Hold on to your planning dollars
With so much emphasis on savings these days, it seems just about every possible rock has been turned over in the quest to find a deal. And yet, resourceful planners still seem to be able to find new and endless ways to cut costs. It’s a matter of creativity, and looking carefully at every aspect of a meeting, from RFPs to post-event surveys.
For starters, you can simply let it be known to the hotels you’re negotiating with that competing properties in their market have also received your lead, which should bring out the competitive deal-making spirit. The following are additional tips to help you carve even more costs from your final bill.
- Find great hotels in second-tier cities or find great hotels near a major city with easy access to downtown. Center city hotels tend to charge higher rates, and often there are additional taxes to consider that increase the overall cost with no added value. An added benefit is that a second- or third-tier city may need and want your business more than the most-visited destinations. Additionally, their cost of doing business is often lower for ancillary items, so they pass these savings on to you.
- Consider alternate patterns. Resorts are busiest on weekends and city hotels are busiest mid-week. Find the best pattern for the venue to secure the best rate for you.
- Be flexible! One of the most powerful negotiating tools in this environment is your flexibility with dates, space and location. Even in the tightest market hotels will have holes to fill, so openness to suggestions about items such as location, room configuration and date pattern can save bottom-line dollars.
- Ensure guests are checked in under your room block to avoid attrition penalties. Organizations are going as far as penalizing attendees for not checking in under the group room block. If an association gets hit with a high bill for attrition, it could force them to lose a substantial amount of money and possibly increase membership rates to compensate for it. This is a good incentive for attendees to book rooms properly.
- Hotels on a regular basis send “hot dates” to planners. They need to fill them and usually offer incredible hot rates to clients for booking over these dates.
- Save on meeting room rental by serving food in the room or allowing the hotel to book an evening meal function there. Think of every inch in the hotel as real estate, and know that revenue is expected to be generated for that space.
- Get sponsorships from vendors who add value to your meeting attendees.
- Buying in volume can save. Find out what other groups may be ordering for meals, to save on preparation; it should also provide a savings. The same may be true for renting furniture, linens or A/V. See if other groups are using similar equipment on the days prior to or following your event, to save on set-up or tear-down time and fees.
- Get outside quotes from other vendors. Often an outside contractor may quote a lower rate to get in the door. Outside quotes may be matched to keep the revenue in-house, and it really provides a smoother flow for your meeting.
- Negotiate important concessions into your contract. Do not assume the hotel is going to offer the same things that you may have received prior. VIP amenities, upgrades to view rooms or suites, late check-out, staff rooms, etc., may be items on your “wish list” that need to be communicated prior to signing a contract.
- Make sure that your attorney or legal staff reviews all binding agreements. Most employees are not equipped to deal with contracts, agreements and the host of signed documents necessary to produce a quality meeting. While your meeting planning staff is well versed in protecting your interests, make sure that you have consulted with your legal department or procurement group before signing legally binding documents. The extra step will prevent problems down the road that could cause major roadblocks in producing a successful meeting.
- Carefully manage your guarantees for food and beverage. Often, planners or clients will over-guarantee the number of attendees, in effect throwing money away. If you have a solid group history, this can be like gold when it comes to mining the data necessary to figure out how many people will actually be served. It is also important to consider the time and location of the function in determining the appropriate guarantee. And don’t forget, venues always allow for an overset of 3–5 percent, which should also be taken into account.
- Lock in your contract now. Travel costs are rising, but meetings are going strong. Work with your client or hotel rep to do a thorough site selection and lock in your contract now to protect against the projected future increases. Consider multi-year contracts with performance clauses. Hotels would rather have contracts in place than trade for higher room rates closer in, so use that to your advantage.
- Hold pre- and post-convention meetings. Meet with the credit manager on a daily basis. Review your reports every morning to make sure there are no surprises.
Linda Elland, CHME, is president of A2Z Meetings & Events, and has been working in the hospitality industry for nearly 30 years.