Tag: meeting

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Rate Check – How much can you expect to pay?

It’s great news that events are starting again, so we thought it would be interesting to look at the rates that are being quoted by venues in different parts of the country.

There is demand, but event bookers are reluctant to confirm the booking until the government guidelines are clear about social distancing and the pilot events have been completed.

As usual rates are higher in months where there is less availability and they are lower outside London.

For example, we’ve looking at a 3-day event for 350 people in February 2021 and comparing various locations around the country. The rates vary, as follows:

Location Catering B&B
Liverpool £32.00-£39.00 £75.00-£105.00
Manchester £27.50-£36.00 £125.00-£146.00
Birmingham £32.00-£38.00 £96.00-£121.00
East Midlands £37.00-£44.00 £87.00
South Wales £53.00-£60.00 £120.00

However, the rates are higher for 2021. This is for a mid-week one day event for 30 people, where we’ve been quoted daily delegate rates of:

Location Date DDR
Hertfordshire June £55.00
Leeds July £36.00-£40.00
Milton Keynes July £35.00
London September £55.00-60.00
London November £65.00-£85.00

Some venues are sticking to previous rates, some venues are increasing rates to take account of fewer people in the same space. Pricing isn’t consistent at the moment, with some venues requesting supplements or additional room hire costs.

Social distancing is a big problem for venues and both they and the event bookers need to know what they can do in terms of capacity. It’s not just for the meeting rooms, but moving around the venue, catering and restrooms. Venues with outside space definitely have an advantage. After a turbulent year, the venues will need to be confident that they can operate at a profit when they open.

The Meetings Industry Association carried out a survey into social distancing in May 2020 and found that:

  • The majority (82%) of venues confirmed they can operate with social distancing measures in place.
  • Nearly half (46%) of respondents identified that their venue’s capacity would have to be more than halved, with 27% highlighting a reduction of between 41-50% would be required.
  • As a result of these reduced capacities, 59% of venues would not break even.
  • Over 80% expect to lose more than half of their turnover per month.
  • 17.5% of venue operators say it would be ‘impossible’ to open their venue while adhering to social distancing measures, both on commercial and operations grounds.

It will take some time for things to settle down. We will continue to review rates and report on trends as the bookings increase and report.

For more information and advice on booking venues for conferences, meetings and events, call us on 01780 484051 or email enquiries@edgevenues.com

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Tips to create an event brief to maximise profitability

We all want our events to run smoothly and get the best value for money from our suppliers. We’re looking at writing an event brief and how to make it attractive to hotels and venues as well as managing the event costs. Here are a few ideas that will help you get the best response to ensure your event runs smoothly.

Make the conference or meeting attractive to the venue or hotel

If you can demonstrate the value of holding the event at the venue, then you’re likely to get a better rate. Some of the things that you might want to include in the event brief are:

  • Information about your company. How many events you hold. Whether there’s the possibility of the venue hosting several of them.
  • The event details. Is it a new meeting, if so, could it be repeated at the same venue for a possible 2-year deal? Is there scope for growth in the future? Or is it an established event which means that you can demonstrate the attendance, accommodation pick up, food and beverage consumption etc?
  • Know your budget, both the overall spend and breakdown of items. Do you need timed coffee breaks or all-day servings? Will the meals be buffets, standing or seated, or a 3- or 4- course served meal?
  • What are the event objectives? Make it clear exactly what you and the attendees need while they are onsite. That way there are no surprises for the venue later.
  • Give the venue as much detail as possible. Can they assist with local suppliers for better rates on transport, team building, leisure activities etc?
  • Plan the space that you need and make it clear to the venue. That’s not only the meeting rooms, but the catering space and networking areas. Do you need it for exclusive use, or will it be shared with other companies?
  • If you can, be flexible with dates. If a venue can fit your booking between ones already in the diary and it fills a gap, this makes it more attractive to them.
Be flexible with your event brief
  • Accommodation – will it be booked by the attendees or from a rooming list supplied by you. The less work that a hotel does to manage the accommodation bookings the better.
  • Highlight if you are detailing with a preferred partner or preferred group. If the venue can verify that your event is an attractive piece on business, then they will want to work with you.
  • Tell the venue your decision-making date, deadlines and milestones as this will help them work with you. If you have dates planned for site visit, then let them know and whether you’d prefer to see the venue empty or with an event running there.

Factors to consider in your event brief

  • Work out what needs to be booked as far as possible in advance to gain the best rate as last-minute buying leaves less room to negotiate and increases the costs. However, if you don’t know some of the detail, leave that until later to confirm as you don’t want to book something and then have to cancel.
  • Get a quote from the in-house technology supplier and if there’s chargers for bringing your own supplier. Ensure this is negotiated and contracted at the time of the booking. You don’t want to find that you have unavoidable cost later.
  • Is there free WIFI and is it secure and good enough for your speakers, organisers and attendees? Adding a secure network can be expensive, so make sure you know the cost in advance and contract it.
  • Are there any costs for loading and unloading equipment? Consider the costs for setup and breakdown, can these be included or provided at a reduced rate? Are there any time restrictions in place?
  • Meeting room set up – find out if there are costs for changing a meeting room set up. In some countries there may be labour costs if rooms are changed during the day.
  • Do you need overnight hold of all the space? The answer is ‘yes’ if you have a two-day event with a/v equipment. You don’t want to find that the venue sells the room for a dinner while you are not using it in the evening.
  • Don’t find that you have unused break out rooms that you’ve paid for. Would it be possible to use the main room for a breakout session and save the room hire on an extra small room?
  • Use a template to compare costs from different venues against your budget. Check the prices and re-negotiate. Check the rates of other bookings that have been made in the same destination or with the same venue group.
  • Keep to the deadlines and contract, missing dates or trying to change details will at best irritate the venue and can also incur additional cost.

The best ways to negotiate

  • Ask for everything you want in your event brief. You won’t get it, but you will get some of the things you ask for.
  • The venue maybe prepared to give you items that add value to your event, that cost them very little but are of significance to you and the attendees. Bacon rolls on arrival, a proportion of the bedrooms in upgraded categories, some bedrooms with early check-in or late check-out etc.
  • Use a specialist? A venue finding agent is an independent 3rd party and may be able to negotiate a better deal than if you do business directly. For example, they may be placing more business with the venue or group and have good contacts there, so you can take advantage of their buying power. They also have a wealth of experience of many different events and can help you throughout the booking process.

EDGEvenues.com offers a free venue finding service, just email enquiries@edgevenues.com or call 01780 484051 for help or advice.

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A benefit to suit everyone at Marriott

Everyone likes something different, from late check out to Early Bird Discounts, Marriott is offering benefits to suit everyone when you book a meeting, residential event or group booking with 10 bedrooms or more before 31st December 2019.

Take a look at the choice great complimentary benefits and choose the four that suit you:

  • Double Marriott Bonvoy Events Points
  • Early Bird confirmations (signed agreement minimum of 60 days prior to the arrival day of the event) receive an extra 4% off the master bill (applicable guest rooms, food & beverage and meeting room rental charges, excludes AV and 3rd party contracted services)
  • One complimentary late check out (18:00hrs) for every 10 rooms booked and paid
  • One complimentary upgrade for every 10 rooms booked and paid
  • Complimentary access to lounge & suite upgrade for VIP guests
  • Complimentary internet access
  • Upgraded coffee break items

Just hold your meeting before 30th April 2020 and quote code PUCR when booking.

Find your next meeting venue here

Timings

Booking Window: August 19th, 2019 – December 31st, 2019
Stay Window: August 19th, 2019 – April 30th, 2020
(Blackout Dates may apply. Offer is subject to availability)

Terms & Conditions

  • This offer is available for new bookings made at participating hotels in Europe between August 19, 2019 and December 31, 2019 for stays between August 19, 2019 and April 30, 2020.
  • Offer is available at all participating brands with the exception of Marriott Executive Apartments, Bulgari, Design Hotels and Moxy brands.
  • This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotions or offers.
  • This promotion is available to meetings with or without guest rooms and applies per event. It is based upon request and availability.
  • This offer may not be available for customers with negotiated group or meeting rates.
  • Points for qualifying events can be earned on all eligible revenue with the exception of – taxes, gratuities, resort fees and service charges.
  • Offer is commissionable on groups and meetings booked through Agents.
  • This offer is also available to social events with a minimum of 10 rooms booked per night, but is subject to availability. Where an event has meeting room hire with contracted Food and Beverage, the offer would apply to the actualized per person food and beverage packages (non-alcoholic) only – not the room hire. Beverages contracted on a ‘consumption’ basis are excluded.
  • All conference charges including taxes must be settled upon check-out, unless credit facilities have been agreed
  • Subject to request and availability. Limited rooms and space available for promotion.
  • Double points: With this promotion you may earn double points based on eligible charges up to a maximum of 210,000 Marriott Bonvoy Events points per contract subject to member’s tier level.
  • Special Early Bird Offer: 4% off master bill applies to guest rooms, food & beverage and meeting room rental charges excl. AV & 3rd party contracted services)
  • Upgraded coffee breaks available for meeting bookings of 10 guests and more that include an F&B package – upgraded food items are at the discretion of the hotel and will vary by property
  • Complimentary internet access: is basic access
  • Complimentary room upgrade to next available room category (up to a maximum of 10% of reserved room inventory per day, upon availability, some hotels might not have a different room category)
  • Complimentary late check out: is based on 18:00hrs local time
  • Complimentary access to Lounge and suite upgrade for VIP guests: (up to a maximum of 10% of reserved room inventory per day); not all participating hotels have a lounge or suites