Do You Make These Common Mistakes When Selecting a Meeting Space?

Research shows that business professionals spend upwards of one-third of their workday in meetings. This equates to over 25 million meetings in the U.S. each day. But just because all this time is spent in meetings doesn’t mean the time is well spent. Indeed, a vast majority of workers feel most meetings are a waste of time. Business executives concur, with two-thirds of them believing the time their teams spend in meetings is wasted.

There are a number of reasons why this is the case—and meeting rooms are one of them. Indeed, selecting the right meeting space plays a pivotal role in determining the success or failure of a meeting.

When selecting a meeting room, business leaders need to account for various factors. A good starting point might be to recount some things that you should avoid when selecting a meeting space.

1. Don't Wait for Your "Future" Meeting Room.

For small businesses with a permanent office space, you should not plan your existing meeting room on the basis of future office space. You must live in the here and now when it comes to your conference room(s). They need to be configured to meet your business requirements and to include the tools needed to make meetings successful. And as your on-site conference room sometimes doesn’t suffice for certain meetings, you should look to on-demand (rented) meeting rooms.

2. Don’t Get Locked into a Permanent Office. 

Growing numbers of small businesses and solopreneurs are concluding that they no longer need permanent, fixed office space to succeed. Long-term, inflexible rental agreements are costly, and in many instances, portions of the space go unused. And when you do run out of space, you’re stuck paying double rent.

3. Don't Use a Coffee Shop

While coffee shops may sometimes be an appropriate meeting venue, they often are not. There is a long list of reasons why that is the case: they are noisy and lack privacy, don’t always have available space, and prove disruptive.

4. Don't Use a Hotel Room

Many business leaders think hotel conference rooms are for hosting meetings. But is that really the case. They cost upwards of 50 percent more than rented (on-demand) meeting rooms. Traffic outside conference rooms sometimes can be quite loud and distractive. Hotels are large facilities, and it often is difficult to locate a specific room—particularly without a lobby greeter. Hotel rooms normally don’t come with business and administrative services—and when they do, the price tag is substantially more than what it costs for those same services in an on-demand conference room.

5. Don't Forget Presentation Tools

Nearly every meeting today relies on digital technology, and this includes presentation tools such as whiteboards and projectors. Sometimes, certain meetings require other presentation tools such as flipcharts, notepads, and video conferencing. As not every meeting room has all of these tools, you need to confirm their availability beforehand.

6. Don't Rely on Words Alone

When previewing a meeting room, no one should rely on a description based on words alone. Rather, if you’re booking an on-demand meeting room, photos and even video is a must to determine if the room meets your requirements. Having booked Davinci Meeting Rooms before, I can attest that the videos and photos are particularly useful—not to mention the ability to vet them a mobile app in addition to a laptop or desktop.

7. Don't Forget Location

The location of your meeting room is also just as important. If you’re hosting an offsite meeting, then you need to account for the commuting distances of your employees. In the case of customer or partner meetings, ensuring the conference room is in a great professional location is important. As not every meeting room location is the same, you need to consider these factors carefully when reserving a meeting room. Relying on an on-demand meeting room provider like Davinci Meeting Rooms that has multiple locations in many cities gives you numerous options from which to choose. And don’t forget that just because a meeting room works for an employee meeting doesn’t mean it works for a customer meeting.

8. Don't Forget Beverages and Food

Bringing in food for your meeting if it is scheduled to extend across breakfast, lunch, or even dinner is something you shouldn’t forget. This also includes beverages and snacks during breaks. A full room of hungry and drowsy meeting participants can inhibit meeting productivity and even outcomes. Removing thoughts about where to get lunch or dinner enables your meeting participants to focus on the meeting presentation or discussion instead of worrying about what they are going to eat. Selecting an on-demand meeting room provider that includes beverage and food catering services with the room is important here.

9. Don't Forget About a Greeter

For some meetings, you need lobby greeters to ensure your attendees have a seamless transition from their arrival to the start of the meeting as well as various questions that may arise during the meeting. This means everything from directing them to the meeting room, to informing them of the facilities layout, to briefing them on the agenda for the day, to answering questions about parking, restaurants, lodging, and more.

 10. Don't Forget Administrative Services

Sometimes, you need more than just a lobby greeter, but rather you need administrative services. Knowing the business requirements associated with your meeting will help you determine what administrative services are required. Possibilities include photocopying, notary services, faxing, mailing, emailing, and collating presentation materials. As not every on-demand meeting room provider has administrative capabilities, this is something you should not forgot to check before booking the meeting room.

About Patrick Spencer

Patrick Spencer (Ph.D.) is the President and Founder of TIRO Communications that helps companies develop, build, and manage content, customer, advocacy, and demand-gen programs. Included in its offerings is TIRO Cognition Insights, a data analytics tool that enables B2C and B2B businesses to pinpoint what their customers and competitors’ customers are saying and to identify corresponding actionable product, services, competitive, sales, and marketing intelligence. LinkedIn Profile: LinkedIn Website: www.tirocommunications.com