Planning a business event for 2022? Experts share top ten venue considerations

As 2022 begins and workers are returning to the office, search insight reveals a 708% increase in interest for the term ‘business event’¹. There are many factors to consider when organising an event, the most important being the venue. 

With this in mind and following a 157% increase in interest for the search term ‘event venue’ in the past 12 months², we share ten top tips to choosing the perfect venue for your event:

One of the most important considerations when planning and booking a business event is your budget. Venues vary in cost depending on their location, size, capacity and facilities. This requires you to understand what your venue needs are and how many delegates you expect to be hosting on the day. 

Rooms can also vary in price, and large venues often have separate rooms for different types of events, including the meeting room, conference spaces or party rooms. The area you use would be dependent on your guest number so make sure you have at least a ballpark figure to guide you.

Now that more business events are face-to-face, they need to be in an accessible location. If the event is for local attendees, consider booking a venue close to your attendee’s homes or place of work. Alternatively, if your event is on a national level, the best location would be central, somewhere close to train stations, bus stops or airports. 

Another consideration is parking. Does the venue have valet parking, a car park or nearby free parking? This is essential to ensure your guests can attend and be on time for the event.

Event organisers must prioritise the accessibility of the event venue, ensuring that every guest can attend without being held back by any form of disability. This may include the venue having a lift or ramp option to enter the venue space.

For attendees with hearing or visual impairments, implementing audio and visual solutions throughout the venue will ensure inclusivity for all guests.

Following a 2400% increase in interest for the search term ‘hybrid event’ in the past 12 months³, it’s essential for businesses to ensure virtual attendance is still an option. Whilst some venues may already have the equipment to accommodate this, there is also the option of hiring event support.

As well as having the equipment available, the venue must have a good wifi and signal range. Otherwise, the event may glitch and cause problems for guests tuning in from home.

Considering the capacity of the venue is crucial to ensure that your chosen space can comfortably and legally hold all of the face-to-face attendees. Many venues will be eliminated from the search due to their capacity options. Therefore, finding out the capacity of the venue and the amount of guests you intend to have present before moving ahead with a destination is essential. 

The capacity information is usually available online, allowing you to check before visiting or by having a further meeting.

All venues have alternative options for services and amenities. You must make sure that your venue caters to your requirements. This may include break out rooms, catering services, security, relevant licences or restrictions. Create a list of all your required services and amenities before you begin your venue search and this will help narrow down your options.

Corporate events can often differ in style. Is it going to be a dinner, awards ceremony, conference, panel discussion or presentation? Each of these options requires a different style and decoration. You can check what type of events your venue in question is experienced in, which will allow you to eliminate options that do not meet the requirements.

The venue must have the available space for all of your guests, enough seating and a room layout that allows for the number of attendees. The venue layout can also affect the style of your event.

When booking a venue for your event, conversation about insurance is necessary, ensuring your business and the venue has the correct insurance to be able to hold the corporate event. This can help ensure the safety of your guests, the venue, and business in terms of liability.

When attending a business event, there are often speakers, videos and music playing, which all require good quality sound systems for the guests to get the best experience.  However, usually, the actual building affects the acoustics. For example, low ceilings can cause sound to be louder whilst high ceilings can cause the sound to echo. This should be considered when making a venue decision.

The event host can best negotiate the date by being flexible and discussing options with the venue. Venues often have unfilled spaces that they will want to fill. By giving a couple of available date options, the venue will be more likely to match you with one of your choices.

We are delighted to see such a considerable rise in interest for business events, with face-to-face settings finally becoming the norm again. Alongside these top ten considerations, it’s important to think about event production, as this will influence the lighting, staging and audio you choose, and will subsequently help you decide on which venue is best for you and your event set-up. 

We believe that finding the perfect venue is crucial for your event, however, with so many elements to consider, it can be a difficult decision. By following this step-by-step guide, it will help eliminate any venues unsuitable for your event and will ensure the production of the event runs smoothly. 

Our team of event specialists have a wealth of experience supporting all types of business events from awards dinners to large conferences, sports events, exhibitions, tradeshows and outdoor events. For more information on how we can support you with your upcoming events, please visit our Event Support page.