London is an ideal place to hold your company conference, with plenty of venues catering for large numbers of people and lots of things for attendees and keynote speakers to do during their time off. Conferences in London allow organisers a great deal of flexibility over where they host their session, how many guests and speakers they can pack into the room and how much they spend on the big event. At Lime Venue Portfolio, we’re proud to offer some of London’s leading conference centres, but also some more unique offerings for small conference organisers. So, if you’re organising your companies conference in London, we thought it would be useful for you to know our six top tips to help you get the most from your venue.
Top Tips for Getting the Most from Your Conference Venue in London
Choose a Convenient Location
A piece of common sense which is always at the forefront of your decision. Choosing a location which is as convenient as possible for as many people as possible is key to the success of an event. Picking somewhere easy to reach will maximise the number of people who choose to accept, so good transport links are essential, especially if people are coming from further afield. If your organising a small convention, Park Crescent Conference Centre is ideally located for your business conference, with the nearest stations being the city centre hubs of London Euston just over a half mile away, and Regent’s Park on the Bakerloo Line. For those driving there’s also free offsite parking, meaning people coming from outside the capital have somewhere safe to leave their cars during the event. For larger conventions, then of course ExCeL London and Olympia, boast excellent transport connections.
Make Sure There’s Accommodation Nearby
Many venues will be able to offer onsite accommodation, such as the fantastic CentrEd at the ExCel. With room for up to 400 delegates and 1,600 bedrooms on our private campus, you can be sure there’ll be plenty of room for everyone who needs to stay a night or two during your conference. Thanks to its exceptional central location, those who fancy looking further away from the Centre for a place to stay will also be spoilt for choice, and our expert team will be able to recommend alternative accommodation in the area if your delegates have plans which take them to other parts of the capital outside of the conference session.
Judge it by Numbers
The venue you choose will be largely dictated by how many people you have invited to your event. Send out your invitations early to gauge the level of interest, then choose a venue which can comfortably accommodate that number without being so large that people begin to feel lost and struggle to network in between each seminar or talk. Few London venues can rival the Olympia, which can cater for anywhere between 200 and 1,500 attendees. This is a truly unique venue with everything you could need on-site and plenty of room for all, no matter how large or small the event you’re hosting.
Make Sure You Get on with the Conference Centre Staff
Never underestimate how important this is, because you will be working closely with the venue staff from the moment you begin planning your London conference right through until all your attendees have gone home. Staff at all our venues are extremely well-qualified and highly trained. The ExCel is London’s premier conference venue, and the team behind this exclusive event space are experts when it comes to arranging and managing conferences and large-scale meetings. With a wide range of on-site services and highly knowledgeable staff, you can be confident your event is in safe hands.
Nobody Thinks Well on an Empty Stomach
Try to find a venue which has outstanding catering, such as the QEII Centre with its award-winning Taste by Leith’s. Catering is a major part of any London conference, and you have to remember that for many in attendance, the food on offer is a big draw and could make or break how they feel about the event. With their innovative menus, the catering team at the QEII are able to provide a wide range of dining styles suited to all tastes and dietary requirements – people do, after all, work better when they’ve had high quality refreshments.
Check the Venue has all the Extras You Need
There is nothing worse than arriving at a venue at the start of a conference, only to find that the on-site facilities are not what you had expected. If your keynote speakers need additional equipment always check well in advance that everything they want can be provided. A bespoke venue such as the Kia Oval in central London has everything you could need to host a successful conference, and venue staff will always go out of their way to accommodate any additional requests. Thanks to its fast internet connection and very own courier service, you can be sure things will run smoothly once your event starts.
Perhaps an extra is not something you had even considered. For example, if your organising a smaller event, then somewhere like HMS Belfast is a truly unique space which could help drive interest and delegate attendance, whilst also creating a more exciting and memorable environment.
With a wide range of unusual and unique venues to choose from across the capital, Lime Venue Portfolio can help you find the perfect place to host your London conferences. For more information on these or any of our other hand-picked venues, simply get in touch with our expert team today.