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Buying meetings
Meeting minds
MUCH HAS BEEN WRITTEN about the combining of transient travel spend with that of meetings and events, to help companies to negotiate better rates with hotels and venues, but it is still more common in the US than in Europe. Strategic meetings management programmes (SMMP) and ensuing leverage of spend were born in the States in the 1990s, when the pharmaceuticals industry came under the microscope on account of its lavish spending on events and entertainment. These laudable efficiencies have, however, taken a while to cross the Pond, partly because the US has a relatively homogeneous culture with one language, which patently cannot be said for Europe. And US companies with big budgets largely deploy these with the major hotel chains, making better deals easier to negotiate. Another factor, says Hotel Booking Agents Association chairman Chris
How can you successfully combine your company’s travel and meetings programmes? Catherine Chetwynd reports
Parnham, is that “pharma companies have very sophisticated programmes that are centrally controlled. But programmes are not as successful where a company has lots of sales meetings – because the engagement is not part of the sales process, nobody is driving the programme.” Data is paramount and, whereas buyers assiduously gather information from all corners of travel and expenses (T&E) spend through central booking and payment systems, meetings data is often scattered, with space booked by PAs, marketing and sales, either direct with the venue, through a hotel booking agency (HBA) or a travel management company (TMC). “Buyers lack understanding of the spend they have in the company and often feel they do not have the time
or resource to write a meetings policy and ensure adoption,” says ATPI events manager Anitra Elliott. “It can be quite daunting for them.” TMCs which offer meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) services not surprisingly say outside expertise can prove valuable when setting up a programme. “Centralised programme management of the component parts can be effected by one team from the start to the finish of the event, with consistent quality of service across the board and better communication with suppliers and clients,” says Chambers Travel Events’ Christopher Wells. “Because we are essentially a TMC, everyone here connected with the programme would understand the travel policy, ensuring compliance with suppliers.”
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