Booking Venues For Beginners

There are lots of different reasons you might find yourself booking a venue: you could be in charge of the work Christmas party; you might be trying to arrange your wedding, or a family reunion; you might even be trying to put on a show! Whatever the reason, whatever the context, if you’re doing it for the first time you might find yourself feeling a little lost and overwhelmed. The people who own venues seem to hold all the cards, and you don’t know how much to pay, what you really need and if you’re getting a good deal.

Today, our guide to booking venues takes the fear away for beginners so you can book with confidence and know you can expect a success.

Your Event

Never forget that your event is unique and has it’s own special requirements – don’t allow yourself to be told that it’s generic or that any venue is ‘one size fits all’. If you’re trying to organise a comedy night or a music gig, you’ll have very different needs than if you’re looking for somewhere to host your wedding reception or an office Christmas party!

So first of all, think about your guests. How many people do you expect to attend? Do they have any special access needs? Where are they going to coming from? This gives you a guide to the size and general location of the venue – it needs to be as convenient as possible for the maximum number of people.

Then, the event itself: what does that require? Do you need facilities to display audio and visual sources? Will your guests be expecting to eat? Will you need amplification equipment and a stage for performers?

Answering these questions should give you a good idea of what you require from your venue and allow you to construct a shortlist.

Shortlisting Venues

From here you could Google venues in your area, but you that would very time consuming. Using a service like Venuescanner let’s you search and filter according to your needs and construct your shortlist in a matter of moments!

Once you’ve done that, if you’re not booking through a service, you’ll need to contact the venues for quotes. You should never go straight for the first venue you contact. Without speaking to several different ones you have no way of knowing what a fair price is and if you’re getting a great deal or ripped off. Speaking to at least three different venues should give you the insight you need into the market price and empower you to make the best decision!