Planning 101’s
No matter where you are in the planning process for your upcoming program, we thought you could use some ideas of what to discuss with your vendor of choice. Here are some of our top 10 tools & priceless pieces of advice.
Six or more weeks prior to the meeting
#1 Pick a date that works best for your speakers and team members. Make sure to review the calendar to ensure that the date doesn’t fall over any holidays.
#2 Determine the start and end times of the meeting, and if you will require a separate room for meals and or breakouts. This is important to know when venue sourcing.
#3 Work on an invitation that will get people’s attention by using your companies branding for added visuals. Cadence can also assist you with specific meeting graphics based on the content of your program. Just ask us how we can help!
#4 We suggest using email as your first line of communication. Most physicians don’t have time to read through their physical mail, and faxes tend to get ignored.
#5 Ensure confirmations go out as soon as possible so the attendee has all the information they need to block out their calendar and book any travel arrangements necessary.
#6 Submit your rooming list, menu, AV requirements and final meeting details to the hotel. Make sure to include a final head count.
One week prior to the meeting
#7 Ensure all attendees receive a final confirmation with all the meeting/travel details including: ground transportation, hotel parking, flight arrival & departure details, hotel confirmation numbers and contact information for them to be able to reach someone in the event they are having a travel issue.
#8 Finalize Meeting Agenda.
#9 Print all meeting handouts ahead of time when possible.
#10 Partner with a great vendor like Cadence Research, to ensure that your next meeting is a great success!
Hotel Do’s & Don’ts
☐ Make sure that the hotel cannot move the meeting room location without your prior written consent. One way to ensure this is by having the hotel list the names of the meeting rooms on the contract.
☐ Ensure that your sleeping room rate is effective three days prior and post meeting. In the event you have a guest that wants to stay over or come in early.
☐ Confirm there is a “Force Majeure” clause in your contract to protect you against acts of God, war or terrorism.
☐ A “No Walk Clause” – is also a necessity when signing a contract. You want to make sure the hotel cannot walk any of your guests to another hotel.
We hope you found this to be helpful, these are just a few key items to remember when planning a meeting. Cadence Research & Consulting has more thorough checklists for each and every program, and we would appreciate the opportunity to plan your next program. Please let us know how we can help YOU to ensure that your next meeting is an amazing success!
