The Art of Choosing a Venue

How do you choose when and where to host an event? Most event planners are lucky if they have at least six months to plan an entire event; however, the ideal time frame for planning is six to 12 months. The first step is creating a timeline. As you chart your timeline, think about every detail; for example, it would be ideal to give yourself a full month to find and book a venue.

Next, think through your theme/purpose and decide the type of audience and number of guests you hope will attend. This will help you as you ask for quotes from various locations. In order to get a quote, you’ll need specifications regarding the type of facility and services needed. Some of these are specifications include types of seating. To view some seating examples, click here.

Use these seating examples to get a clearer picture of the type of meeting you want to host. Once you have a plan in place, start making calls to various venues.

Make sure that your event date is flexible in case there are other large events in the city around the same time. Also, take weather into consideration; if you chose a date in January, some attendees might get stuck at the airport due to inclement weather.

If a venue tells you that another event is ending half an hour before yours, look for another option. Never book your event right after another one because you’ll need plenty of time for the other event to end and for you to set up.

Some other questions you’ll want to ask:

1. Is the facility easy to reach? Is it close to an airport or train station? Is there free parking for guests?
2. What are the catering options? Is there an in house caterer? Are there vegan and vegetarian options?
3. What is included in the total cost? How can we cut costs? Is Audio Visual (projector, etc) and/or wireless included?
4. Are there any disruptions, such as construction, that might occur during the meeting?

By no means is this an exhaustive list. There will be plenty more questions that come up from these initial ones. Then schedule site visits and food tastings, if possible, before making your final decision. The site visit is the most critical activity given what is often positioned online or in brochures, may look very different in person. Remember to take lots of pictures and notes in the form of a SWOT analysis (i.e. strengths, weaknesses,opportunities and threats.) This will help put your program into perspective and identify whether the venue is really right for you.