The sporting passion which is engulfing the UK in 2012 has already had a major impact on event bookings. Music festivals have been cancelled because they can’t find support facilities such as toilets, transport and stewards. Established exhibitions have widened their horizons to find new homes, as many of the country’s large venues are taken up supporting the Olympic teams.

Indeed, we’ve seen regular June and July conferences and exhibitions re-scheduled to avoid clashes. Particularly, events which would usually be hosted in London are now looking for alternative venues outside the capital.

However, amidst all this upheaval, there are plenty of opportunities to win business and build new relationships for venues and agencies which are prepared to be creative and flexible. Clients still want to get the most ‘bang for their buck’, so venues and agencies which offer inspiring ideas while keeping to tight budgets will stand themselves in good stead.

2012 is a fantastic opportunity to get in front of audiences who would normally be tied into long term contracts, to demonstrate value and highlight creative ideas. The relationships which develop from delivering successfully on event briefs in 2012 will last for years to come. So, forgo the Olympic ticket and start planning for new possibilities! 

For more information about the Millbrook Events team, please contact Kevin Leaver on +44 (0) 1525 408 495 or email kevin.leaver@millbrook.co.uk

I spend a considerable amount of time promoting our venues to potential agency clients and the one question I always ask is: “How do you actually search for venues once you have the brief?”

Obviously, this is the Holy Grail that all venue marketeers are forever seeking! My perception, based on these conversations, is that the manner in which we search for venues has changed dramatically over recent years. The hefty tomes with their withered post-it notes marking the old favourites, which used to sit on agency bookshelves for 12 months listing all the venues of note, have been replaced by online directories and search engines.

If you are looking for a venue for an event, it is now possible to put your requirements into any one of a number of online forms and contact multiple venues at once – putting the onus on the venue to come back to you if they want your business, rather than the other way round.

But what does this mean for venues?

If nothing else, we need to adapt and embrace the opportunities that new technologies offer. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of venue directories, listing sites and portals out there. And, going back to marketing basics, we need to clarify what we’re offering and where our customers will be looking. There is no point paying to be on a directory specialising in weddings if you don’t have a wedding licence; no reason to focus on conference listings if your venue isn’t big enough.

But then, having made sure that the portals you are considering are relevant how do you decide which ones are right for you? Some of the claims regarding visitor numbers and page views made by some venue finding sites are a little hard to believe, so how do you sort the good from the bad? 

One strategy you may wish to employ is to ask for a three month trial period – not free of charge, but offer to pay for the remainder of the year at the end of the three months if the site has performed as claimed. If the site owners have confidence in their product, then they should be happy to do this. If they refuse . . . well that should tell you something!

Secondly, we need to be clear in our own promotions. Website, advertising, networking, social media – all of it needs to be consistent and on message. The information that clients will be looking for needs to be accessible and understandable. For example, Millbrook Events has recently updated its website based on client feedback about the features which are useful.  

Finally, we need to keep delivering on our promises. It isn’t rocket science. The venues which succeed are those which consistently deliver ‘wow’ events for clients, within agreed timescales and budgets. Getting it right first time, every time, will keep clients coming back again and again.

And, what about those out of date venue directories on the book shelf? Although not quite on a par with the diplodocus, it might be time to dust them off and put them out with the recycling!

For more information about the Millbrook Events team, please contact Kevin Leaver on +44 (0) 1525 408 495 or email kevin.leaver@millbrook.co.uk

Visitors to the Millbrook Events stand (V5) will be given the opportunity to win one of two 16GB Apple iPad2s with wi-fi and 3G connectivity as part of a business card prize draw which will take place on each evening of the show. Millbrook Events will also be sponsoring the show’s café area and presenting a session on education in the events industry alongside Bournemouth University and Vauxhall in the seminar theatre. The event innovation of the year category at the first-ever Event Production Awards, which takes place at the London Hilton on Park Lane on 1st February 2012, will also be sponsored by Millbrook Events.

Kevin Leaver, head of events at Millbrook Events, said: “We’re delighted to be involved in this new venture. We’ve always focused heavily on the production value of our venues at Millbrook and feel that the combination of The Event Production Show and The UK Venue Show will give us a great opportunity to showcase our distinctive offering to exactly the right audience. We’re hoping the mixture of stand, sponsorships and seminar programme will allow us to demonstrate just how simple it is to organise an event at Millbrook which will truly stand out from the crowd.”

On offer at Millbrook are four purpose-built, prestigious and distinctive venues, set within 700 acres of prime countryside at the heart of Millbrook Proving Ground’s test tracks. The four venues, Concept 1, Concept 2, Pod, and Cubo, provide a completely blank canvas for conferences, exhibitions and meetings, with capacities ranging from 30 delegates to 1,250 delegates.

The UK Venue Show has been created by Ocean Media to complement the existing Event Production Show (EPS), following feedback from previous EPS attendees. The organisers anticipate hosting over 250 exhibitors and 4,000 delegates over two days across both shows.

Kevin Leaver, head of events at Millbrook, said: “At Millbrook, our venues are production led and we have been looking for some time for the right opportunity to reach the kind of audience that that this new event will offer, by building on the already successful Event Production Show.

“We feel that the UK Venue Show fills a gap in the market, left by the loss of some exhibitions and significant changes to others. We are really looking forward to working with Ocean Media on this exciting new event and believe that this show will offer us a significant ROI.”

The UK Venue Show has been created by Ocean Media to complement the existing Event Production Show (EPS), following feedback from previous EPS attendees. The organisers anticipate hosting over 250 exhibitors and 5,000 delegates over two days for the combined offering.

Tanya Cohen, event director at Ocean Media commented: “I am truly excited about the launch of the UK Venue Show. The synergy of running alongside the Event Production Show, staying in the west of London and maintaining the strength of the UK domestic market is fitting for the future of the UK events industry.

“It is also great news for the show that we’ve got exhibitors of the calibre of Millbrook signing up so early in the process. I’ve worked with the team at Millbrook over a number of years and am delighted to have them on board as the first exhibitor to sign up for the show.”

In addition to their elaborate exhibition stand, Millbrook Events will also be sponsoring the events Hospitality Area and the Event Innovation of the Year Award at the EPS awards dinner, as well as conducting a seminar on Education & the Events Industry.

For more information on Millbrook Events or to find out how you can visit the team on Stand V5 at the UK Venue Show, please contact us or request a call back.

Exhibitions are a great way of getting your business or product in front of the exact audience you want to connect with. Last week, we did precisely this and travelled down to London for the Square Meal Venues & Events exhibition, to showcase our new Millbrook Events website and the business in general. With a footfall of around 8,000 at a central London location, it was a fantastic opportunity to meet with event organisers and communicate the benefits of holding events at Millbrook.

So, you’ve paid for your space, worked out the message you want to communicate and who you want to communicate it to, designed your stand, done all your pre-event marketing and now… “It’s Showtime”.

This is where things start to unravel. It’s certainly not cheap to exhibit at these events – and for good reason – so it’s such a shame to see even the best laid plans negated by a bad performance on stand. I see the same behaviours time after time – staff eating and drinking on untidy stands, negative body language, staff huddled together chatting with their backs to the aisles, people on mobiles and the worst crime of all, the “How are you today?” opening question.

For us, pre-show training is the perfect opportunity to emphasise the importance of avoiding these behaviours and for giving your stand staff the tools and confidence they need in order to avoid common exhibitor pitfalls. This should be as close to the event as possible – indeed, the afternoon or evening before, once you have set up shop, can be the best time. You will all have familiarised yourself with your stand layout and the information will be fresh in everyone’s minds, ready for the day(s) ahead.

In my experience, the most effective way of setting out exhibitors’ best practice is by ensuring your employees understand the context of why they are there. Just as you may need to pitch the benefits of attending such an event to your finance director, it is as important to explain your objectives to those who will be manning the stand. Similarly, you need to agree on your approach – from ideas for questions (do your staff understand the difference between “open” and “closed” questions?) to pose to stand visitors, through qualification of your prospect, to specifics of the message that you want communicate. Ensuring that your staff are fully briefed in these areas and understand the behavioural traits that are expected of them, will also give those manning your stand the confidence and motivation to approach the exhibition with a positive frame of mind, and this will be evidenced in the results you achieve.  

Sometimes, it can become all too easy to get wrapped up in the planning of an event without thinking about the execution. But, with the importance of the quality of leads generated from exhibitions far outweighing quantity, I implore you not to overlook this stage and remember that it is as important to invest time in preparing your exhibition staff as it is to invest finances in creating the perfect stand.

When it comes to Christmas parties, companies are often faced with restrictions on budgets and the capacity of venues. We’ve given this some thought and for 2011, we are offering a unique opportunity to hold an exclusive Christmas party in our exceptionally unique event spaces.

Previously, you may have not considered using a prestigious location like Millbrook, as the cost of theming and decorating the venue can easily eat up the entire available budget, leaving your invited guests with nothing more than bread and water . . . . However, this year, Millbrook Events is offering a turnkey solution within their unique flagship venues, Concept 1 and Concept 2. The “Cirque de la Neige” pre-rigged Christmas package, comes complete with full circus theming, a dazzling entertainment programme, full AV package, dance area, themed bars and the security of knowing that your event is exclusively for you. Oh and don’t forget our renowned bespoke catering and free Wi-Fi!

With all the costs in one ready-made package and by offering a simple, easy to use solution, we hope that clients will find the whole experience of organising a Christmas event for up to 1,200 guests a lot less stressful and more cost effective. This package combined with Millbrook’s fantastic offer of total privacy, allowing revellers to fully enjoy themselves in a discreet location away from the public gaze, means these striking venues are now within reach of organisations that may previously have settled for the typical hotel ballroom solution.

Getting to Millbrook couldn’t be easier, as we are 5 minutes from J13 (Milton Keynes) of the M1 and less than an hour from central London and Birmingham, as well as enjoying close proximity to four major airports. The venue’s variable capacity, combined with its central location, means Millbrook Events is ideally placed to provide a truly unforgettable Christmas party to all organisations. Whether a large corporation with a roving workforce looking for a central location to celebrate the year or a smaller company looking for a more intimate party experience, Cirque de la Neige @ Millbrook is THE choice for your works party this Christmas.

 For more information about our Cirque de la Neige Christmas package please visit the Christmas page.

In order to push the industry forward and to remain competitive, especially in the current economic climate, events companies, particularly venues, need to consider how they can give themselves an advantage. The best way to do this is to ask your customers what they want and what they need. Then, put yourself in the customer’s shoes by being a customer at exhibitions and trade shows and ask yourself, “What do I need?” It’s surprising just how much you require, given the giant expenses already being laid out for space, displays, power, and the set up, the “extra expense [of Wi-Fi] leaves a sour taste in your mouth” says Kevin.

Naturally the technological facilities at event venues have developed and improved dramatically. There are now live streams to and from delegates and audiences across the world, instant updates for full connectivity and cohesion amongst company systems regardless of your global location through the use of Smartphones and online databanks. There’s no disputing the range of technology required and the range that is available, however, this understandably all comes at a price. The considerations made when installing a Wi-Fi system at your event or venue, are phenomenal. It’s vital to consider the number of users logging on, the speed of the connection, abiding by the Digital Economy Act and most importantly, the security of your system, especially when dealing with sensitive information such as future products, military demonstrations and client specific information.

With all this in mind, how do you, as a business, justify sacrificing such a large expense and seriously increasing your outgoings? Kevin believes that it’s at the point where your customer’s experience and satisfaction comes into play, which, in the modern world, is from the very beginning.

“Nowhere does it say that the end user should be the one to pay for all of this. Venues and event organisers need to be savvier when it comes to attracting business – and a free Wi-Fi package is a great way of standing out in a crowded marketplace. The customer’s and their end user’s experience is pivotal as they will vote with their feet if the overall experience isn’t up to scratch”

Therefore, Kevin and the Millbrook Events team have learned from their experience and the experience of their clients, and as a result offer a high quality, reliable, secure and free Wi-Fi system for all visitors and customers in every venue. Whilst the notion of an industry-wide free event Wi-Fi system at all event venues may be a long way off, Millbrook Events is certainly leading the pack.

On Friday 18^th February 2011 Millbrook Events hosted an exciting customer loyalty event for car dealer, The Vindis Group’s network of Audi centres. The event, held at the prestigious Millbrook Proving Ground, also marked the recent launch of Audi’s A7 model.

The event was an opportunity for The Vindis Group to thank its current customers and to offer potential clients a chance to sample what the Audi range is capable of. The guests were offered a ‘money can’t buy’ chance to experience ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ first hand with a self-drive aspect of the event in the Audi range on Millbrook’s Alpine and High Speed Circuits under the supervision of one of 12 professional drivers. Then, donning a safety helmet, the guests were given a high-performance passenger ride around some of Millbrook’s impressive 70 km of tracks to gain an appreciation of the vehicles handling at top speeds. As a bit of fun, visitors were also offered the opportunity to take part in a blindfolded drive activity.

Northampton Saints players, Courtney Laws and Lee Dixon, were on hand to greet guests and admire the impressive Audi R8 range. Additional activities for guests when not out on track included a 16ft x 8ft scalextrix and an electronic driving game.

Victoria Stubbs, marketing and operations manager for The Vindis Group, commented: “It is very important for us at The Vindis Group to hold events such as this, not only as a sales tool but also as a thank you to our loyal customers. Millbrook is the only location that allows us to safely demonstrate the full capabilities of the range of cars and also offers the security required with the volume of high value vehicles on site as we have today.”

Kevin Leaver, head of events at Millbrook, commented; “It is a pleasure to host events such as this and the events team here at Millbrook enjoy the logistical challenge of coordinating a range of activities all happening at once. The Vindis Group is leading the way in this style of event, which allows the dealer to focus on a targeted group of clients and we expect to see this event format becoming more popular within the automotive industry.”

Millbrook Events is made up of four event venues which have been established to cater for a range of events, from product launches, to conferences and training sessions. The venues act as a blank canvas that can be adapted and branded by any organisation. Importantly, the high-security venue ensures complete confidentiality for all clients.

For more information on Activity Days and Additional services or to find out how Millbrook Events can serve you, call 01525 408325 or email events@millbrook.co.uk

Millbrook Events has appointed Dave Charlton as the new Operations Manager of Millbrook Proving Ground’s Events Department, in Bedfordshire.

After five years of sub-contracting into Millbrook as a Consultant Event Manager, he succeeds Kevin Leaver, who is now Head of Events. With over 16 years experience working in the events and training industry, including owning and operating his own events company for 10 years, Charlton is the right man to take the reins. His role over the next 12 months will be to energise the department’s revenue by combining his extensive operations knowledge with fresh business contacts he has gained during his time within the industry.

Dave comments:

“Every time you drive into Millbrook, it gives the impression of a very special and unique location. It is meticulously maintained and there is always something exciting and interesting happening, either on the superb variety of tracks or in one of the four, very individual event venues on site.”

He continues: “I am looking forward to working more closely with the Millbrook Events team, as well as sharing my years of experience in the industry with the members of staff we employ through the GM Undergraduate Scheme. (UG Scheme Link)”

Without a shadow of a doubt, Dave Charlton is set to put a firm stamp on the business and drive Millbrook Events to the heart of the events industry.

Welcome to the team Dave, we look forward to working with you!