Businesses don't seem to be holding back money when proposing special event budgets, but they are asking one very direct question of their planners: "How much high-quality bang can I get for my bucks?"
After September 11, 2001, many companies felt it was inappropriate to celebrate, and many others were also unsure how the economic upset would affect their bottom line, so they stayed away from big events. But, now, three years later, most companies have financially weathered the storm and corporate events are beginning to make a comeback.
"The mood of our country is to be very cautious," says Patti Coons of Patti Coons Creative, "but people are still eager to get out and enjoy themselves. Clients are spending wisely. They're acutely aware of where their money is going." Coons also noted that her clients are back to doing full programs and she hasn't really seen a difference in spending over the last four years.
Mona S. Meretsky, president of COMCOR Event and Meeting Production, says, "People are starting to do events again, but they are not spending as much on glitter and glam. The frills aren't what they used to be."
Coons agrees and adds: "In the mid-90's, spending was pretty much a free-for-all before the dot-com downfall. Money was flowing like water. Companies were offering so much money, you almost couldn't spend it all."
It seems a strange problem to have—too much money and no place to spend it. But sometimes smaller budgets can and do inspire creativity and help to spark the imagination.
Coons also noted that sometimes hiring expensive talent does not mean more entertainment for attendees. She said that a performance from a Top 40 artist, like Beyoncé, for example, may make an event appear more like dinner theater, whereas a more affordable act, like the Beach Boys, would get guests on the dance floor.
Changing Spending Habits
Judy Parker, the event and marketing coordinator for the West Pasco Chamber of Commerce, claims her clients are not spending less money, but are spending the dollars they budget more carefully and in different ways.
She explains that, recently, dollars for events are coming from company advertising budgets instead of marketing or special events budgets. "The principal officers of companies are looking for advertising dollars," she said. "When they give money, they want to know what their return on investment is going to be."
Many of Parker's clients are from the finance industry, where funding priorities have shifted significantly. She says that bank presidents used to have more money set aside for sponsorships and less money set aside for advertising. However, she said she thinks the trend is changing: "[They realized] it is a lot better to give a lot of money to one project instead of a little money to different projects. Now, more banks are spending their advertising money to promote events that will help out the community. But they also want to make sure their backing is well publicized. I've been asked, 'How many commercials are you going to run? How many ads will my name appear [in]?' The guys at the top want to know what they are getting out of this."
As a result of the devastating events of September 11, Coons said the one change she has seen with regard to budgeting has been an increase in security measures. Plus, the added expense of child care or entertainment for families has also come into play, since companies began to realize that families didn't want to spend time apart, especially for a work-related conference.
However, Coons says the biggest expense for multiple-day events still remains food and beverage. Meretsky says that she sees companies spending a lot of money on audiovisual equipment. However, she adds, "When I suggest really fun entertainment or really beautiful decor, they don't want to spend money. [Events are] not as elaborate as before."
Yet some industries have bounced back—or have never truly been affected at all. Pharmaceutical companies and law firms are two good examples. The event planner for Greenberg Traurig explained that her budget has not changed, nor have her spending habits. While she did not offer much more information, she was quite clear in explaining that most all of the events are held in hotels and resorts, and executed in the same manner they always have been.
And the same holds true for nonprofit organizations such as the University of Miami, which, according to the university's event planner, Anita Mattner, has never had a big budget to work with. "Our budget has not changed, nor have the type of events we've historically been expected to create," she explains. "We are asked to put on high-end, top-of-the-line events with next to nothing budgets. And we do this consistently. The secret is great negotiating skills. Due to the volume of business we give to our vendors, we do have some leverage, and we utilize this every time we negotiate a contract."
Resources Well Spent
From the event planner's point of view, it seems the biggest investment is time spent with customers. "Clients are being very cautious," Coons says. "We spend hours and hours with clients on what their visions and their goals are."
Meretsky has found a way to deal with limited budgets, while still getting across her idea of what the event should encompass. "I give them what they say they want, then include … a laundry list of options," she says. "I don't include extras in the initial package." More often than not, she finds clients elect the options because they feel more in control of their spending.
Karen Farrington of Suncoast Meetings and Events says she noticed clients were coming to her with tighter budgets post-September 11. "People were willing to spend money, but they asked 'What is the ROI?'" Farrington said. "They want to make sure they get the end result but were not wasteful."
She said companies were being more conservative not only with regard to spending, but also with regard to their corporate image: "They don't want to seem too lavish [in front of] corporate clients and stockholders. They want to appear fiscally responsible."
These companies, she says, are also being more selective with regard to who reaps the benefits of the events. "These days, you'll want to make sure you have qualified clients who will really do business with your company. [Companies] are more concerned that they are entertaining qualified people with a solid piece of their business."
Meretsky said the most important part of any event is what the attendees take back with them and what they remember. She said she feels this can be accomplished within strict budget guidelines.
An example would be the event she planned for GE Capital in support of the theme "Taking Care of Business." Meretsky arranged to have the company's employees build a Habitat for Humanity home, then followed it up with a surprise block party for the employees, the new residents, and their neighbors. "Nobody knew [about the party] until the end of the day," she said. "They thought they were going back to their hotel for dinner."
Instead, she set up a tent and a boom box and let everyone hang out in the street. This kept costs down, but also provided an opportunity to build community goodwill. At the end of the day, the employees felt good about their efforts, the community had a positive image of GE Capital, and the filmed footage of the day was used in subsequent company events.
"When I priced out the cost of doing a quality teambuilding program, this cost less," Meretsky said. "And they felt good about it."
Meretsky says she often suggests that companies use their limited funds resourcefully to achieve many layers of good use. Once, she served fortune cookies at a charity dinner with a message stating that, in lieu of a traditional dessert, the money was donated to a local food bank. And while this did not cut her budget, it did help boost the company in the eyes of the community. Other times, she has suggested using flowering plants as centerpieces, which not only often cost less than traditional floral arrangements, but can later be donated to the city. The same holds true for using fresh fruits and vegetables in centerpieces, which without damage from glues or puncture holes, could be donated to a local homeless shelter, especially around the holidays. That, in the eyes of corporations, is money well spent.
—Riki Altman
