Well it’s always best to go and visit each of your shortlisted venues to meet the team that will support you, or the venue contact, check out the facilities first hand and have a walk through to visualise how your meeting or conference will work in the space.
But what do you need to consider when you’re compiling a shortlist of places to visit? Our checklist may help:
Budget
The first thing you need to consider before you visit any venue is cost. What budget do you have to run your event and what do you want to spend in terms of cost per head?
It’s not just room hire, it’s all the added extras that may rank up the cost.
Location
Think about your attendees – how many are attending and where are they coming from? Is the location central enough for them and if they’re travelling a distance are there good transport links for those using the trains or buses?
For those coming by car, is there parking and is it free to park or would delegates have to pay?
Venue Style
Think about your event – do you need something corporate or are you looking for something with a wow factor that will blow your delegates minds, which will get them talking about it for weeks afterwards?
Facilities
Wherever you choose, you need to think about the facilities available and what is included in the price and what isn’t.
What’s the cost of teas and coffees per head? Does the venue provide refreshments in-house, do they use an external provider, or do you have to provide your own?
What meeting equipment is there? Do flip charts come with the meeting room, or do you have to pay separately for them?
If you’re showing a presentation on a big screen – or you need technical support to help set up – do they have someone on site that can assist if needed? There’s nothing more infuriating for event organisers and delegates when there’s an IT failure – when the sound doesn’t work or the Wi-Fi fails. Speaking of Wi-Fi….
Wi-Fi
People work on the go, and we all know that during the break or lunchtime they’ll want to check their emails or maybe pick up other work.
Make sure the venue has strong Wi-Fi with plenty of places to charge devices to make life as easy as possible for your attendees.
To find out how we can help you with your event, please call us on 01782 683780 or email info@thebridgecentre.org.uk