Once you have made the decision to invest your time and money in a meeting or conference, make sure you are in good hands.
RDL can make it happen for you! Our experienced staff is dedicated to working closely with our clients, maintaining open communication, and assuring that the resulting conference reflects your agenda.
Our team strives to provide the most current advice and expertise in planning highly successful, budget-conscious, and worry-free events. We customize our services to match your needs. Whether you need assistance in only a few areas or for your entire event from start to finish, we will work with you to ensure you get the support you need to create a successful event.
Here are some of the many services we offer:
Pre-Event Consulting
Beginning with event
visualization, RDL can work with you to develop the concept of the event,
including identifying the needs of your audience and your desired outcomes. These steps are the beginning
of your road to a successful event:
- Event Conceptualization
- Budget Development
- Timeline Development
- Request for Proposal Development
- Call for Speakers/Abstracts
- Site Selection and Contract Negotiation
- Vendor Identification and Negotiations
Event Production
The next step on your journey involves bringing all of the pieces together. RDL will manage all of those individual
elements of your meeting, allowing your team to concentrate on the content. Here are some of the major pieces that
we can manage for you:
- Materials Development (conference program, registration forms, etc.)
- Speaker Management
- Exhibitor/Vendor Management
- Registration (online registration is available through our own, customizable site)
- Food & Beverage Coordination
- Travel/Lodging Arrangements
- Audiovisual Coordination
- Financial Management
On-Site Management
RDL staff is on-site to assure the smooth execution of your vision. We worry about these details so you don't have to:
- Site Liaison
- VIP Assistance
- Registration/Check-In
- Signage
- Distribution of Conference Materials
- Room Monitoring/Collecting Evaluations
Post-Event Follow-up
How well did the event do in
fulfilling your vision? Once your event is completed, we work with you to evaluate its success and build a foundation for the future. Follow-up items include:
- Invoice Review and Approval for Payment
- Collate and Summarize Evaluations
- Final Registration Reports
- Oversee Return of Conference Materials
- Summary of Event Details (for building your Event History)
- Finalize Budget Tracking and Accounting
- Compilation of "Lessons Learned"
- Debriefing Consultation and RDL's "Hallway Report"
Frequently Asked Questions
Click on a question to see its answer.
Meeting Planning is easy and anyone can do it; why should I pay someone to do it?
- The time and energy that goes into planning the content of a meeting or conference is all consuming in itself. We can guide you through the planning process and handle all of the logistical details such as researching and locating a site for the event, locating vendors, following up with speakers regarding the logistics of their presentation, managing pre-registration and on-site registration, and all the other details required for a successful event.
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You have a goal and a vision for the outcome of your event. We have the expertise to bring all the pieces together that will bring that vision to life.
- We believe that the content should be your focus. We will focus on the framework around the content.
- We ensure that the location; the registration process, the food functions, the vendors, the special needs of attendees, and any on-site issues are all managed seamlessly.
What if I don't need a full service planner? I only need some of the services provided by a planner. Can you still help?
- As a full service planner we have the expertise and ability to plan your event from your initial concept to the successful completion. We know how to do all the pieces that go into planning a successful event and can pull any one piece or series of pieces to fit your needs.
- What part of planning for a meeting or conference do you dislike the most? What part of the event is the greatest challenge for you or your organization? You can negotiate with us to just do the portion or portions of the event that will make the biggest difference to you in terms of time and effort. We can take on those elements and ensure that they mesh cleanly with the pieces you choose to retain.
Does hiring a meeting planner mean I lose control of what goes on in the planning and execution of my meeting?
- Once a planner is brought in to assist in the logistical planning of your meeting, they become a member of your conference planning team.
- The scope of work agreed upon between you and the planner delineates the parameters within which the planner will work.
- Our planner's job is to aid and guide you through the process of producing a successful meeting. You determine your level of involvement at each step.
How is a meeting planner paid?
- We charge a fixed rate for the services to be provided based on the scope of work that you have approved. You know up front what the cost of our services will be so there are no surprises. Should you find you need us to do additional work, we will do a revision to the original quote based on an hourly or project rate.
- When we do site selection for a large event, hotels will often compensate us through a fee arrangement between the hotel and RDL. The only charge to you would be RDL travel expenses incurred.
How do I justify the cost of a meeting planner?
- Using your existing staff often means overtime, long days, challenges outside someone's area of expertise, and the overwhelming frustration of balancing multiple demands. Often mistakes are made that can result in unanticipated costs. By hiring a third party planner you are not paying someone's salary and benefits to do work that interferes with their normal work assignment.
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The fee for the meeting planner can be absorbed in other ways.
- The planner can work with you to determine the actual hard costs of the event and show you how the fee for registration can be structured to absorb some or all of the cost of the planner's fee.
- Depending on the size of the events, some or all of the costs of the planner can be deferred through commissions from the hotels where your event is held.
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A professional meeting planner is an invaluable addition to your team.
- A planner will work with you on your budget and can recommend ways to increase revenue or save money.
- A planner can get bids, research vendors, evaluate proposals and make recommendations which save time and money for you.
- All the challenges of registering attendees prior to the conference, as well as on-site, are managed efficiently and effectively.
- The goal of the planner is to ensure that the entire experience for both you and the attendees is exceptional.