Harrogate International Centre, has reported a growing trend for business contracting with shorter lead times.
In the last 6 months, the venue has seen a rise in the number of events booked within 6-8 weeks of the event being held. Angus Houston, director at HIC, believes shorter lead times should not been seen as a major hurdle for venues but as an opportunity to introduce higher standards of customer service to ensure events always run smoothly.
Angus Houston, director at HIC said:
While we would all like conferences, exhibitions or corporate events to be booked and confirmed months in advance we are facing up to the fact that many more bookings are now being made at the last minute. The economy is still uncertain and budgets are being heavily scrutinised so organisers and businesses are looking at ways they can get best value for money. For some this means leaving the decision on the venue until the last possible minute in an attempt to get a better deal. This is simply a change in market forces, and we have positioned ourselves to be able to respond.
Short lead times do leave less time for event teams to prepare but it emphasises the need for efficiency. If you have the right people in place you can react quickly and effectively to bookings made at short notice. Whatever the length of lead time – whether it is a couple of months or just a few weeks – we are focused on providing a quality service. HIC operates the best delivery levels to all our clients and works in partnership with them to ensure an event exceeds their expectations. This approach helps build better relationships with customers and is vital to enhancing the visitor and destination experience.
