In the 1980s, the word “outsourcing” entered the English-speaking language. Its birth was largely a descriptor for companies doing business across national boundaries, a labor force solution for specialized tasks. In the United States, the topic has become a political debate between those who see the cost benefits of outsourced labor and those who believe that outsourcing jobs overseas hurts the domestic economy.

For the meeting and event planning industry, the argument is a little older and a lot closer to home. It started in the 1970s when U.S. airline deregulation gave birth to travel management companies who had access to the airlines’ computer reservations systems. Travel agents who had traditionally worked inside an organization were transitioned to these outside companies. Then in the 1990s, the Internet allowed direct access to airline websites and, well, we know what has happened to travel agencies.

Whether a position is outsourced to a human being or technology, the debate continues to rage on. When meeting management functions are outsourced to a third-party company, does it erode the responsibilities of internal employees and threaten jobs? Or, does it allow internal staff to better focus on their core responsibilities and the tasks that are more critical to their association’s vision?

Some would argue that it depends on the type of task. If the meeting’s focus is educational and best relayed by the experts of the organization, then this responsibility should be kept inside. If the task requires a wider experience that is not found within the organization, such as knowledge of and leverage with international hotel properties, then this role should be outsourced.

Bobby Hobes, CCTE, travel and meetings coordinator for SRA International’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, believes outsourcing is cost effective and allows internal staff to concentrate on areas that need more attention. “The third-party planners afford myself and other planners the luxury of putting energies into other areas, i.e., budget oversight, program content and logistic changes, to name a few,” Hobes says.

Robert Casias, CMP, director of meetings and marketing for the National Guard Association of Texas, thinks that third parties, specifically in the area of site selection, are not effective if your organization already employs a meeting planner who is experienced in negotiating rates that work for your particular group. “I like working with hotels that are familiar with my programs,” Casias says.  “I don’t have to spend time explaining what my goals are for a particular meeting to a third party.”

Jennifer Gachui, director of global accounts for HelmsBriscoe, a global site selection and meeting services company, has clients who have experienced both the positive and negative sides of using a third-party company. While some felt they could handle everything the third party did with internal staff — from negotiating the rate to execution — Gachui says other clients thought third parties “made their job easier, saved them time and made the planning process less stressful.”

Few can argue that a lagging economy often necessitates outsourcing to compensate for a loss of internal staff. Gachui’s business has tripled in the past year due to resource-strapped clients who are now open to outsourcing. “Every organization has so much more to do with less today,” Gachui says. “The need to conserve resources (time and money) has made many organizations keep an open mind and try working with a third party.”

But rather than hiring a full-service management company, Casias thinks the trend is more toward utilization of part-time event planners and consultants. “The only time I think a third-party planner works well is if the company or organization has no planner on staff and are short on time to put on a meeting,” he says.

While CDC’s Hobes has no plans to use third-party services in the next three months, he could possibly outsource in 2011 if very little notice is given to arrange the meeting. And in these changing economic times, short-term bookings have become commonplace as organizations wait for funding or take longer to gauge the attendee interest level before planning the meeting. Shorter lead times can necessitate a last-minute thrust for additional staff and make outsourcing the only available option. This is especially the case when the organization is booking a first-time location and is unfamiliar with the area’s hotel offerings. An experienced third party can quickly filter through the hotels that do not match the group’s needs and put the full force of their buying power behind the negotiation for better rates.

Gachui says her clients want this knowledge of the product and industry, and the experience in negotiating hotel contracts. According to Gachui, the result is “better rates, great contract terms, and enhanced industry contacts and leverage.”

Casias says he tested the use of a third party to see if they could negotiate lower rates than he could garner on his own, but he wound up with a higher room rate for his attendees. “Hotels are not willing to negotiate lower rates and then pay a commission to a third-party company,” he says. “They prefer to extend a much lower rate than have to pay it out in the form of a commission.”

And while a short-term planning window may cause organizations to rely on the third party’s recommendation in lieu of performing their own site visit, Casias believes this is breaking what he calls one of the cardinal rules of meeting planning. That is, “never sign a contract for a property unless you have seen it and walked the space yourself.”

Monica Compton, CMP, has 18 years experience as an international meeting planner.  A writer and event-marketing consultant for U.S.-based Pinnacle Productions, she splits her time between Atlanta and Philadelphia.

By Monica Compton, CMP

We’ve all heard the term “meeting planner perks.” It can refer to the non-event industry’s view of a planner’s life: luxurious stays in posh settings, business class airline seats and hard-to-secure reservations at a celebrity chef’s restaurant. In reality we know that those perks, if ever received, are rarely used, turned over to VIPs or often wasted. After all, do event planners in a fast-paced industry with an expected 24-hour availability to their organizations’ needs really have time to take a vacation?

For those who do, complimentary hotel stays and airline upgrades seem to be a well-deserved reward for spending 12 hours on the trade-show floor, lifting heavy boxes and not having enough time to eat. While hotel loyalty programs were created more than 25 years ago for frequent travelers, the concept of tailoring a program to target meeting planners is at an all-time high. In a lumbering economy, hotels are looking to entice planners with complimentary hotel nights, discounts on group meals and credits to their meetings’ overall bills.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide customized its Starwood Preferred Guest program, the hotel group’s original rewards program for frequent travelers, and created a Starwood Preferred Planner program. Planners just don’t get points; they get Starpoints, implying a higher level of benefits for meeting planners over leisure or business travelers. The program is further expanded to offer Instant Meeting Awards, the ability to get up to a $1,500 credit on your group bill as long as you are a Starwood Preferred Planner with 15,000 Starpoints (and, of course, a signed hotel contract must be in place). But there’s a terms and conditions catch to get meeting planners to book with Starwood again. Starpoints earned for the group’s current meeting may not be redeemed toward that meeting. So if you haven’t reached 15,000 points, you’ll have to wait until your next meeting to earn the group bill credit.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), the first company to introduce hotel points with its Priority Club Rewards for Holiday Inn in 1983, has also created a planner niche for its program. With the addition of one word to its title, the Priority Club Meeting Rewards becomes a program that awards planners for “qualified” meetings. Reading the fine print is also essential here. Planners must have a minimum of 10 rooms occupied in their block from a minimum of one night up to five consecutive nights depending on the brand in IHG’s portfolio of hotels. InterContinental and Crowne Plaza have an additional requirement that meeting-related food and beverage charges must be applied to the master bill.

IHG further adds the perk of giving planners different status levels depending on how many meetings they book. Similar to an airline’s status ranking, IHG bestows Gold Elite status to planners who host one qualified meeting in a calendar year and Platinum Elite status to those hosting two meetings per year. The benefits of status range from the gold level’s 10 percent bonus in points and priority check-in, ensuring your room and keys are ready upon arrival, to complimentary room upgrades and a 50 percent boost in bonus points at the platinum level.

Marriott’s Rewarding Events program also offers levels of elite status and allows planners to choose between hotel points and airline miles. For every $1 in total meeting charges, planners can earn three hotel points up to a maximum of 50,000 or 1 mile up to a maximum of 15,000.

Marriott’s limited-time Meetings Matter group promotion adds contract incentives and bonus points to its base
rewards program. For each meeting with at least 50 cumulative room nights booked and held by Dec. 31, 2010, a group will receive: 35 percent allowable attrition, one complimentary room night for every 35 paid rooms, and a 2 percent rebate off the master bill for each qualified meeting exceeding 100 cumulative room nights. This promotion also adds triple points for master bills paid with any Visa credit card up to a maximum of 150,000 total points.

Marriott, IHG and Starwood have all received Freddie Awards, honoring the best frequent traveler programs throughout the world for the last 20 years. Receiving an award by giving travelers rewards confirms the industry’s intense focus on points. But for meeting planners who are bound by industry guidelines and organizational policies, does redeeming points for personal gain step dangerously close to the edge of ethics?

Many of these points programs focus their advertising on the individual benefits rather than what the group receives. Marriott’s Rewarding Events section of its website sympathizes with planners that “times are tight, and budgets are tighter,” but it can be “business as usual for you,” urging planners to earn points toward free nights for “your ultimate getaway.” Starwood’s site tells planners that earning Starpoints will “bring you one step closer to your dream vacation.”

IHG ran a 2008 campaign for Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts that masked the individual benefits by calling its promotion the M.B.A. (Masters in Business Accommodations), designed to engage the traveler and educate them “in the personality of the brand and our latest promotional offerings.”

So when do rewards points move from an acceptable gift to a breach of ethical guidelines?  Joshua Grimes of Grimes Law Offices, a firm specializing in associations and the hospitality industry, says there is no industry standard on points; however, many companies have policies that employees and contractors must follow.

“Sometimes these policies require people earning points for business travel to credit them to the company account,” Grimes says. “Other times the [individual] may keep them.”

Sheila Evans, director of sales Southern region for Hilton Worldwide, has clients who create a “house account” for points. Similar to an escrow account at a bank, Hilton holds the rewards points for use as the group books meetings. This ensures that the points are going to the company and not the individual planner. “Some clients use their points in company giveaways or donate them to their favorite charity,” Evans says.

Grimes says that most hotels have a policy allowing the meeting sponsor to designate who gets the points, the only condition being that the points will be paid to only one person or entity. “This means that any recipient may be designated,” Grimes says. “However, ethics considerations may dictate that the points should go to the meeting sponsor unless that sponsor designates another recipient.”

Evans says that it must be stated clearly, prior to the signing of the hotel contract, who will receive the points. “This is usually decided by the meeting planner or the person booking the program,” Evans says.

Ethical considerations can be stretched further when a planner bases a destination or venue decision on the rewarding of points. Kyle Greer, program manager for the Society of International Business Fellows (SIBF), books properties based on how they fit his organization’s needs, not by their points program.

“Our key concerns are location, meeting space and service level,” Greer says. “It is critical [that] we pull off high-caliber meetings and events, and we’ve yet to find that a point system helps in any way.”

Paulette Hopkins, president of The Hopkins Alliance, puts a clause in her contracts listing the designated representative who will receive the points. “But it has never been the decision-breaker [over another property],” Hopkins says.

While Grimes says there is no legally correct answer, under the federal Sarbanes-Oxley law, the points would have to go to the company or organization sponsoring the meeting. “Otherwise, there could be an implication that the planner chose a particular hotel because he or she was personally earning points — a suspect incentive because it doesn’t benefit the meeting sponsor,” Grimes says. “The best policy is for the planner to give the company the points, or to disclose to the company that the hotel is offering the points and seek approval from company officials to keep them.”

Monica Compton, CMP, is an event specialist with Pinnacle Productions Inc. based in Atlanta. She has 18 years experience as a global meeting planner, managing a variety of programs both domestically and internationally.

1. Understand the business environment.

Staying abreast of changes in the state of the industry is one of the main goals of any professional. Keep tabs on the following key areas pertaining to meeting planning to bolster budgeting know-how:

• Trends in the economy
• Buyer versus seller market in the hospitality industry
• Travel taxes
• Gratuities
• Green meeting trends

There are several areas where costs can pop up out of the blue, based on the above variables. Good meeting planners anticipate costs and the plan for surprises. Be on the lookout for:

• Resort fees
• Unexpected hotel charges
• Internet charges
• Air lift, especially to second- and third-tier cities
• Cost for additional baggage on airplanes
• Postage increases
• Exchange rates (for international travel)

2. Assess your organizational needs.

The three most important factors to consider when preparing your budget are goals and objectives of the meeting, profile of attendees, and your group’s meeting history. Start by spending some time doing research and getting the necessary information on meeting objectives and preparing a list of questions in the following areas:

Meeting Goals and Objectives

• What should this meeting accomplish from a strategic point of view?
• What is the desired outcome of the meeting financially?
• What are the specifics of the program, schedule, andfacility, and who can you contact for the information?

Profile of Attendees

•What level are the attendees? Are they CEO’s, managers, entry-level?

• Who will develop the list of prospective participants?
• What is the percentage of female or males?
• Age range of attendees?
• Income level?
• Geographic location?
• What are their special physical or dietary needs?

Meeting History

• Analyze the difference between projected and actual figures from the previous year’s budget.
• Differentiate between fixed and variable costs.
• Understand the difference between number of meals guaranteed versus meals served in the previous year.
• In what areas can expenses be trimmed from the previous year’s budget?

3. Focus on critical calculations.

Your meeting budget is an estimate of anticipated income and expenses for your meeting and provides financial control and accountability. It’s important to document how and why you arrived at all figures. You can keep track of the calculations used to arrive at each budgeted item with Excel spreadsheets.

In general, the registration fee is determined by the total fixed costs divided by the number of attendees plus the variable costs. Fixed costs include items such as meeting room rental, audiovisual fees, marketing, signage, and insurance expenses. Variable costs can be food and beverage expenditures and materials and handouts.

For every meeting, there are critical financial statements to maintain. These include:

• A balance sheet—a statement of the financial condition of the meeting. It shows assets, liabilities, and equity.
• A profit and loss statement—a document that compares transactions accumulated over a period of time. The bottom line shows the meeting profit or loss.
• A cash flow forecast—a month-by-month projection of total income and expenses.

Starting with these three basic steps, you will be able to approach your next meeting budget with confidence.

This article was adapted from an educational session led by Bonnie Wallsh at the November 2008 Rejuvenate Marketplace in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Bonnie Wallsh is the chief strategist of Bonnie Wallsh Associates Ltd., in Charlotte, North Carolina, an independent meeting planning firm providing a variety of services. Wallsh is a 31-year veteran of the meetings industry.

This story was originally published in the April 2009 issue of Rejuvenate magazine.

By Christine Born

1. Know who you are.

A comprehensive Request for Proposal should provide an overall evaluation of your meeting, says Donn Oswald, associate director of sales for the Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Think of a resume, which offers job experience, references, history, etc.”
What are you using the space for? Be specific and thorough, advises Rachel Swartzendruber Miller, associate director of convention planning, Mennonite Church USA. “Remember the old real estate axiom—location, location, location? Well, think instead: communication, communication, communication.”

The more information you collect and provide for the venue or destination, the more options you’ll discover. Do you use volunteers? What do you use them for? What are the demographics of your group? Are they largely men who are looking for sports activities? Or women who want shopping?

What are their values and makeup? Are they financially conservative? If so, they’ll be more likely to go out for ice cream than steak dinners. If you have lots of high school students, a catering package might be more filling. Are you bringing in kids, or are you bringing
in bishops?

2. Communicate what you need.

Reach out and don’t be afraid to go after the city you want. You don’t have to wait for a FAM trip. “But keep your cards close and do your shopping first,” advises Stephen Hahn, director, Western Region Market Sales, Marriott International. “Don’t declare your top choices right away.”

3. Think like a venue.

Understand how a property values your business and be ready to explain how you’re helping the bottom line. “There is no Magic 8 ball or behind the black curtain stuff here,” says Frank Kuhns, sales manger for the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel. Flexibility and pattern are key words. Be aware of an area’s seasons: What are the peaks and shoulders?

If a property can squeeze you between two events, there’s more room to negotiate on price. What is your arrival need? Can you come in on Tuesday rather than Sunday? Can you fit your meeting into two days rather than three when the meeting needs to be scheduled  during a peak period?

Be sure to base your meeting space needs on move-in and move-out days rather than show days. What is your set-up time? Will you need to take up a ballroom on a day when you have booked no room nights? That will make a difference to the facility.

4. Know your room block percentage.

Having a low-risk group (97 percent pick-up rate over three to five events) could be a huge negotiating tool. “Be realistic,” Miller cautions. “If anything, be conservative.” How many double-doubles, kings, etc., do you need? How many room keys? Again, be very
specific.

5. What is the event’s F&B contribution?

Catering expenditure per room night can make the difference between good business for a hotel versus just average.

6. What other ancillary revenue does your meeting bring?

Does your group have heavy audio-visual requirements? Does it have bar sales?

7. Know your credit history.

CVBs share detailed reports on reportable meetings held in their cities, using a database called MINT (Meeting Information Network). A meeting is reportable if the following criteria are met: the event uses 50 or more rooms on peak; it rotates between at least two cities or states; and it is held on a regularly scheduled basis. “When you leave an event, make sure to ask the bureau for a copy or your credit history and check it for accuracy,” Oswald advises.

8. What’s your total dollar value?

This measurement is more important to a city than room nights. The cost per delegate (activities, dining, etc.) reflects the total economic impact of your conference.

9. Who’s the boss?

The venue will also want to know about your decision process. How long does it take to make a decision? Who are the decision makers? Being able to make a fast decision can be a leverage tool.

10. What other space considerations do you have?

What kind of breakouts—from classroom to half-moon set-ups? Are you willing to use outside meeting space? If a hotel has limited space, challenge them to help you find options.

Some extra tips:

• If it’s a new meeting, it is important to understand the risks involved for a property. There is always room for new meetings, but you’ll need to work with venues to find the best space and fit.

• Planners have to be flexible to find the best deal. What are the terms and conditions you can operate under?

• Build your relationships. The more relationships you have with suppliers, the better prepared you’ll be to deal. In a tight market, relationships and having choices are king.

What Constitutes Value Now?

It’s a buyer’s market, at least that’s the word on the street. Popular destinations, cruise lines, and even luxury hotels that wouldn’t have looked at some meetings in the past are promoting deals to lure groups and put heads in beds. But before you jump into a sweet-sounding offer, make sure it fits the demographics of your group and the needs of your meeting.

Traditional second- and third-tier cities may still be the best bet for faith-based conferences, which accrue the biggest value from being the only game in town. The impact of large meetings in mid-size and smaller cities is greater than in first-tier cities, meaning you’re in a position to negotiate better rates.

Maybe as important, visitor bureaus, convention centers, and hotels will bend over backwards to make sure your attendees have a great experience and will want to return again. Usually, everyone from hotel staff to retailers and wait staff will know you’re in town and will offer a warm and personal welcome. (Be sure to inquire about special offers and discounts for your group.) You also won’t have to worry about a conflicting or potentially incompatible group running into your attendees in the hotel lobby.

Overall, the cost of living in second- and third-tier cities is lower than in first-tier destinations, translating into savings for your group. Accommodations, restaurants, shopping, and attractions are often nearby, which can mean lower transportation costs. Local professionals (from universities, churches, or industries) can be good, inexpensive resources for presentations. The same holds true for entertainers. The city’s daily or weekly newspaper might be interested in covering your meeting.

Planners should contact the local CVB as early as possible to find out what incentives might be available for convention groups. Some cities offer grants specifically for faith-based and other nonprofit groups to help offset meeting costs. Then, work closely with the convention bureau, identifying local services and opportunities that can help reduce expenses.

Religious groups can enlist volunteers from area churches, as well as offering attendees the opportunity to give back by working on a community project. The CVB can help with these options.

Top Value Cities

Most travel websites agree that the country’s top value cities for the past few years have been Phoenix, Dallas–Fort Worth, Orlando, Denver, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Washington (D.C.), Kansas City, Miami, and Milwaukee, based on wide-ranging interests, affordability, and a plethora of accommodations and activities for travelers. This year, you’ll find even more special offers in most of them.

There also are many cities surrounding these metropolitan areas and in other regions with convention centers, new hotels, first-class amenities, compelling attractions, and often a distinctive cultural flavor that offer added value to planners.

Some cities are loaded with freebies that every person in your diverse group can enjoy—from chocoholic to history buff. There are free museums and museums that have at least one free day during the week. There are interesting tours of historic sites, churches, and local manufacturing facilities. The convention and visitors bureau will know which ones offer samples to groups, too. So, in these days of belt-tightening, go local and go free.

The Springfield, Missouri, CVB site has extensive “Free to See” listings that include the Assemblies of God National Headquarters, the Battle of Springfield Driving Tour, the Civil War Library at Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, the Railroad Historical Museum, the Candy House Gourmet Chocolates (tasting tours), the Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World, and tours of the Grizzly Industrial Showroom.
Outdoor activities can add value to meetings in Springfield and Joplin, Missouri—both cities have major lakes, numerous clear-water streams, and plenty of opportunities for outdoor adventure.

Joplin combines  the area’s natural beauty with city vitality. Once a mining center, Joplin has been hosting meetings since 1839 when the first settlers came to the area and gathered for small church and religious meetings. Today, the city’s convention center and adjacent Holiday Inn offer 40,000 square feet of meeting space and can accommodate up 2,500 delegates. The CVB offers services that can save planners money, including free goodie bags for all conference attendees.

Another affordable, yet exciting and hospitable meeting destination in the middle of the country is Topeka. Kansas’ capital city has first-class convention facilities, including the Kansas Expocentre with 116,000 square feet of meeting space. Free tours include the State Capitol building, where visitors can learn the state’s history in its dramatic murals and visit the House and Senate chambers. Another big attraction is Old Prairie Town, a 5.5-acre  pioneer village on the Oregon Trail.

If you’re looking at a more northern location, Lansing, Michigan, boasts Midwestern hospitality and a proud history. The Lansing Center, situated within view of the Capitol building along the Grand River, is thoroughly modern from its architectural design to the wireless Internet service throughout the facility. The   center has more than 120,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space. Moreover, attendees can walk through history and get a sense of a simpler past at the nearby Lansing City Market.

For planners considering the West Coast, San Jose, California, has been popular with conference groups for years. Besides the favorable climate, an abundance of facilities, and a convenient light rail system, the area’s historic missions add to its potential for faith-based groups.

Rapid City, South Dakota, may not come to mind immediately but the city is equidistant from both coasts and is serviced with direct flights from Minneapolis, Chicago, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Las Vegas. Surrounded by the Black Hills and a two-million-acre ponderosa forest, the city has thousands of hotel rooms, large meeting facilities, fine dining, and plenty of shopping. Activities range from a buffalo safari to tours of monuments. Mount Rushmore, of course, and the Crazy Horse Memorial are favorite family adventures.

San Antonio and Fort Worth, Texas, both are compact cities, with hotels and attractions within walking distance. The Alamo and River Walk in the center of San Antonio offer enough activities to keep your group busy for days. Fort Worth, with plenty of shopping centers and museums to attract visitors, offers excellent meeting space and is close to most Dallas landmarks and attractions as well.
Historic sites and natural attractions, including Dixie and Lurie Caverns, are popular destinations in Virginia’s Roanoke Valley, which has more than 6,000 first-class guestrooms, two civic centers, and an IACC-approved conference center.

If you’re looking for beaches and want to give your landlubbing group some adventure, head to North Carolina’s Cape Fear Coast. Citywide events can be accommodated in a headquarters hotel and nearby properties. Tours range from a World War II battleship to a pirate tour through historic Downtown Wilmington.

Photos: Greater Lansing Michigan CVB; VisitTopeka.travel

By Laura Moss

No meetings market is more interested in affordable meetings destinations than the religious conference market. And as travel costs continue to rise, that interest is greater than ever. Here we highlight some simple metrics you can compare when evaluating destinations to host your meeting or convention. Of course, there are many other factors to consider in the site-selection process, but these metrics can be a good place to begin when you are shopping around.

Average Hotel Rate
The average hotel rate will increase by 5.3 percent this year to roughly $109 a night, according to PKF Hospitality Research. While the expected rate increases are the smallest since 2003, this is still unwelcome news to planners.

“I try my best to keep the rooms under $100. When people start seeing triple digits, they get uneasy. Right now my 2011 bids are mostly below the $100 mark, but I know they’ll go up because prices are going up,” says Nancy Butterfield, senior project coordinator for the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church.

While it’s impossible to avoid the rising cost of hotel rooms, planners can look to a city’s average hotel rate, published quarterly by Smith Travel Research, to get a general idea of what room rates are like. In addition, Duncan Hines, sales manager for the Bowling Green Area CVB in Kentucky, recommends that planners get in touch with the city’s CVB as soon as possible. “We are really under-utilized by meeting planners, but we can do everything from setting up site inspections to working out deals with hotels and local attractions.”

That point is echoed by Alana Cooper, executive director of the Monroe-West Monroe CVB in Louisiana. “It’s our job to work with hotels to get groups the best rates possible,” she says, “So it’s just a matter of getting in touch with us and letting us know what your needs are.”

Some planners suggest setting a top-level price that you’re willing to pay for a room. “We get together before we begin any negotiations and decide on a price ceiling. We’re not under the illusion that we can stay at $79 or $89 a night forever, but we come up with a range of what hotels might give us and what our participants are willing to pay,” says Rachel Swartzendruber-Miller, associate director for convention planning at the Mennonite Church USA. “We basically look at our history and come up with a steady progression of price increases. If a city can’t give us the price we need, we walk away. We don’t waste that city’s time.”

Hotel Room Tax
Hotel room tax varies by city, but meeting planners can expect to pay as little as 2 percent of the room cost per night to as much as 18 percent at the top of the scale.

Room taxes are a critical revenue generator for many communities, and they have creeped up significantly in the last 15 years as cities struggle to find revenue to fund, among other things, the local convention bureau.

But for many planners it’s not an expense that’s usually in the forefront of their minds. “Room tax is an issue, but it’s not something we look at immediately, explains Swartzendruber-Miller. “All things being equal, if one city has a room tax of 7 percent and another has a tax of 14 percent, we’re going to go with the first city, but if everything else is in line with the second city and we’re getting a good package, room tax won’t be a deal breaker. But at some point room tax could play a role in where we decide to go.”

Vangie Waybright, an independent planner at Conference Planning Resources, says she always wants a breakdown of costs, including any taxes.

“The costs would then be used to determine the feasibility of holding an event in that location and other decisions,” she says. Mozella Brown, contract administrator for Women of Faith, says that her organization takes all taxes and fees into consideration before booking a hotel. “We have to get all that information upfront to evaluate the cost and see if we can really afford to stay there. Some places have been cost-prohibitive for us.”

Air Travel Costs
Travelers can expect a 1- to 5-percent increase in economy-class airfares this year, according to American Express’ 2008 Global Business Travel Forecast. But the good news for religious conference planners is that the report also states that increased competition among airlines (thanks to low-cost carriers) could help keep airfare prices down.

While many planners in the faith-based market organize events where the majority of participants drive to their destination, others plan national meetings where air transportation costs for attendees are a big factor.

Joshua Townsend, sales manager of the Little Rock CVB in Arkansas, says that when it comes to affordability and accessibility, Little Rock is highly competitive. “We’re positioned in the center of the country and in the center of the state so whether you’re flying from the East Coast or the West Coast, it’s a good meeting point for your conference.”

Adds Lyndsay Rossman, director of corporate communications for Visit Jacksonville: “The air ticket price to Jacksonville is comparable to most other cities, especially within the state of Florida. Once planners get here, they fall in love with the city and it’s affordability, which is how we have an 85 percent retention rate.”

Planner Rachel Swartzendruber-Miller says she tends to hold her meetings in second-tier cities, but that a large airport and low airfares are a definite plus. “A city that is an airline hub is a great perk, but it’s not always a must. I find that smaller cities usually have more value for us.”

This is welcome news for CVBs that don’t want to be overlooked just because their airfare isn’t the cheapest. “Getting into Columbia sometimes takes creativity and a few more steps than some destinations, but once you arrive, the savings really add up,” suggests Twila Jones, senior sales manager at the Columbia Metropolitan CVB in South Carolina.

Cost-of-Living Index
And that brings up another metric to consider during the site-selection process: the cost of living in an area, which is measured by the consumer price index. By consulting the monetary cost of maintaining a certain standard of living in a city, planners can get a better idea of what transportation, food, and other goods and services will cost within that city.

Not surprisingly, many second-and third-tier cities have substantially lower costs of living than first-tier destinations, such as Chicago and Philadelphia. The bottom line is that when evaluating the affordability of a destination, planners must consider other costs beyond hotel rates and fees and the cost of getting to and from the meeting.

“Visitors can find shopping, dining, and night life nestled away in small pockets all over the city,” says Jones. “From The Vista to Five Points, Columbia offers the best of everything in every price range. And taxi fares to most areas of the city cost under $20.”

Utilizing the CVB
By contacting the local CVB early, meeting planners, especially in the religious market, might learn that they’re eligible for grants or incentives, which can bring a whole new meaning to the term “value city.”

For example, the Duvall County Tourist Development Council in Jacksonville offers grants to qualifying groups to offset the cost of their meetings, and Visit Jacksonville, the local CVB, is there to help planners with the application process. Moreover, in January, the city launched an incentive program to encourage planners to hold their events in Jacksonville. “In our market we’ve seen that hotel occupancy is down from July to December, so we have this program to offer special deals to meeting planners,” Rossman notes.

Many cities that own and operate the convention center are in a good position to work with planners to reduce the cost of utilizing the center. “We are able to offer an incentive because we own and operate the convention center here, which enables us to offset meeting costs on a sliding scale,” says Little Rock CVB’s Townsend.

“There are meeting planners who don’t realize all the things a CVB can do to assist them, which is a mistake,” adds Nancy Butterfield, Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church. “Even when I’m planning a meeting in Denver I work with the CVB, because even though it’s my city, they know it better and can help me get the deals my group needs.”

Redefining a Value City
Swartzendruber-Miller says that one of the best ways to find a value city is by looking to second-tier cities. “I definitely lean toward second-tier cities. As the only event in town we take over the downtown and we can command better hotel rates as the only event. And it’s also good for the city because we try to give back by doing service projects while we’re there. We like to feel connected to a city and have an impact on it, and that’s difficult to do in a large city.”

Vangie Waybright agrees that being the “big fish in a small pond” is certainly appealing. “The venue staff is focused on serving one group versus several,” she says. “And meeting guests appreciate having the primary use of the venue because it helps with networking and building camaraderie.”

Faith-based planners can also find value in smaller cities by taking advantage of community and volunteer support, notes Lisa Anders of the Gwinnett County CVB. This is especially appealing to religious groups meeting in Gwinnett, a thriving suburb of Atlanta with its own convention center and arena.

“There are many mega-churches in our area, as well as the headquarters of groups like the Presbyterian Church in America,” Anders says. “They often have volunteers who are willing to help out, which helps keep costs down.”

Proving Your Value to CVBs
When it comes to establishing your meeting’s value to a destination, being able to show a reliable record of your past meetings is essential.

“The most crucial thing for a meeting planner to provide is history. Any past events, room blocks, total amount of food and beverage, cash concessions -really any money invested in a venue or hotel-is what helps us sell a group, because as the CVB, we have to sell planners on the destination and then sell their meetings to hotels,” explains Joshua Townsend, sales manager, Little Rock CVB in Arkansas.

Lisa Anders of the Gwinnett County CVB encourages planners to submit detailed RFPs that explain exactly what they’ll need, as well as the history of their meeting with specific spending and room night data.

“I know that I need to prove that my meeting is valuable to a city,” says Mozella Brown, contract administrator for Women of Faith. “So I do that by carefully lining up the economic impact our event brings to the city.”

And as the number and size of religious meetings continues to grow, more and more destinations are really beginning to see the value of hosting such events in their cities.

“I think cities are finding more value in religious meetings. Corporate business is always nice because it pays more, but it’s also risky because they might cancel last minute. But religious meetings are consistent. Once we sign a contract, our people are coming,” says Rachel Swartzendruber-Miller, associate director for convention planning at the Mennonite Church USA.

“It’s like stock and bonds,” she continues. “The corporate meetings are the stocks because they have more payout, but they’re also more risky. I think of us as the bonds because, while we bring less revenue, we’re more reliable. That’s what makes us so valuable.”