Conference Venues Requirements

October 11, 2010 – Can you imagine what would happen if you turned up to speak at a conference and your Internet hookup isn’t ready? Also, what if you are presenting your PowerPoint and the screen is not working? Have you ever ended up in any of these situations? I was unlucky enough to have this happen, but we will get to that later.

Conference and meeting venues are normally there to provide any type of arrangement that you could possibly need. From lighting, high-tech audio, audiovisual equipments needs, air conditioning for your event, and catering to serve as many as 1000 meals to as little as 50 meals. But if they are not aware of what you want, they cannot provide them for you.

It might seem obvious, but if the right planning is often not given as much attention as it should be. There are so many things that have to be done ahead of time. First, you really need one specific person or perhaps a team that takes responsibility to check the requirements and then recheck them, make detailed arrangements and obtain the final go-ahead from the management team.

The five things you cannot live without at an Edinburgh conference venue are:

Rooms with lots of natural lighting: The natural type of light gives the conference attendees more energy and keeps them focused on what they are listening to.

The right air conditioning: If it is too hot, they will get sleepy; if it is too cold, they will be uncomfortable and not able to pay attention.

Plenty of space: If you are crowded into a small room, regardless of whether it is just right on air and light, this will be too uncomfortable for many people. Everyone likes to have a certain amount of space and crowding them into a tiny one will simply take away from your event.

The proper equipment: If you do not have a detailed list of all your equipment needs, you will either not have something or too many of the same things you do not need. Make sure there is good Internet hookup, lighting, laser pointers, and maybe some water and snacks.

Location: Restroom facilities should be nearby so that quick breaks can be taken at regular intervals. There should be plenty of parking spaces in the area so there is not a lengthy walk involved in getting to the registration area.

There is nothing more important than getting to the venue and making sure that everything is ready to go for you. It is embarrassing and also can ruin your whole presentation not only for you, but for your listeners.

I was the guest speaker once at an event where I needed a computer to hook up to certain web pages. The person who arranged the conference had not mentioned this detail to the conference venue people, and it was a twenty minute delay while we waited for it to be done. Of course, the conference center got some bad press for this, but so unfortunately, did I.

 

 

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