MEETING & CONFERENCE FACILITIES
“MORE THAN 50% OF BOOKINGS
ARE NOW MADE ONLINE.”
COME ON IN
Luis De Souza, CEO of NFS Technology Group shares his advice on how technology can help your venue make money out of meetings.
Not too long ago, there were rumours going around the business world that meetings were as dead as the dinosaurs. Thanks to the rise of the internet, it was said that no-one would need to get together any more – instead, we’d find everything we needed online, right at our fingertips.
Of course, that prediction turned out to be far from the truth. As one Meetings Industry Analyst said recently: “In this crazy digital world, we now have infinite channels, so it’s hard to get the signal through – the basis now is: Who’s got the relationships? Physical engagement is important and powerful.”
That’s good news – and I’m sure no surprise – to the UK meetings and conference industry, which provides the meeting rooms where so many of these ‘physical engagements’ continue to take place. The venue and conference industry has been dealing with some big issues in recent years, including the arrival of the millennial generation with their digital-savvy demands, and issues to do with rising costs.
44 | TOMORROW’S FM
Meetings can be an enormously lucrative revenue stream for venues, bringing in valuable cash at times when business is low, such as between big events.
There’s certainly a gap in the market to fill when it comes to providing facilities for meetings, where business people discover a need for a meeting space outside their own premises.
However, a quick response is crucial in this rapidly-moving market. Someone who suddenly realises they have an urgent need to find meeting space for five people at extremely short notice needs to sort it out quickly, and the venues that can respond swiftly have a huge competitive edge.
So what can help your venue deliver the kind of guest experience that will bring meeting guests back time and again? It can be difficult managing a wide range of meeting rooms across possibly more than one venue, and making sure meeting guests have all they need every time is also tricky. What’s more, your venue booking desk may well not be available 24/7 to offer information and advice,
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