All Hotels Are Not Created Equal When It Comes To Hosting Your Meeting
Whether you’re planning a board retreat for a few dozen attendees or a large-scale annual sales kickoff, selecting your hotel wisely is a foundational key to success. There’s a lot to consider beyond just room availability and rate.
Consider The Hotel Type
We typically classify hotels into one of four categories:
Limited Service – this is your traditional business traveler’s hotel like a Hampton Inn® or a Holiday Inn Express® that offers the basic amenities at a reasonable rate.
Full Service – typically a more upscale property like a JW Mariott® or a Westin® that tailors to the needs of corporate clients through their amenities and staff.
Boutique – often a locally-owned or sub-brand that prioritizes a more unique, intimate experience for its guests.
Resort – destination properties that aim to provide luxury and relaxation over work.
Prioritize Your Needs
Unless you have an unlimited budget, you’ll likely have to prioritize what amenities are most critical to the success of your program and then work backwards from there. For example,
Most limited service hotels will have a conference room or maybe a multi-purpose room that can be used for meetings, but often lack support staff or catering services meaning it will be a DIY proposition.
A full service hotel we definitely have a selection of rooms to suit multiple group sizes and AV needs along with a dedicated staff to support your every need, but with these offerings comes a cost. You’ll likely pay a rental fee for the room, internet, and even little things like an easel and flip charts.
Boutique hotels often have cool multi-purpose spaces that can accommodate smaller groups and great food offerings, but their AV capabilities may be lacking. Will a basic screen and PC projector do the job?
As mentioned, resorts prioritize fun over work but many realize corporate clients are looking for a mix of both. And, if you’re intent is to do shorter sessions intermixed with sun and sand, maybe a formal meeting space isn’t a priority. What about a brainstorming session at dawn on the beach?
Do Your Homework
The bottom line is not all properties are created equal and you need to match your needs carefully to their offerings. Advance site visits can be time well spent to really understand the amenities and the layout beyond the perfectly staged photos featured on the hotel’s website. A floor plan only provides so much context.
Will your attendees have to walk to the other side of the property when you break for lunch?
A room may be advertised to seat 30 but in what configuration?
Are they doing construction that has some amenities closed or could cause distractions during your meeting?
Let Us Make It Effortless
We can take the headache out of sourcing a location for your meeting. We have an ever expanding database of properties we’ve personally vetted and a network of trusted partners who can recommend options based on your specs. We also offer contract review and negotiation services that can provide significant savings versus going it alone. During a visit to a 5-star property that shall remain nameless, the director of events confided in us saying, “we just don’t have the time to deal with small meetings unless a professional planner is involved.” It wasn’t for a lack of desire, but the time needed to hand-hold someone who doesn’t understand the process.
If you’re planning an upcoming meeting, let us perform a complimentary Discovery Survey that will prioritize your needs and create a blueprint for building an Effortless Meeting.
Cheers,
Kelly