Transcript Conference and Convention Planning to Maximize Profitability

Planning a Perfect Meeting
Presented to the ACA Institute for Leadership Training
July 30, 2009
Robin Hayes, Director, Conference & Meeting Services (ACA)
Chris Roseman, President, South Dakota Counseling Association
This presentation will cover:
An overview of the key components for
planning a meeting
 An “association friendly” hotel contract
 Attempt to answer your questions at the
conclusion of our contract overview
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The key to success begins with:
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Budget
(Before you do anything else, determine
your budget. Revenue over Expense)
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Choosing a Date
(Have a least two dates in mind)
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Location, Location, Location
(Determine the type of venue that will work
for your group)
 Timeline & Marketing Plan)
Know your meeting….
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History, including attendance, etc.
Meeting room layout and capacities
Sleeping room patterns
Food and beverage expenditure
Revenue hotel will realize from your meeting
and previous Branch Meetings
YOU ARE NOW READY FOR CONTRACT
NEGOTIATIONS
Let’s start with Meeting History
(example below)
CONFERENCE TRENDS
4,500
4,112
4,000
3,500
3,092
3,409
2,978
2,860
3,000
2,488
2,500
2,106
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
Charlotte
Hawaii
Detroit
Montreal
Atlanta
Kansas City
Anaheim
Meeting Room Layout (types)
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Roundtable Set-up - Great to facilitate networking
Schoolroom/Classroom Set-up – Ideal for taking notes
or refer to handouts
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Conference or Meeting Set-up – Limited to groups of no
more than 25 people.
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Boardroom Set-up – This style is designed to encourage
dialogue between participants
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Theater (auditorium) Set-up – Use for listening to a
speaker or reviewing a slide presentation. Allow audience to be close in
distance to the speaker.
Sleeping Room Pattern
(Example)
2006
2007
2008
# Of Hotels:
5
4
4
Peak Night:
1,365
1,380
1,429
Total Room Nights:
5,719
5,538
6,609
Average Stay:
4 Nights
4 Nights
5 Nights
Food & Beverage Expenditures
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Know your history from previous meetings
Plan your meal functions
Guarantees – Most hotels require a guarantee 48 -72
hours before event starts.
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Set Over Guarantee – The set over guarantee is the
percentage of guests that the hotel/caterer will prepare for
beyond the guarantee. The average overset is 5%.
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Determining Cost – Always include tax and service
charge. These charges are mandatory.
Food & Beverage Expenditures
(continued)
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Cost Saving Ideas – Ask the hotel if they can work with
you to customize a menu that fits within your budget.
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Ganging Menus – Ask what other groups in the hotel
are being served during the same mealtime. If the same menu
is used by both groups you’ll receive a better price.
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Package Plans – Inquire if the hotel or venue offers a
per person package plan. The package plan can include your
meals, breaks and meeting space.
The key to a Successful Meeting:
 Negotiating
a
hotel contract
that limits your
liabilities and
expenses!
Let’s look at the key building
block, the hotel contract
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The basics:
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Don’t just sign without
careful review
Be proactive by telling
them what you want and
expect
It may be a “seller’s
market”but they still need
your business
Four corner rule….
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If it does not fall within the “four corners”of a
contract page, it will not hold up in court.
Make sure your contract has everything you
want.
Nothing is implied, it must be written clearly.
State any concessions or complimentary
items you want to include in the contract and
get it in writing!!
Basics to keep in mind:
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If you ask for something before a contract is signed,
it's called “negotiating.” If you ask for something after
a contract is signed, it's called “begging.” It's better to
be a good negotiator than an expert beggar.
You don't get what you deserve, you get what you
“negotiate.”
“You can get anything in life, if you help enough
other people get what they want.”
Most items are negotiable, but everything has a
price.
Hotel Contract
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Lock the hotel into this contract so you know
if you need to look elsewhere.
First option---hotel cannot release any of
your contracted space without your prior
knowledge and written consent.
Second option---your group has second
priority to rights on the hotel meeting space
and sleeping rooms.
First option
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Allows your organization to have “first dibs”in
the event you need additional sleeping
rooms.
If you increase rooms, you’ll need a contract
addendum, so BE CAREFUL as this could
result in renegotiating ATTRITION penalties.
It is often better to err on the conservative
side in estimating number of rooms needed.
Rooms sold over your nights
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May not be your attendees, but the hotel is
still making money on these rooms, so there
is no need for them to charge you for attrition
if they have sold the room!
This is double-dipping!
Credit for unused comp rooms is not
frequently accepted by hotels in a contract,
but it doesn’t hurt to ask!
Comp and staff-rated rooms
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1 to 50 is an industry standard. While you
may get a lower ratio, DO NOT accept
anything higher.
The 1 to 50 simply means 1 comp room night
for every 50 rooms nights you accumulate.
Staff-rated doesn’t mean they have to be
used by staff---it’s just a term
Function Space
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Meeting space goes into determining how many
sleeping rooms they will give you.
Hotels make the majority of their money off of
sleeping rooms.
If the hotel thinks that your sleeping rooms do not
justify “free”meeting space, they will charge you
either through room rental or attrition in the form of a
sliding scale.
The hotel should not charge you for the room you are
holding your meal function in.
Example of attrition
Sleeping room pick-up
Room rental
80% to 100%
No charge
70% to 80%
$5,000
65% to 70%
$7,500
Less than 65%
$12,000
Cancellation
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VERY IMPORTANT!!!!
It must always be included if either your
group or the hotel cancels the event.
Be sure to spell out any penalty fees!
Do not leave it open to debate.
Make it simple and clear. It will cost “x
number of dollars”.
Insurance Coverage
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Another MUST for hotel contracts.
Each party covers themselves with
insurance.
There are many types of insurance:
- General liability
- Medical liability
- Host and liquor liability
Americans with Disabilities Act
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This is an industry standard paragraph and is
here to protect your organization and insure
that the hotel will follow the law.
Do not sign a hotel contract if this is not
stated. All hotels should follow the guides
and have accommodations for persons with
disabilities.
Entire Agreement and Waiver
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The person(s) signing this agreement must
have the authority to bind their organization
and agree to the terms as listed.
This is a must because you don’t want a
contract signed by an unauthorized individual
who does not have the authority to read,
understand and commit their organization to
the responsibilities listed in the “four
corners”of each page of the contract.
Need info?
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Robin Hayes, ACA Director of Conference &
Meeting Services
1-800-347-6647, ext. 296
E-mail: [email protected]