Three Questions We Wish Every Client Asked Before Booking a Venue
After 35 years of finding venues, we’ve realised something.
Most clients ask us the same questions.
“Is it available?”
“How much does it cost?”
“What’s included?”
They’re sensible questions—but they’re not the questions that usually determine whether an event is a success.
If there are three questions we wish every organiser asked before booking, they’re these.
1. What do we want people to remember?
Nobody remembers the square footage of a room.
They remember how the event made them feel.
Was it easy to network?
Did everything run smoothly?
Did the venue reflect the company?
The answer to this question often changes the shortlist completely.
2. What will the guest experience actually be like?
When we visit venues, we’re not just looking at meeting rooms.
We’re imagining the delegate journey.
Where do people arrive?
Will they queue for coffee?
Can they find the breakout rooms?
Sometimes a less glamorous venue delivers a much better experience simply because it flows naturally.
3. If something changes, how will the venue respond?
Guest numbers increase.
Speakers cancel.
The weather changes.
Technology fails.
The venues we recommend most often aren’t necessarily the fanciest—they’re the ones with teams who calmly solve problems without anyone noticing.
That’s invaluable.
Our notebook
One thing we’ve learnt over the years is this:
The best venue isn’t the one that impresses people when they walk in. It’s the one they stop noticing because everything simply works.
That’s usually the venue people remember most positively.
— Carrie Larwood, Managing Director, Function Fixers