29 Mar The A LA CARTE ways to Manage your Delegates with your Scarce Resources
Most Event Management agency offer “à la carte” services from full event and production to support services such as venue finding. In order to meet client’s objectives, it is crucial the customers are able to dip in and out of such services as naturally not all will be applicable.
Outlined below is our ‘A la Carte Menu’ which includes tips on how to manage delegates with scarce resources.
For Starter – The Brief
Before taking on any event it is imperative to fully understand your client’s brief and the resources that will be available to you. Collating as much information at this stage is always a great place to start.
Ask your client lots of questions but most importantly, ask the following:
Do you have a preferred date?
- Depending on the nature of the event, finding a date for an event can sometime be another hurdle to overcome. For example, dates for a conference in London during the months of October and November are very popular for conferencing so to avoid you client missing out on their preferred date, encourage them to begin the planning process early and book their date quickly.
How many delegates are you expecting to attend the event:
- The number of delegate attending is always crucial information as this will dictate the venue selected to host the event. Another pointer and obvious one, the more delegates the further your budget will need to stretch.
What is your budget?
- A client’s budget is always a good tail tell sign whether resources are going to be scarce. This can lead to creative and imaginative ways for managing delegates. A client objective and vision for their event don’t always come hand in hand with their budget allowance, so managing expectations at this point in the planning process will illuminate any disappointment further down the line.
What type of venue are you looking for?
- As previously touched on, venues can often be scarce resource depending on availability and budget. In this instance, sometimes a client will end up booking a venue which doesn’t lend itself to their event requirement, therefore managing/navigating delegates around a venue where, for example, the break out spaces are located on 5 different floors can present itself as a problem. If you ever find yourself in this situation, signage and a brilliant MC is a great solution!
By doing the above it will automatically shed some light on what resources are there for the taking to help you manage your event and those attending.
Main Course – The Event
When resources are scarce, managing delegates on the lead up and the live event can again be tricky but if you have planned your event thoroughly and covered all aspects, everything should run smoothly. There are two services in the event industry that spring to mind which will ensure a smooth and successful run.
DMS – Delegate Management System
Depending on what it is you require from this service – costs may vary. However, if you are short on resources a DMS could be the answer.
This system enables the appointed agency to look after all aspect of the delegate management process. It allows agents to send communications to the attendees at any stage leading up to the event.
To assist in the management and registration of delegates, having a fully bespoke website built for the event that can include as much or as little branding as you wish, and all of the vital information surrounding your event such as the event programme can be hugely beneficial.
Processing delegates tends to be the most time-consuming task. Having a DMS takes the hassle and stress out of managing delegates by providing your client with a website facility that is quick and easy to use and fully managed by the Event Management Agency internally.
Ground Handling Team
Having a strong team on the ground who have been fully briefed on the event is vital to the smooth running of your event. Many heads are always better than one, so working together as a team to manage delegates is key especially when resources are far and few between!
Desert – Post Event Analysis and Reflection
Even when resources are scarce, it is important to continue managing delegates right until the end of an event for your post event analysis and monitoring your ROI. Feedback reports will give you a vital insight as to whether the event has been a success or not and whether objectives have been achieved.