Negotiating with hotels can be a daunting task.
But meeting planners should not be intimidated, urges James
Trombino, CAE, executive director and CEO of the Princeton,
N.J.-based Metal Powder Industries Federation. “You should be in
the driver’s seat,” he says. “You’re the one bringing
business.”
Trombino and other seasoned planners offer these points of
advice.
1. Bundle up. Work with the same hotel chain,
individual hotel or rep firm for multiple meetings, and it will
increase your clout. It’s called bundling, and it’s becoming an
increasingly common practice. For better service, make sure the
hotel contact knows you’ll be bringing future business, suggests
Melanie Penoyar, director of marketing and business development for
the Society for Marketing Professional Services in Alexandria,
Va.
2. Call a third party. For larger meetings, or
for a large number of small meetings, a site-selection firm such as
HelmsBriscoe often can secure a great deal relatively quickly. Be
sure the third party directs your search only to cities and
properties you actually are considering; hotels receive countless
requests for proposal that have gone to every large property in the
state.
3. Do your homework. Find out through the
convention and visitors bureau what meetings will be in town over
your dates, offers Vicki Hawarden, director of meetings and
programs for the Bethesda, Md.-based American Association of Blood
Banks. Then call those groups and politely ask what rates they’re
paying. Use that information in your negotiations.
4. Angle for the year-end closeout. Come
December, sales reps will be racing to meet their quotas, vouches
one Orlando-based planner. Ergo, she sends out her requests for proposal in
the fall and conducts site inspections in early December. Hoteliers
are quite flexible when signing on Christmas Eve, she says,
adding, “It puts everybody in the spirit.”
5. Say it up front. In the original RPF, let
the hotel know exactly what you want, with as much detail as
possible. “You can’t hide your goals from the hoteliers,” says
Leila MacFeeley, president of Leila M. & Associates in
Greenland, N.H. “How is a hotel going to give you what you need if
you don’t tell them what you need?”
6. Know what to ask for. Some perks to request
in the RFP, courtesy of Sharon Collins, CMP, director of meetings
for the Kellen Co., an association management firm based in
Atlanta: One-per-40 suite upgrades, complimentary meeting space,
group rates available three days pre- and post-meeting, reduced
menu prices, a free cocktail reception, amenities and free airport
transfers for VIPs, and waived storage charges and handling fees.
The hotel’s willingness to grant concessions will depend on the
meeting’s size.
7. Go for what’s free. Things that don’t cost
the property extra money, like telephone service, high-speed
Internet access and passes to the fitness facilities, can be
relatively easy to obtain, says Brooke Selby, managing partner at
Cambridge, Mass.-based Planning House International.
8. Include deadlines. Add a timeline to the RFP
that specifically delineates when you’re sending it out, a deadline
for the hotel’s response and when you expect to reply with a
decision. “They’re going to know that you stick to your
commitments,” says one planner. “Some of the hotels call me back and
say, ‘Wow, we don’t ever get this from people.’”
9. Tell them price is important. It sounds
obvious, but this simple statement will get the salesperson working
to save you money and might even endear her to you, according to
Brooke Selby.
“Some planners spend a lot of time hashing over the fine points
of a contract. Years before the meeting, they poison the well.”
10. Provide a profile. Describe your company
and give stats on its profits and net worth. If your company or
your meeting’s attendees might book future meetings, or if the
group is high-profile, the property might be more eager to snag
your business.
11. Major in history. From year to year, keep
track of your room pickup, the master bill and spending on any
ancillary events at the hotel that aren’t included in the master
bill, such as a vendor’s hospitality suite. Consistency in these
areas will be encouraging. “Hotels get inundated with RFPs and
phone calls,” says a seasoned independent planner. “Your history will really tell them
that you’re serious, and they might give you the business
first.”
12. Don’t make the first move. Let the hotel
make an offer before you start discussing rates, suggests George G.
Fenich, Ph.D., meetings educator at the University of New Orleans,
in his new book, Meetings, Expositions, Events and Conventions
(Prentice Hall Pearson). Better to give a general budget range and
see how the hotel divvies it up.
13. Bend on the date to drop the rate. If you
don’t have to meet in peak season or Monday through Wednesday
(weekends for resorts), don’t.
14. Don’t haggle. You’ll only make enemies if
you keep adding demands halfway through the negotiation process, or
if you penny-pinch. “Some planners spend a lot of time hashing over
the fine points of a contract,” says Frank Wilton, CAE, vice
president of the Washington, D.C.-based association AdvaMed. “Years
before the meeting, they poison the well.” Put all requests in the
original RFP, and if the rate comes back too high, try to settle on
something acceptable without nickel-and-diming.
15. Don’t get angry. “Emotions do tend to take
over,” says Fenich. “If either party starts to yell and scream,
everybody will lose sight of the point.”
16. Go up the ladder. If you don’t feel
comfortable with the salesperson you’re dealing with, ask to speak
with the director of sales, says Wilton.
17. Do read between the lines. Instead of being
told your business isn’t right for the hotel, you will see
unforgivably high rates and an unwillingness to negotiate, says
Trombino. Take the hint and try a different property.
18. Take your time. Don’t let a salesperson
rush you into signing something. If they’d rather sell the space to
another client, let them. There’s always another hotel. As one veteran planner points out, “Sometimes they’re bluffing.”
19. Always have a backup. Once you’ve made a
choice, don’t be too quick to turn down all the other hotels on
your list. Wait until you have a signed contract to break the
news.
20. Be willing to back out. If the contract
phase isn’t going well and you don’t have a backup hotel nearby,
don't be afraid to change cities. When one planner didn’t find any
space during a peak period in Washington, D.C., her client moved the
meeting to New Orleans. “There are always options out there,” she
says.
xxx