Image: Nikki To
Venue: Opera Bar
Yesterday in NSW, Australia, it was announced by our premier that as of next Monday 7th December 2020 (also my birthday) the 1 person per 4sqm rule be lowered to 1 person per 2sqm. Another step in the right direction for Hospitality as Covid19 eases in Australia, and also another bonus for Aussies just before Christmas.
As much as we're all cheering getting one step closer to normality this summer before Christmas, what does this mean for Venues, Event Managers, Sales Teams & Wedding Planners? Well for starters, this definitely means an increase in revenue over this time, however, it will be the structure of how you manage the operation of this shift, that will determine the success.
There are ways you can leverage this increase in capacities, and I'm here to give you 5 tips to ensure the success of the shift.
Firstly, what are the new regulations as of Monday 7th December 2020?
Courtesy of our NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian
And how can we use this to ensure utmost success in our venues over Summer?
1. Taking some time to put your strategy in place for Christmas parties
Time for a regroup and work together to discuss all upcoming events & reservations,
playing a bit of Tetris, and putting them into the newly available space. If you've had to previously add on extra space for Christmas Events to ensure they are Covid Safe, you can now bring them back to the smaller size in your venue. Yep, this means updating your Floor Plans, BEOs, and communicating the changes internally. At the same time, recording your
newly available spaces to either increase the numbers of your current bookings or get ready to sell for new group bookings.
2. Be proactive with your Events & Weddings clients from January 2021
Let your current clients know that they're loved by proactively contacting them before your
phone starts to ring off the hook, and your inbox starts to overflow. Send a group bcc email
to each confirmed event who will be affected by these changes. Organise your emails to go
to a group of each event month: January Events, February Events and so on. Talk about the
new ease of restrictions and that you're excited to get back to all of them, however,
December will take precedence for response time and you will arrange a phone meeeting
with them as soon as possible.
3. Use Honesty & Integrity
This is not a time to give false pretenses about response times to current clients & new
enquiries. Use honestly about the level of changes that need to be made and integrity,
ensuring that their event will certainly be looked after in due course. Don't start getting
excited and oversell a venue space - be sure you have the correct new capacities confirmed
before you start contacting your Clients.
4. Market your new available spaces and timeslots
You've done the hard work in point number 1 - now's the time to work with the Marketing
team to provoke some exposure around the new spaces you have available for Exclusive
Use. Time to generate some more guaranteed revenue for your venue.
5. Educate your team & reward your Event staff
Organise a staff meeting on Monday 7th December AEST (or if you're international, use all of
these strategies when your restrictions ease). Ensure everyone is aware of the new
capacities and what to say to the clients who are walking through the door. As for your
Events & Weddings teams, they're going to be doing the hard yards over the coming weeks
(even more so than usual peak season) There'll be floorplan changes, increases numbers,
internal communications and updates, new dietaries etc. Ensure they're ready for the work
but perhaps organise a reward for their hard work during all of these changes. It's definitely
a time to celebrate for sure, but let's acknowledge the people behind the scenes who are
dealing with changes and making sure the internal and external communications are taking
place.
LET'S CELEBRATE WITH STRATEGY
Bree Wailes