Small 18th Floor Training Room #3.
When you are planning a seminar or training event at an outside venue, you have to remember where you held your last seminar or training session and how much it cost. Then you need to look at the value that the venue brought you, and if you might have found a more economical or more professional space.
Remember that facility costs range from almost nothing (if you use a public space such as a library), to rather expensive (if you use a hotel meeting space). The cost of the venue could affect the cost to your reputation in terms of professionalism while pricing your event out of the marketplace. So you need to look at your audience to see what they are expecting.
The cost of hosting a training session or a seminar can be optics (more than the cost of the venue). Depending on your audience (paid, free or employees), you need to set the tone of your session by choosing the venue that best suits the material or idea you are presenting. If your audience are made up of internal employees or contractors, you might lean towards a more elegant venue to impress them. But do they need to be impressed by the seminar space? There is a purpose for your seminar or training session that you can not afford to lose sight of in the glamour of a fancy hotel ballroom. Professionalism has to come first.
When conducting a seminar or training event that people are paying for, you want to impress upon attendees that you take their cost/value concerns seriously. If you are holding your session at a fancy hotel, they will wonder how much of their fee is going to pay for the venue. If you host your event at a low-end venue, they will wonder how serious you are.
Location is another cost factor in choosing where you should hold your seminar or training session. If you choose the wrong location, you might lose attendees. If you choose a venue that is not easy to get to for attendees, the cost to you is that they may not want to attend your seminar. Parking and accessibility by public transport are also very important cost considerations for your attendees.
You need to also consider what technology is required for your seminar or training session and how much it will cost you or your attendees. If your session requires requires special equipment – such as audio/visual equipment, white boards, overhead projectors, teleconferencing or Internet access via WiFi – what are the additional costs to you or to your attendees?
Another thing to consider when factoring in your costs when choosing a venue is whether food and beverage service is required for breaks. Some venues do not allow any food or beverage consumed on the premises, so your food and beverage costs will be zero. But that may not make your attendees happy if they cannot bring along a snack or a beverage.
Handling the food and beverages on your own can be inexpensive – such as setting out bottled water and snacks yourself. But conference centres and hotels will require you to use their catering department and do not allow you to bring in your own food and beverage, so you will have to pay their rates.
If you are planning to have a break or lunch during your seminar, what are your options in terms of allowing attendees to grab their own lunch at a local place, or bring food to the seminar location? At Telsec Business Centres, there is a cafeteria on the forth floor of the building (featuring Tim Hortons), a sandwich shop on the main floor and a specialty food shop (Kitchen Table) across the road.
Telsec offers Training Rooms and seminar spaces for as low as $200 per half day and only $300 for a full day. Telsec also has that sought-after professional atmosphere at a prestigious location (1 Yonge Street). The central location of Telsec and the vast parking availability, combined with local and regional transportation access, makes it a great location for your next training session or seminar.