Event Facilities

With all events, planning is likely to be at the heart of the organization process. A detailed plan and budget can help ensure that everyone knows exactly what they should do, when they should do it and how much it should cost. Your plan should discuss the reasons for organizing the event and how the main objective can be best achieved. It's important to consider the likely impact of the event on it's target audience, and how best to communicate any information about the event to possible guests. Know what your priorities are before you start; there is huge variation in the cost of catering for example, so it is a good idea to prioritize in advance. The date of the event is also an important consideration - be careful to avoid religious or national holidays and any other big events in the area at the same time. Another large event in a similar location to your own could not only distract attention, it could also drive up the price of the many essential aspects to a successful event. Decide how you will inform potential guests of your event and how they will respond; different solutions can be used depending on the scale of your event.

It may be a good idea to ask your guests if they have any special requirements. Disabled guests may require wheelchair ramps to be fitted for example, and diabetic guests may request special food. These special requirements could influence your choice of venue, so it is best to learn your guests needs in advance.

Choosing the right venue is vital to ensuring that your event is a success. The choice can be endless and each specific event will have different requirements and a different budget. An accommodation booking agency could be used to help choose the event and this could save both time and money.

For smaller events, appropriate venues could include church halls, small hotel conference rooms and public buildings. Cost will surely be a major factor in the planning of smaller events and, as the venue tends to be one of the larger costs of arranging an event, it is important to choose a suitably priced location. For larger events, there is even more choice of venue - sporting arenas and large conference halls are just some of the more traditional venues for business events. However, it is becoming increasingly popular to use interesting and unusual venues to create extra interest in an event. Why not consider renting out a yacht or ferry boat, for example? These venues would be available only to organizers with a relatively high budget but they could be extremely useful in generating interest, publicity and maximizing attendance at an event.

The location of a venue is vital to ensuring that attendees are both able and willing to travel to your event. Transport links are important; consider how attendees will get to your event and then ensure that your venue is well linked to this method of transport. If people both local and national and international will attend your event, it is well worth considering venues that have good motorway, rail and air links.

If attendees are traveling long distances to come to your event then hotel accommodation should factor into your planning. For some events, hotel accommodation could be included - this is a popular option for business conferences, as it will encourage delegates to attend. If you are choosing the hotel accommodation, try to choose a hotel that is located close to your event venue as your attendees may not have their own transport and may be reluctant to pay for taxis or hire cars. The quality of the hotel should not exceed the value of the event, as the emphasis should be on the content of your event, and not the quality of any hotel accommodation. If you are booking rooms for a large number of guests, then try to negotiate a discount with the hotel management. You may wish to provide guests with a list of hotel accommodation, helping them to choose somewhere to stay.

Outdoor events can be very successful and can seem more appealing than traditional indoor events. However, organizing an outdoor event presents some unique challenges. If your event is large, then you run the risk of gate crashers and this could increase your costs and have potential security risks for your event.

Ensure that the location that you have chosen for your outdoor event has the relevant event facilities; nearby bathrooms, changing facilities and car parking could help to make your event a success. For larger events, it may be wise to employ security staff - as mentioned above; this can ensure that any unwanted guests are kept out.

It may be wise to review any weather reports in the run up to any outdoors event: this will ensure you have the appropriate event facilities lined up. These are available free of charge on the Internet for up to ten days ahead, and can provide you with advance notice of any potentially event-ruining weather conditions. It could be worth forming a "Plan B" option just in case the weather does take a turn; transport and alternative venues should be sought out. Available in a variety of sizes to suit most events, a marquee provides a great all weather solution for outside events and prevents any worry over rainy conditions.

For larger events and larger event facilities like convention centers, hiring staff could be the best option for managing the running of your event. Some venues will include their own staff that can assist with bar and catering requirements and some venues will include no staff at all, so be sure to find out exactly what is included. Staffing agencies can provide trained staff for venues that do not come with staff. Waiting and bar staff are a necessity if you are to provide food and drinks to your guests - although a buffet table could be a good way to reduce costs. You should consider the level of training that you wish your hospitality staff to hold; for example, silver service trained waiters could add a special touch, as could bar staff who are trained in cocktail mixing.

Entertainment staff can also prove to be a difficult choice and the entertainment will obviously vary between events. For family orientated events, why not consider a magician, face painters or children's entertainer? Or for a more business related event, entertainment staff could include singers and dancers. Ensure that there is sufficient staff to check-in guests; there are often late arrivals and having a list of who is yet to arrive can aid any decision to delay the event. Staff should also be on hand to remove any waste from the site before, after and during the event.

For large events, you may wish to hire medical professionals in case of any problems, especially if you are holding an event in convention centers which are considerably sizable. It may be possible to hire staff from Ambulance charities for a small fee, and this would provide peace of mind that any medical incidents could be dealt with quickly.

Catering often forms a major part of any spending budget for an event. If guests are traveling long distances to attend an event, they will more than likely expect food on arrival, and if the event runs for more than a few hours even more food could be required. The choices associated with catering solutions are endless and each event will command a different level of catering. Catering companies will be able to provide your event with pre-prepared cold and hot snacks, which could be either served to guests by waiters, or laid on to a buffet table. Companies will often offer various packages, each costing a different amount per guest and offering different types of food. It may be a good idea to offer refreshments on arrival in your venue, giving people a chance to mingle and providing a much needed moment of relaxation for the guests who have traveled long distances.

For smaller events, a hotel restaurant or other shared venue could provide catering. Home made catering could also be used for smaller events as guests often only expect small snacks and sandwiches. It is important that the level of catering matches the event - overdoing the catering could result in waste and unnecessary cost. To keep costs down you may wish to consider sending out an advance menu to your guests, allowing them to reply with their choice dish. This would minimize waste, as each guest would only be served the dish that they have chosen.

The entertainment and decor can be the most remembered aspects of your event. In a world where most people are used to dining out and attending functions, the decor and entertainment could help make your event stand out against the rest. This would obviously have to be discussed with the venue owners and would have to be cleared away after the event has finished, which can be an expensive and time consuming task. Some agencies can provide decorations and will fit and remove them for a fixed price. Decorations could include banners, flowers, balloons and much more depending on the nature of the event. Be careful not to overdo the decoration, as it can often be a distraction from the true nature of the event.

Decoration could include giving direction to guests for the main location of your event - for example, signs placed around the venue and the surrounding area informing guests to the parking location and check-in area would be extremely useful. You could also consider setting up a stage for your entertainment, if no stage is provided in your chosen venue. Make sure that the decor is done well in advance, allowing the other areas of your event to be set up without interference.

There are event management agencies and accommodation booking agencies that can assist with the planning and running of any event. These agencies may or may not charge a fee for their services, but they can be an extremely useful tool. Most agencies will be in a unique negotiating position with suppliers and they will have the experience to manage a variety of situations, and deal with any problems that may occur. An agency can source suitable venues and give you a shortlist of the most viable, negotiating a good pricing deal with your chosen venue. Similarly, the agency can then find suitable local accommodation and book the required rooms. Some agencies will provide a representative who can be on hand on the day of your event to deal with any problems as they arise.

It may be a good idea to research any agency and to read the fine print before signing up. Some agencies will have more experience than others and some may deal specifically with your type of event. An example of this would be a wedding planner, who will be much more suited to the organization of a wedding than a general event management agency.

Pharmaceutical events or meetings are subject to scrutiny from the Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) Code of Practice, which is considered the world industry standard for Pharmaceutical events. For this reason, it is important to carefully consider and plan any conferences or meetings in this industry.

The ABPI Code of Practice outlines the rules that Pharmaceutical companies must stick to, and clause 19 stipulates that Pharmaceutical events should not be overtly lavish and extravagant. Hospitality at these events should, therefore, be kept to a minimum and should not outweigh the scientific content of these events. Air travel should be kept to a minimum and, where required, economy class should be used. Hotels and venues should not be entertainment orientated and the main reason for delegates’ attendance should be for the educational content of the meeting.

Obviously, hospitality will be expected and if delegates were traveling long distances to attend an event, then catering would probably be provided. The main thing to remember is that the level of hospitality should match the content and length of the event.