ROI! ROI! ROI! (Yes, Let’s Talk About ROI.)

Every C-level executive is always looking for more ROI from everyone in their organizations and on every project they undertake.

The good news is that your organization’s meetings and events are ripe for demonstrating smart ROI.

S0 how do you provide ROI without sacrificing the experience you want for your attendees? Work with an experienced meeting professional to help you take advantage of ROI opportunities such as:

Volume = Savings

Think about how buying in bulk helps you save money at Costco and other warehouse retailers. Bundling your purchasing of meeting and event space works exactly the same way.

Meeting and event venues will give you more of a discount on room rental, guest room rates, food and beverage and audio-visual services when you purchase in volume. Think about booking multiple years at a time or, for a repeat event, book multiple hotels within the same chain to leverage savings.

Timing is Key to Deeper Discounts

Experienced meeting professionals know that sometimes it pays to procrastinate. Waiting until the end of a quarter and especially the end of a calendar year can yield significant savings when booking meetings and events.

Sales professionals are motivated to close business during these times and will almost always give you greater discounts on the things that matter the most to you.

Make your “Hot Buttons” Known

Meeting professionals know that in negotiations you must make it known early on to vendors that you have a certain budget to meet or must gain a complimentary concession in order for them to have an opportunity to win the business. We call them “Hot Buttons.”

Every sales professional in our industry knows to expect a few Hot Buttons. It might be that you want to have free WIFI in all guest rooms, you must have a discount on food & beverage, or that you need to have three complimentary suite upgrades for your VIPs.

Whatever your “Hot Buttons” are, make them known early and don’t back down on their importance to your overall meeting’s success.

Measure and Track Savings for ROI Reporting

After all the negotiations are complete, it’s important to measure and track all of the savings. Every executive responds to statistics and percentages. Accurate reporting of negotiated savings is an excellent way to measure the success of a meeting professional and understand the value they bring to your organization.

Say it with me…ROI! ROI! ROI!