How to Plan Great Meetings and Conferences on a Budget

Reducing the cost of food & beverage (F&B) is one of the best ways to free up money for other conference enhancements. In tight budget situations, focus money on key food & beverage functions and reduce spending on less heavily attended functions. Some basic cost saving strategies includes:

• Press for discounts during contract negotiation. Even 5-10% off banquet prices can result in big savings.
• Maintain flexibility by eliminating per event minimums such as those imposed on receptions, buffets and other F&B events.
• Know your costs and trust your numbers! Accurate estimates allow fine tuning down to the micro level and provide instant feedback on F&B order changes. The closer your guarantees, the less money wasted on excess ordering.
• Try to co-locate committee meetings or other events to leverage economies of scale and to have additional F&B spending to apply toward minimums.
• Order less coffee up front and manage the consumption on site. You can always add more but you can't reduce your initial order.
• Reduce the variety and increase the quantity/quality of foods offered.
• Break up food stations to counteract the "buffet" mindset and reduce consumption.
• Have tray passed items instead of food stations at receptions to reduce consumption.
• Order whole fruit instead of sliced fruits as they can be left out longer and often cost less per person.
• Never use to-go cups for coffee. Providing only traditional coffee mugs can reduce consumption significantly.*
• For breaks, receptions and breakfasts use smaller plates to reduce consumption.
• Order water coolers instead of bottled water.*
• Avoid providing too much seating at food functions. This encourages more food consumption and can also reduce networking.

*Also contributes to a greener event.

Low Cost Ideas to Enhance Food & Beverage Functions
F&B events can impact the learning environment, networking and the overall mood of the event. Even simple enhancements can spice things up. Here are some of my favorites:

• Make the food the focus - Try a wine & cheese tasting featuring the in-house sommelier, a live sushi making demonstration, mixed drinks with "flair" bartenders, or cooking demonstrations.
• Be fun and festive - Instead of standard cookies at the PM break ask for holiday or seasonal cookies.
• Give them an unexpected treat - Have a candy bowl at the registration desk. Have lemonade or iced tea stations during registration or provide "welcome refreshments" for a great first impression. Mimosas or Bloody Mary's in the morning can also be a hit.
• Change the mood with a unique location or offsite event.
• Provide opportunities within the program or after hours for "extra" F&B functions like hospitality suites, receptions, private breakfasts or banquets.
• Act locally - Ask for local fruits when ordering whole fruits. Ask for regional wines and/or local micro brews for the reception bars.
• Incorporate "make your own" stations into F&B functions - Yogurt parfaits, cereal mixtures, trail mix and much more can serve as low-cost "action stations" at breakfast or breaks.
• Have dessert buffets at lunch instead of the traditional plated dessert.
• The more exciting and unique you make F&B events, the more attractive they will be to sponsors. Instead of simply listing a sponsorship of a generic breakfast or reception, offer descriptions of exciting food options, themes or locations that will get sponsors excited.
• Leverage your relationship with the hotel - Ask for substitutions of standard menu items with non-traditional or local offerings. If you order early the hotel will usually work with you to find comparably priced items.
• Put the burden on the chef - If you can't make the numbers work using the standard menu offerings, ask the hotel to create a custom event menu for a set price. Often you get more for your money as the hotel knows where they can save money and can plan the menu efficiently.
• Enhancements are best planned well in advance to get a good deal. Some special order items cannot be charged on consumption so good forecasts are critical. When in doubt order low and supplement with "standard" offerings if the specialty items run out.
• Negotiate F&B minimums as low as possible. Aside from the obvious advantage of avoiding potential attrition issues, lower F&B minimums prevent you from being fully committed to the hotel for all your budgeted F&B dollars. Without that obligation, it is easier to budget for offsite events.

Sources
Meeting Professionals International (MPI): www.mpiweb.org
Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA): www.pcma.org