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What makes a great meeting or conference venue?
Barracuda Digital
Historically, hotels have attracted much of the off-site meetings business, with their full-service offer and their wide array of rooms and facilities. As more companies today choose to stage events and meetings away from their offices, not only has the choice of venues grown substantially but the pressure to find one that ‘fits’ your event precisely has become vital. The serviced office sector in particular has been quick to respond to demand for conference, meeting and training facilities.

Finding a venue

So, before deciding where to hold your meeting, a moment taken to run through how to put an event together, and identify what your priorities are, will be time well-spent.

Event Checklist

Location: Probably the best place to start, ask what the crucial transport factors are. Will people need parking? Does it need to be close to a major station or airport? Do other facilities matter, such as shopping or golf courses?

Quality: Make sure you know exactly what is expected in terms of the quality of venue, its atmosphere and the overall level of comfort.

Image and branding: Understand the tone you want to set. Are you looking for something glitzy or businesslike, modern or traditional? And to what extent do you want your company name to be visible?

Flexibility: What kind of event is it? What seating layout will work best? Or do you need to provide different levels of formality – from theatre style seating at one end of the room, to informal break-out space at the other.

Equipment: LCD, internet access, and the vast array of presentation equipment from full AV equipment to the flip chart all needs to be planned for, and agreed well in advance.

Meeting rooms: Light, space, seating, layout, access, air-conditioning, noise-levels, and degree of cleanliness are all variables that can have an impact on your event, and which need to be identified at the outset. Ask for help to envisage what a room will feel like when it is full of people: overcrowding is a common mistake!

Support: Check the levels of support your meeting room provider is offering. How much support will you actually have on the day, as well as beforehand, in setting your event up?

Refreshment: Organise your day carefully, and plan breaks around the content. Make sure you know exactly the type of food that people expect, and what dietary requirements need to be catered for.

Price: Book early for the best value for money.

Today, image is king. Consequently, most businesses are keen to convey an aura of corporate focus and prestige - successful, but careful. Depending on how your event develops, therefore, it may be that for all but some of the largest occasions, a serviced office with independent meeting room and conferencing facilities may well strike the right note.

Source: http://easycontentpro.com

Emily Taylor is the marketing director for the Executive Offices group; providers of prestigious UK serviced offices

"What makes a great meeting or conference venue?"
written by Barracuda Digital

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