City Selections
When planning a corporate meeting or event, the first step is deciding the date and location. We put these two “things” together because you can’t have one without the other. If you have a firm date, your location may need to be flexible. And if you have a firm location - your date options will be based on their availability.
The “location” includes the actual, physical venue - yes. But it also means the city (and state), too. If you are looking for information about picking the correct venue, try this blog post with our venue checklist. Before you can get to the physical space - you must identify the city and state you’ll be using. This could be the city/state your business or organization resides in, it could be a travel destination, or it could be a completely different location - it all depends on your needs.
So many things to consider here - guest count, budget, travel distance, destination…. and also, incentives. Incentives? Yes, incentives. Your chosen city/state should be conducive to your event style - does the city have enough hotel rooms to accommodate your group. Are the hotels near your meeting venue, or will it require additional transportation to shuttle everyone to the venue. What about parking on site? Entertainment options for off-sites, networking, etc. You’ll find that a LOT of cities have offerings that could work for any number of events. So, then how do you choose?
incentives:
Incentives are being offered more and more to entice meeting & event planners to bring groups to their respective cities. Tourism bureau’s and Chambers had aligned and agree that planners need more than just good hotel options to choose your city. They need reasonable pricing, “cool” offerings, and incentives.
What might an incentive look like? Well, in Lexington, Kentucky, VisitLex is offering incentives for meetings booked for 2025 in February, June, July, August, November or December. As a part of their 250th birthday, they are covering live local entertainment for a reception, a $30 rebate towards reception food, and more! If you know you’re having an annual or traveling event in 2025 - it seems like a no-brainer to #LookatLexington for this meeting or event in 2025. By booking the event now - your dollars go further in 2025.
Or try Portland, Oregon, where city-wide they offer 0% sales tax on food, beverage, venues, and vendors. No rebates, no codes required - automatic savings on things you’ll be guaranteed to use. Those savings could be used towards other areas of the conference - like an upgraded welcome reception, experiential team-building, off-sites, and more. Travel Portland has all the info.
Still need ideas? How about Boston, Massachusetts. Meet Boston, their tourism outlet, is offering 10% off all rooms booked and a 10% rebate back for dollars spent on convention services from your banquet and master bill. Any event booked in 2024-2026 in December-March (December of the previous year) will qualify for this incentive. Again, another way to stretch your dollars and send folks to a cool location at the same time.
You don’t have to do the “same old thing”, just because it’s what you’ve always done. Shake things up! Give your attendees something exciting and something to look forward to. Even if you rotate to a new city every other year, the incentives are worth a BIG consideration when planning your meeting or conference location.
Not sure where to look? Drop us a line, we can help chat through your meeting goals and objectives and make suggestions for the right location based on your details, your timeline, and help find the best incentives options for your group.
Happy planning!
Photos sourced and/or provided by (in order) VisitLex, Travel Portland, and MeetBoston.