fix on what worked for meeting participants and what did not. You can’t please everyone but when several people complain about the same thing, it indicates a problem that needs to be addressed.
Do you check in with vendors and convention centers that you have used? A courtesy call after the even can strengthen your relationship with vendors and make the next planning period go more smoothly. Feedback from a hotel or convention center helps a meeting planner tweak the next event, perhaps in small ways, to make it a positive experience for everyone.
Don’t forget to give feedback as well. Even in the most nightmarish situation, someone did something right. Never allow your frustration with glitches to overshadow your appreciation for jobs well done.
Tags: Compliments, Courtesy Call, Customer Satisfaction Survey, Frustration, Glitches, Jobs, Meeting Planner, Negative Feedback, Nightmarish Situation, Participants, People, Positive Feedback, Relationship, Rsquo, Tweak
10 Nov 09 World Meeting Time Planner Tool
We just found an interesting new meeting planning tool – the World Meeting Planner.
Planning an important conference call or videoconference with participants from many different locations around the globe can be difficult, especially when you need to find a time in the day when everyone is in their business hours, or at least close to business hours! This world meeting planner tool allows you to select the date for your meeting and the various locations of the people attending.
Your world meeting time planner results show you the relationship each location has in regards to daytime hours with any needed adjustments for locations observing daylight saving time, so you can quickly target a time that works for everyone who is to be included in the virtual meeting.
For anyone who has had to try to plan a teleconference with participants from many locations around the world, you know how difficult it often is to determine a time that is convenient for all, and doesn't have anyone having to be on the call at 3am. The world meeting planner tool is a great resource for scheduling those calls and conferences.
Tags: 3am, Business Hours, Business Tool, Conference Call, Conferences, Daylight Saving Time, Globe, Important Conference, Meeting Planner, Meeting Planning, Meeting Time, Nbsp, New Meeting, Participants, People Meeting, Relationship, Target, Teleconference, Time Planner, Videoconference
17 Jun 09 International Meeting Planning Guide
As a meeting planner, chances are good that you will be faced with planning an international meeting at some point in your career. Although this can be a nail-biter of an experience for you, good contacts and communication can make the process go much smoother. Find these three potential allies to make your job smoother.
A Currency Expert
At some point you will need this friend in the money business. Use currency exchange specialists as often as you need so that you understand everything you need to about prices, hotel rates, and the cost of other necessities.
An Attorney
You should not sign any contract without the approval of an attorney who well-versed in international law. Make sure he or she answers all your questions and that you understand the contract before you commit to anything in it, especially if it involves large fines. (more…)
Tags: Allies, Citizens, Currency Exchange Specialists, Destination Country, Homework, Host Country, Host Culture, Hotel Rates, Job, Large Numbers, Meeting Planner, Meeting Planning, Money Business, Money Currency, Nail Biter, Necessities, Passports, Planning Guide, Relationship, Sensibilities, Visas
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