Successful Meetings - September 2008 - (Page 58) Conference > Stepping Up in Class Centers rest areas. “If you can get them to the center, typically they are engaged there, and they’ll stay there. If you build the networking space correctly, it will happen,” she says. But even if attendees find networking nooks, they will be using them to complain about the bad food rather than discuss the general session, right? Wrong, Jarvie says. Many convention centers are investing in their catering capabilities, to make them on par with or even better than large hotels. “I’ve found most of the catering departments to be very creative and talented,” Jarvie says. “They are extremely professional and know their building very well. Give permission to the people you are working with to help you through it the first time, and learn from them. Everybody wants repeat business.” Convention centers are going headto-head with hotels in competition for large events, so food and beverage has to be top-notch, Mikschl says. “A lot of convention centers have a reputation of a bad level of service, whereas our food and beverage service is as good as, if not better than, most hotels,” he says. Besides the softer benefits of F&B and ambiance, many convention centers can devote more time and resources to your large event than a hotel can. Centers are more likely to accommodate a soft hold on a date, says ASN’s Di Padova-Tannehill, whereas hotels push for contracts before any space is reserved. Hotels also see their space as “24-hour revenue generators,” she says, and it’s not uncommon to find your meeting space has been booked for an evening event. That was the case when an unhappy bride showed up at one of Di Padova-Tannehill’s session rooms recently to set up for her evening reception. Neither party had realized the room was double booked, and though the hotel paid for the reset of the room, nobody was happy. That situation is much less likely to occur at a convention center, she says. Security can also be easier at a center, she says, as public access can be restricted. room revenue to offset some of these charges.” These fees can include additional airconditioning for off-hours, meeting room rentals, additional tables and chairs, and labor, Mikschl says. Even “tape removal” fees can be levied after an exhibition at some centers. A convention center usually will provide planners with a complete pricing guide at the initial inquiry into the center. “It’s by no means nickel-and-diming, and OPEN YOUR WALLET we’ve come a long way over the past few years to eliminate as many of those Is a convention center dramatically more charges as we can,” he says. “A lot of times the customer would Convention centers rather be charged up have a reputation for front and just roll those being huge, concrete fees into the rental hangars. However, the charge.” new breed of convenAnother difference tion centers is placing that planners must prepare for is that they more emphasis on envimay have to work with ronment, with bright, multiple vendor conopen areas to gather in. tacts, rather than one single hotel contact. If there is a change in the schedule, for example, a planner at a expensive than using a hotel? Yes and no, convention center may have to inform her planners say. While many convention cenaudiovisual, telecommunications, catering, ters charge for services differently and more room manager, hotels, transportation, and often than hotels do, other costs are offset other vendors separately. or reduced. There is also a measure of con“If you are used to working with one pervenience to using a convention center that son at a hotel, you should be ready to work can be difficult to assign a value to. with at least two or three at a convention For many groups growing in numbers, center,” Guise says. “I have seen clients there is no choice but to upgrade to a bigsurprised or scared by it.” ger space. Savvy planners look for ways to Planners say it’s important to read every reduce new charges where they can, Jarvie contract and guide issued by convention says. For example, many centers charge a center vendors, even if you feel inundated room setup and reset fee, so the agenda for with paperwork. the meeting should call for as few room “There will probably be more players changes as possible. involved in filling up the box than in the “There are a lot more ancillary charges,” hotel. Even if it’s an exclusive contractor to says San Diego’s Mikschl. “You end up paythe center, it may be a separate company, a ing for things at a convention center that separate bill, and a separate contact,” says you maybe otherwise wouldn’t in a hotel. It Jarvie. all goes back to the fact that we don’t have successfulmeetings.com SEPTEMBER 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS 58 http://successfulmeetings.com
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