Tips & Tricks
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21 May, 2024
Private event spaces are often the setting for key milestones: weddings, birthdays, work functions and so on. The spaces they’re held in are often significant in establishing the atmosphere, and ensuring the event runs smoothly. Standing out from a competitive crowd, and letting customers know that their venue is a good fit for a particular event can be challenging. So, here’s a few tips that can help venues sell their private event space.
Establish a strong presence
What are the strengths of the venue?
Does it feature an impressive interior design, or a magnificent backdrop? Is the venue renowned for its logistical capabilities, amazing sound system or dining options? Is there a specific feature worth emphasising – like a pool, stage, dance floor or home theatre system? Does it specialise in large gatherings, more intimate ones or something in-between?
Whatever those strengths are, emphasise them. That might involve opening the venue for visits, conducting promotional campaigns across digital channels, contacting promotional publications like DishCult for exposure and showcasing positive testimonials that emphasise aspects of the venue that will appeal to relevant customers.
Consider all angles in highlighting what’s great about the private event space.
Know your target audience
Who is the venue trying to sell to? Is it a popular spot among a younger/older crowd? Is it used primarily by locals within the suburb, or is it a destination that reaches a wider community? One suggestion is offering a theme that’s relevant to a specific customer base, and changing it over time to reach different customers: for instance, a senior’s discount one week, then a family discount for the following week. It can show that the venue has done their research and is making a concerted effort in appealing to their target audience.
Engage the local community
Running a private venue is often a collaborative effort that involves working with a wide range of other businesses. It might involve engaging the services of other hospitality businesses, designers, musicians, lighting technicians, cleaning specialists and a range of staff that’s too long to list. Even if everything is done in-house, it’s worth highlighting the team behind the event.
There’s often a genuine desire from customers to support the local community, and hosting an event often involves collaboration with a wider network. Don’t be shy in letting potential customers know that, by using your venue, they are also supporting other small businesses and people in the community. It might be the thing that wins them over.
Ensure it runs smoothly
The best advertising is often word of mouth. The time to really promote the venue space is during the event itself. ResDiary’s Event’s Manager is a useful tool that handles events, enquiries and bookings in one place. Contactless pre-order by ResDiary enables customers to make orders in advance, and ResDiary’s Marketing and Promotional tools enable the venue to sell tickets via customisable booking widgets. All of these tools can help to facilitate a smooth flow of events, which can help minimise errors. A great experience might encourage customers to tell their friends and family to book the event space.
Targeting the right audience and collaborating with the right people will help the private venue space stand out from the crowd. From there, it’s about encouraging customers to spread the word – which can be key to boosting sales.
Find out how our software can help you manage your private event space bookings.
Disclaimer: This guide is general in nature and does not take into account your individual circumstances. Before acting on any information, you should consider whether this is right for your business.
