hyatt-regency-sfo-meeting-space

Just south of San Francisco International Airport (SFO), a cluster of meeting properties is welcoming delegates from around the world. With free shuttle service from the airport, hundreds of guest rooms spread out among a half dozen meeting hotels and a variety of event spaces, many groups are finding the SFO corridor a convenient and affordable place to convene.

The big guy on the block is Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport, which offers 789 guest rooms and suites, and 68,000 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor meeting space. The Hyatt completed a multimillion dollar makeover on Aug. 31, which has helped elevate the property and the SFO hotel area.

The Hyatt Regency features three ballrooms, including one that offers 18,000 sq. ft. of pillarless space. (Donald Trump gave a campaign speech here in April before a crowd of 850.) There also are ballrooms with 7,000 sq. ft. and 5,700 sq. ft. The nine-story atrium brings in lots of natural light, seemingly feeding the buzz throughout brand-new 3Sixty Restaurant and bonus hang-out nooks designed to enhance networking.

hyatt-regency-sfo-lobbyr

“We want to be the premier location for groups,” says Joel Alexander, director for sales and marketing. “We combine size and technology. That’s our hallmark.”

Alexander says there are a couple other factors that are contributing to the Hyatt’s rise as a meeting powerhouse. Besides its proximity to the airport and the price point of being located in San Mateo County, the Hyatt is getting a few extra looks while Moscone Center in San Francisco is completing a major renovation.

hyatt-regency-sfo

Several things stood out during my recent site visit, which coincided with a college physics convention. When you hold a convention in the SFO hotel corridor, attendees aren’t as

tempted to skip sessions, yet they are still a short shuttle ride and then a trip on Bay Area Rapid Transportation (BART) to The City. Nearby car rentals and accessibility to ridesharing also make it easy to basically get anywhere in the Bay Area.

Few properties have the variety of spaces and guest rooms this close to an international airport as the Hyatt Regency. There are 414 guest rooms with two queen beds. This works out great for conventions in which sharing is preferred, with the physics convention being a prime example of a group that took advantage of doubles. But Hyatt Regency also boasts 26 suites, including one that measures 1,400 sq. ft. with living room space to meet.

To change things up from meeting indoors, the physics convention’s closing gala took place in the hotel’s tented pavilion, which can hold up to 500.

Other meeting hotels in the SFO area include The Westin San Francisco Airport, San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront and DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Francisco Airport. This gives planners flexibility for events and lodging, especially to accommodate those using loyalty points. The Marriott also completed a renovation this year and offers 686 guest rooms and 44,206 sq. ft. of event space.

I must admit I had no idea the extent to which the SFO hotel corridor serves as a key player in the San Francisco Bay Area meetings scene, and the complete renovation of the Hyatt Regency provides a great reminder of all the benefits of gathering here.

unique hotel experience

FOUND:RE Phoenix is a one-of-a-kind lifestyle hotel experience inspired by local contemporary art, culture, fashion and music. The newly opened 105-room hotel welcomes guests and Valley residents to delve into the museum-worthy spaces as well as the creative programming woven throughout. The newly unveiled on-site restaurant, MATCH Cuisine & Cocktails, sizzles as Phoenix’s newest culinary dining destination. An art and hotel concept unlike any other, FOUND:RE Phoenix sparks curiosity and brings the creative culture together.

“Our goal is to create a place of community and invoke a sense of wonder for every guest at FOUND:RE Phoenix,” said Vittal Calamur, general manager. “We want people to feel inspired, connected, and engaged on a visceral level. We want every experience here to be an opportunity for our guests to discover and learn something new – we want you to find yourself.”

The soul of the hotel is centered around a vibrant art milieu, led by Cultural Curator Michael Oleskow. He has sourced more than 25 artists to feature works of various mediums enmeshed into every aspect of the guest experience, igniting curiosity and a sense of discovery. Both the Studio and the Gallery spaces will feature a roster of rotating shows, pop-ups and artists throughout the year. The hotel’s opening has forever changed the landscape of Downtown Phoenix with a captivating eight-story digital projection exterior light installation. Additionally, an outdoor display box provides omnipresent public art by exhibiting ever-changing, avant-garde masterpieces created by local artists.

Each piece of art has been sourced from Arizona artists, supporting the local artists, economy and overall health of the community. Notable local artists whose work will be featured at FOUND:RE Phoenix include Diego Perez, Cheryle Marine, Niki Woehler and Kathy Taylor. Five of FOUND:RE’s artists were recently selected to exhibit at ArtLink’s 18th Annual Juried Exhibition, where Kathy Taylor was selected as a runner up; a true testament to the hotels commitment to downtown Phoenix’s vibrant cultural art scene.

“FOUND:RE Phoenix truly unites our local artists with the global community,” said Michael Oleskow, cultural curator. “Not only are their works featured throughout the hotel, but guests can actually purchase the works, take them home, and keep the very best of Arizona with them forever. We can even arrange to take our guests on private tours of the artists’ studios and workspaces.”

mambo-event-smaller-size

How does a vibrant, whimsical event space celebrate 14 years of successful meetings? How else than with an equally unique anniversary party?

On November 14, Catalyst Ranch, Chicago’s most creative meeting and event space, will be celebrating “A Most Interesting Affair,” a perfectly fitting

Invited are clients of various past meetings and special events as well as new friends such as meeting planners and creatives across the spectrum of industries that benefit from the unique venue.  Their preferred caterer, Big Delicious Planet, is whipping up something special for the occasion.

Special guest performances include local celebrities: TV, stage actress and writer, Jen Bosworth will be telling an original story; a band will perform a few original songs and Emmy Award winner Ben Hollis will be interviewing attendees with his famous question “What It’s Like to be You?”  These performances pair perfectly with Catalyst Ranch’s creative decor.  Tours will be given and guests will be welcomed by Catalyst Ranch’s founder and Czarina, Eva Niewiadomski.

catalyst_ranch-mambo_focus_group_respondent_room

Founder’s Vision

Niewiadomski is a successful entrepreneur who created a new category in the hospitality industry–Creative Conference Space–when she opened Catalyst Ranch 14 years ago. Back in 2002, what she accomplished was not often heard of: a woman-owned start-up business.

Her foresight led her not only to business ownership, but she became one of the very first innovative businesses in the now burgeoning, trendy West Loop neighborhood, known by nicknames such as “Innovation Alley” and “Restaurant Row.”

Niewiadomski believes that ideas, learning and breakthrough thought thrive when people are placed in an environment that stimulates and invigorates the senses.  It’s important to take individuals out of the typical cubicles and conference rooms where they’re ensconced throughout their daily working lives if you want them to think differently and approach problems from a new viewpoint.

So she created such an environment at Catalyst Ranch. The rooms are housed in a historical loft in downtown Chicago and whimsically furnished with vintage furniture, ethnic artwork, colorfully painted walls, toys, books and much more.

meeting_1

Accolades Roll In

In 2008, Catalyst Ranch was named to Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 fastest growing private companies in Illinois. In 2006, 2012 and 2013, Catalyst Ranch won the Most Unique Venue and Best Conference Venue, respectively, in Illinois Meetings & Events Best Of Awards. Niewiadomski won the 2015 Enterprising Women of the Year Award from Enterprising Women Magazine and 2016 NAWBO Member of the Year.

Prior to starting her own business, Niewiadomski spent almost 20 years in corporate, working for The Quaker Oats Company in a variety of finance and marketing positions and at Arthur Andersen & Co.  Eva has a degree in Public Accounting from Loyola University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.

“Convinced by my combined corporate experience at Quaker and my passionate belief in the importance of a creative environment to stimulate the senses to deepen the quality of the off-site corporate meeting, I parlayed my severance, took out a loan and Catalyst Ranch was born,” says Niewiadomski. “In our fourteen years of business, we have added a whole additional floor, and assisted countless meetings attendees in ‘thinking outside-the-box,’ had hundreds of thousands of new ideas generated and hosted many unique weddings, fundraisers and other special events.

“I am looking forward to celebrating with Ranch friends, old and new, and sharing our ever evolving menu of innovative services which ignite the imagination.”

Planning to be in the Chicago area November 14? You can join in the celebration and see the venue for yourself.  RSVP here.

high-tech event venues

These days, the stakes are higher for venues that embrace innovation, technology and sustainability. New generations want power sockets, fast Internet and much more. The Event Manager Blog has identified technology-savvy venues that offer more than standard chairs and mediocre Wi-Fi. These five spaces embrace cutting-edge technology and go above and beyond.

–The hallmark of NH hotels, with almost 400 hotels in 29 countries, is its hologram-enabled meeting facilities. At certain locations, attendees who cannot be present in person have the option to virtually sit-in or host meetings via a pre-recorded or live hologram. Presentations also have the option to go 3D. Birth by PowerPoint can give ordinary slides multi-dimensional capabilities.

–Advanced technology at Amsterdam’s exhibition center, Amsterdam RAI, goes beyond the facilities. The virtual venue tour via its iPad app is one-of-a-kind. Planners can move the iPad around to look at the layout of specific areas. The rendering offers 360 degree detail that comes the closest to an in-person tour. Due to its partnership with Amsterdam Internet Exchange, this technology-savvy venue also provides one of fastest Internet speed capacities in the world.

–Flexible event space has a new definition at the Swiss Tech Convention Centre. The theatre-style conference and congress center can be completely reconfigured in just 15 minutes. The technology-savvy venue also impresses on the sustainability front. Thanks to its location near Lake Geneva, geothermal pillars support the building and are used for heating and cooling. The Gratzel photovoltaic panels, with transparent, colored glazing, also produce energy while preventing the center from overheating.

-Disneyland Paris brings new meaning to magical experiences. The European theme-park offers technology-savvy venue space with nearly 60-foot digital screens and a high bandwidth of Wi-Fi without interruption. Community is equally important to Disneyland Paris. Its meeting department heavily invests in social media content to connect with event professionals. They also forge strong partnerships with local French startups to offer innovative AV solutions.

-The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, winner of the INCON award for best digital infrastructure, also values social media. The convention center has built a whole slew of in-house tools, including an interactive social media feed that’s displayed on LCD screens, room door cards and slides within event sessions. Planners can also work with the in-house technology team to create 3D representations of event space, layout, audio, visual and lighting ahead of the event.

visit europe media exchange (vemex)

The 14th annual Visit Europe Media Exchange (VEMEX) stopped in three key U.S. cities this month, including San Francisco on Oct. 21. The European tour began in New York City on Oct. 17 and moved to Denver on Oct. 19.

VEMEX San Francisco took place at Sheraton Fisherman’s Wharf Hotel, which is coming off a $33 million renovation in one of the top tourist attractions in California. The Sheraton offers 531 guest rooms and 9,000 sq. ft. of event space. Being on San Francisco’s famous Fisherman’s Wharf amid European tourism representatives from nearly 40 destinations and suppliers was definitely an apropos environment to learn about new properties and convention centers springing up across the world, especially Europe, where the American dollar and U.S. business travelers are very welcomed.

Visit Britain made the trip across the pond to help promote England, Scotland and Wales. I met with Kelly Harrison, the marketing and communications manager, who discussed 2017 tourism campaigns, including F&B. She noted that the Britain’s food scene has undergone major upgrades and now features hundreds of Michelin starred restaurants. Harrison pointed to the popularity of Za Za Bazaar in Bristol, England, which is recognized as the largest restaurant in the United Kingdom. Serving global cuisine to 2,100 guests a night, it’s inspired by Asian night markets.

 

By the way, Visit Britain gets the prize for giving away the coolest small gift. Harrison handed out small statues of Queen Elizabeth, who features a black purse that conducts solar power to fuel her wave.

machester-virgin-america

Manchester, England, also attended the show, and Andy Parkinson from Marketing Manchester discussed the city’s success at drawing life science meetings. In July, the city hosted 3,500 scientists during EuroScience Open Forum at Manchester Central, which includes a 107,000-square-foot hall and an 804-seat theater. Parkinson helped coordinate informal networking events, allowing the 500 journalists who attended to get to know the scientists and thus reinforce the city’s theme of “Great minds meet in Manchester.”

Manchester’s status as  an international meeting destination is getting a big boost, with expanded direct flights from the United States. Virgin Atlantic will launch three new non-stop flights into Manchester next year from San Francisco and Boston in March and New York’s JFK in May.

vemex-food

Switzerland had a big presence during the VEMEX road show, including sponsoring the luncheon, which featured a melted Raclette cheese tasting. In 2018, Zurich is getting a new convention center at Zurich Airport called The Circle, which will offer 192,600 sq. ft. of meeting and event space and two Hyatt hotels.

Interlaken is Switzerland’s and Europe’s adventure capital. It serves as a great day-trip when meeting in Zurich, reachable by a two-hour train ride, and makes a terrific incentive destination. Once in Interlaken, most visitors will want to take the train to an elevation of 11,333 feet to experience Europe’s highest glacier. For overnight executives, consider booking five-star Victoria Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa, which offers 200 guest rooms and event space for up to 400.

The German National Tourist Office was represented by Daniela Petrides, public relations coordinator who is based in Los Angeles. There were 389 new hotels that opened in Germany in 2015, including 27 in Hamburg. Germany boasts the second-most Michelin starred restaurants in Europe and has more than 150 five-star hotels. Among the events Germany will celebrate in 2017 is the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

I got a chance to learn a little more about Dresden, Germany, which is experiencing a building boom. The fourth-largest city in Germany is located in the eastern part of the country on the Elbe River, close to the Czech Republic and Poland. Stellar architecture and the arts come together at  The Royal Palace, Zwinger, Semper Opera House and Frauenkirche, which were influenced by patron of the arts, Augustus II the Strong. Today, arts and culture are still important, with the building of three new performance centers. Semper 2 opened earlier this month, adding an alternative space to the opera house.

Visit Scotland was in the house, and that means there was a man in a kilt! Helping promote luxury properties in Scotland is Ryan Smith, the former director of communications for Visit Raleigh, North Carolina, who now works for the PR agency Gillies Zaiser.

While showing Ryan our recent coverage of Scotland in our October issue, I opened the magazine directly to the CVB Selfie section that featured her former boss, Denny Edwards, and an ad for Visit Raleigh. It’s a small world after all, which is all the more reason to Visit Europe for your next meeting.

 

winchester-mystery-house halloween eventsWinchester Mystery House, San Jose, California

Fall is the season for pumpkin spice, red-gold foliage, cozy sweaters and, most importantly, Halloween. From hair-raising frights to tasty delights, Halloween events and attractions offer a range of creative diversions for groups.

Sleepy Hollow, New York

This village in the town of Mount Pleasant in New York’s Westchester County was made famous in the 1800s thanks to one of America’s most enduring scary stories: “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” Nearly 200 years later, tales of the Headless Horseman continue to enchant and intrigue.

During Halloween, Sleepy Hollow is at its best. Horseman’s Hollow is a unique haunted house experience that takes inspiration from the legend to transform a local mansion. For a more family-friendly option, the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze is a stunning attraction that features more than 7,000 hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins. Cemetery tours and spooky storytelling sessions are also on offer.

San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Bay Area is not only a great meeting destination with a spectacular variety of venues and accommodations to choose from—-it’s also chock-full of unique Halloween attractions.

Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California, is world-famous for its architectural oddities, including hidden rooms and even a room built for seances. This Halloween, special Candlelight Tours will be held at the house through October. The USS Hornet, a decommissioned aircraft carrier in Alameda, California, is another unexpected option for groups, which can explore a haunted version of the ship—at their own risk, of course.

New Orleans

The city famous for voodoo is a natural choice for groups looking for Halloween fun. Over the weekend, it will be hard to avoid the massive Voodoo Music + Arts Experience, which has become a Halloween tradition since its debut in 1999. The event commonly known as Voodoo Fest has featured top-tier artists from The Cure to Neil Young.

Groups looking for more spooky experiences have many options ranging from innovative haunted houses and Mardis Gra-inspired bashes to the super-popular Krewe of Boo Halloween parade. New Orleans is also home to several historic and world-famous cemeteries such as St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, the city’s oldest and most famous cemetery.

San Diego, California

Since its opening in 1888, Hotel del Coronado, the historic beachfront hotel near San Diego, California, has welcomed a long list of esteemed guests such as presidents, royalty and celebrities. The property has also been featured in numerous films and novels.

Hotel del Coronado has a long and illustrious history, but it also has a dark past. The hotel’s most famous guest is not President Barack Obama or inventor Thomas Edison — it’s Kate Morgan, a woman who checked in on Nov. 24, 1892 and was found dead by her own hand just a few days later.

Since then, guests and employees have reported many curious events, including flickering lights, doors that open and close of their own accord, unexplained footsteps and even sightings of Kate herself. Thrill-seekers come by the droves to experience it firsthand, making the room she stayed in the hotel’s most requested guestroom.

morimoto_mgmgrandlobby

Food and beverage is such a huge part of meetings and events that planners are continually seeking out new restaurants to host attendees for unique dining experiences. The whole celebrity chef craze is not lost on the meetings industry, so we have compiled a list of six new and upcoming restaurants that reflect the handiwork of famous celebrity chefs.

Just this week, MGM Grand in Las Vegas announced that Masaharu Morimoto, famed Japanese chef and star of Food Network’s Iron Chef America, has made his debut in the meeting capital with Morimoto Las Vegas. Morimoto’s distinctive Japanese fare melds Eastern and Western flavors. The new restaurant offers three distinct dining experiences: sushi bar, main dining room and Teppan tables.

morimoto-grand-opening

“Fate brought Morimoto Las Vegas to MGM Grand at an exciting time when the city’s dining scene is flourishing,” Morimoto says. “I’m continually inspired by Las Vegas’ glamour and wanted to create something we haven’t done before with a stimulating culinary show, bold cuisine and delicious drinks that my guests will not soon forget.”

Scott Sibella, president and COO of MGM Grand, says the food scene at his property and throughout Las Vegas will benefit from this opening. “We are honored to have him as part of our culinary team and look forward to creating once-in-a-lifetime dining experiences at the city’s newest dining destination,” Sibella says.

San Francisco-based Michael Mina, one of the first celebrity chefs to kick off the popular trend in Las Vegas, opened his first restaurant in Hawaii in August, with Stripsteak Waikiki coming online in Honolulu. The opening marks Mina’s 29th restaurant. The menu features lighter takes on steak house fare, with the addition of fresh seafood and locally sourced island ingredients that offer a splash of Asian influence.

Located inside Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown, Cut was opened by Wolfgang Puck in September. The celebrity chef is making his New York City debut.

The new MGM National Harbor in Maryland, a member of Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI), will open in December with several big-name chefs to help catch the attention of meeting planners and attendees. This includes Fish by Jose Andres, who will celebrate the best of Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. The region’s bounty will be showcased in tanks and the restaurant will feature interactive cooking stations. Diners will be able to enjoy a crab boil on the outdoor patio during warm weather.

In January, Phoenix will welcome Mora Italian by celebrity chef Scott Conant of Impero Caffe in New York and Scarpetta in Miami. Conant’s partner in this venture is Stefano Fabbri. Conant makes frequent appearances on shows such as Food Network’s Chopped. Designed to create a neighborhood vibe, Mora Italian will offer a modern vibe with urban street art and live music on weekends.

By the end of the year or in early 2017, David Chang is expected to open Las Vegas Momofuku at The Cosmopolitan. Chang also has eateries in New York City, Sydney, Toronto and Washington, DC.

 

food poisoning at an event

One of the big meeting stories coming out of San Francisco this week is the lawsuit filed by people who attended an NAACP California-Hawaii conference two years ago at Hotel Sofitel in Redwood City. Many conference-goers were sickened by a norovirus outbreak, reportedly from ingesting tainted salmon.

The lawsuit not only seeks damages for people who became violently ill, but also brings to  light that the hotel was not prepared for such a meeting catastrophe. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the former mayor of Oakland went into a coma for two days, 40 others were rushed to the emergency room and a total of 127 people were ill.

This begs the questions: Do you have a strategy if norovirus breaks out at your event? Is this issue on your checklist to discuss during a site visit or subsequent email conversations?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, norovirus is caused by eating food or drinking liquids that are contaminated. It’s also spread by touching surfaces or objects with norovirus on them, and then putting your fingers in your mouth. Especially dangerous for events is that you can get sick by having direct contact with a person who is infected with norovirus. Symptoms include stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Here are 10 things meeting planners can do to be proactive to hopefully prevent, but also, respond should a norovirus outbreak strike your event.

1. Do your research. Before committing to a hosting your event at a certain hotel or venue, ask if they have had issues with norovirus in the past. The hotel where the NAACP held its event had experienced a norovirus outbreak at least twice before.

2. Make sure hand-washing stations or hand-wipes are prominent. You can’t assume everyone’s hands are clean, which makes your event vulnerable when it comes time to passing small plates during the opening reception, for example.

3. Disinfect food-serving stations and other places attendees are touching. Norovirus can survive for several hours on contaminated handrails, door knobs and toilet surfaces.

4. Create a safety team for all events. Topics to prepare for should include fires, earthquakes, inebriated attendees and norovirus. Make sure everyone on your team has rubber gloves.

5. Add the local hospital, and police and fire departments to your phone list. Make sure you know where the nearest hospital is located and even the second-closest hospital just in case of a major norovirus outbreak.

6. Designate an area for those sickened to be moved to, sort of triage. The worst thing that could happen is for those sickened to spread norovirus to others.

7. If norovirus strikes at your event, provide those sickened with fluids to help them avoid dehydration caused by vomiting and dehydration.

8. If an attendee or supplier says they are suffering from stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, encourage them to stay away from your event. You’ll be protecting everybody else.

9. Consider avoiding serving fresh fruits and vegetables, and raw shellfish. Food that has been cooked is less likely to cause norovirus.

10. Have a plan! Don’t assume your event is safe. It only takes one infected person to spread norovirus throughout your event.

negotiate-a-bigger-event-budget

Recent studies have shown that demand for meetings and events is growing and is expected to continue its rise. But according to a new survey from Social Tables, 24 percent of respondents predict that a reduced event budget will be the biggest challenge they face in 2017. Planners are anticipating taking on more events with shrinking budgets.

biggest-challenge-facing-event-planners

Every planner knows that the size of a budget can mean the difference between a spectacular event and a lackluster one. A tiny budget can force planners to get creative and think outside the box, but it can also mean being forced to choose between the perfect venue and a tolerable one.

So what’s a planner to do? Social Tables offers these and other strategies to prove ROI and get the right-size budget for your event.

1. Ask! It seems obvious, but many professionals struggle to initiate money talks. You know exactly what you need, so it’s time to set a date, make an appointment and come prepared with data and reports to back up your argument. Clearly communicate what you need, and you may be surprised at the outcome.

2. Do your research. As the saying goes, knowledge is power. Find out what’s going on with the budgets in other departments; is the company cutting back on events while spending more on other things? Also, get an idea of what’s happening in the rest of the industry. Are other planners facing the same budgetary issues as you? Is demand for meetings expected to grow? Knowing what to expect will give you more leverage at the negotiating table.

3. Don’t forget the data. As we’re seeing more and more, data is king. That’s why it’s important for planners to find ways to measure and quantify their results. There are many new event technology tools that enable corporate meeting planners to analyze event success, attendee engagement and ROI in quantifiable ways. These metrics will be crucial to support your decisions and budget requests.

4. Predict the future. Identify trends in your events, as well as across the industry, and you should be able to accurately set goals for the upcoming year. Having clear and informed goals will help planners design long-term strategies and make smart decisions for their events—and the size of their budget.

5. Demonstrate value. Other departments in your company might not understand how they can benefit from corporate meetings, but you can easily get them on your side. You can use a casual “lunch and learn” session to share your recent successes, get colleagues’ feedback and show them what they can gain from these events.

6. Explain why. It will be much easier to get the resources you need if you can clearly show why you need them. Break down your reasons into specific categories. Explain that email marketing boosts registration rates, so your team needs additional training to make the most of this technology. If you want to invest in event technology, show them exactly how event check-in apps will streamline attendee experiences and cut down on the manpower needed at events.

7. Focus on your strengths. With many planners experiencing more demands on their time than ever, it can be hard to juggle all of the tasks that need to get done. To maintain your focus, identify your team’s strengths, along with any tasks that should be outsourced or eliminated.

For more tips on negotiating event budgets, as well as other valuable industry insights, see Social Tables’ Events Budget Report.