Executing Site Tours to Impress, a Planner’s Perspective

One of my favorite parts of meeting planning is finding the perfect venue for my program! But sometimes, especially post-Covid, it can be difficult for me to find that “perfect” venue, as we deal with more frequent, smaller meetings, staffing challenges, and tight deadlines. So, what can you do to make your property stand out and get me to sign that contract?

Let me tell you 5 key ways a site visit can make your venue go from a “maybe” to a wet signature!

ONE
If I am staying at your property, having my room ready, especially if I have just flown international, is the first grand gesture. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to put my bags down, wash my face, and just breathe.

Post-Covid Pointer: What, you ask, can you do post Covid, when your property may not have a fully staffed housekeeping department yet, and the room isn’t ready? Offer to check my bags, give me a bottle of water, space to sit and catch up on email, and the recommendation of a nearby coffee shop or restaurant.

Bonus Points: Call me old fashioned, but I love a hand written note welcoming me!

TWO
Checking in is the 1^st opportunity to make a good impression. Having your guest services/registration desk fully staffed to ensure a quick and pleasant transaction, gives me the confidence that your staff communicates well cross-functionally, and that my guests will not only feel welcomed, but also anticipated.

Post Covid Pointer: So, you are having front desk staffing challenges? Have your sales manager or property manager greet me with a welcome envelope with my room keys.

Bonus Points: If the front desk already knows my name already. (Small gesture, but MIGHTY impression!

THREE
Sometimes when walking a space, I realize that the ballroom isn’t what I originally thought was ”ideal”; whether it’s the size, shape, location of egress, or simply the carpet. Instead of letting me walk out of that room, hoping the next venue is the “Perfect Match”, have your Conference Services Manager already tagging along. As a salesperson, one of your best assets is your CSM! A good CSM can sell me on a property that normally I would not consider, simply by offering me several creative options for my program, and have me rethinking the space and imagining my attendees in the space.

Post Covid Pointer: If your venue hasn’t yet had those renovations that it needs, make sure that everything is clean and polished. Nothing says “ick” more than a hand smudged elevator door that hasn’t been cleaned in weeks!

Bonus Points: Send me a few pictures of the space reimagined several ways from past programs you have hosted there.

FOUR
I’m not just purchasing a venue, I’m purchasing an experience for my attendees. Give your team the opportunity to shine! If we are chatting in the cocktail lounge, have the bartender whip me up a special mocktail. If we are having lunch, have the chef pop on by the table, and let me know about how you source fresh and local. If I am touring multiple properties with the local CVB, have them show me the things that make the location a fun and interesting place to be.

Post Covid Pointer: Have our logo/company name on the digital signage in the hotel, welcoming us (free and easy!)

Bonus Points: Have the mocktail be in our company color(s). Ask your chef to present healthy and diverse food options at lunch. Have the tour driver stop at a popular outdoor spot to stretch our legs and take pictures.

FIVE
Remember to have fun with it! Bottom line, we are all human, and in this industry, connections are a giant percentage of the business we do! Try to find a common interest we have, so that over lunch we can chat about something other than floor plans. Let’s have a few laughs and create that trust and connection between each other that will set you apart from the others.

Post Covid Pointer: Folks want to meet face to face again! Over Covid, we used outdoor spaces to create opportunities for meeting, where indoor options went away. This created more of a lean to those natural sittings. Give us some on-property ideas for outdoor gatherings. If your property doesn’t have the space or location, show us somewhere nearby that does, or bring the outdoors in which several green installations.

Bonus Points: “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken” – Oscar Wilde