A complicated situation has got more complex! We are working in an environment with no standardised contracts, non-comparable terms and conditions, prices virtually never published; complex enough? Things have got worse. Those all important cancellation terms have now taken on a whole new level of complexity, some conference spaces allow cancellations if coronavirus returns, some not, some levy a hefty fee if a date needs to be rescheduled some not, and on it goes. If ever there was a time to use a venue booking agent to help navigate this minefield it is now!

The key advantages are:

Pricing Knowledge

Prices are swinging massively; will the autumn of 2020 be one of the busiest ever? there are a number of reasons for thinking so. A huge number of annual events were forced to cancel as a result of the lockdown, a percentage of these will be rescheduled. Secondly, there is much to talk about, not only is coronavirus and the government’s response to it creating a tsunami of change, and change is what is discussed in a conference, but fast behind Corvid is Brexit, yet more to talk about. On the other hand, the ‘R’ word, not the transmission rate but Recession! Which will inevitably affect conference and meeting venues! With that in mind a venue booking agent constantly in touch with the ebbs and flows of the market is vital.

Contract Knowledge

As I have mentioned no two venue contracts are comparable, inclusions vary massively i.e. is your catering / exhibition room included in your delegate rate? What audio-visual equipment is provided? etc. All too often conference venues put forward the lowest possible price hoping to catch their unwary clients with inflated prices on the add on items which they know their customers will have to book, cloakroom / broadband etc.  Again, using a specialist venue booking agency could be worth its weight in gold in this sort of situation.

Its Free

Venues pay us a commission, typically 8% on pre-booked events. They guarantee that they will offer agents the best possible rates, see the industry associations MIA & HBAA (Meetings Industry Association and Hotel Booking Agents Association). They guarantee this for two reasons: Agents bring on average 62% of business to venues, i.e. they have buying power, bulk buying means lower prices. Secondly, it is more time efficient for conference and meeting venues to deal with agents, research in the conference news shows on average time spent leading up to the contracting of bookings is 34% less when going through an agent.

We think The Venue Booker is your perfect partner. Combining 25+ years of venue booking experience with a laser like focus of venue finding. Much as we always get multiple quotes for any client, we suggest that clients also talk to several agents, decide which you think is the best fit for you. To help see below a list of agents, together with ancillary data. For this we are grateful the C&IT and their top 50 agents list.