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Convention Sales
Corporate and Short-term Business on An Upswing
First, there was the Minneapolis Arts Explosion: a half-billion dollars in new cultural infrastructure opening within 18 months. Now, it’s an explosion of new hotel infrastructure. By August 2008, downtown Minneapolis will have unveiled more than $200 million in new or renovated hotel properties within 2 years.
This influx of new and improved hotel properties raises the profile of the city and has given Meet Minneapolis a more diverse mix of properties to sell – helping corporate and short-term business to remain strong. While association business is steady, corporate business has experienced an upswing for the past 3 to 4 years. These are usually short-term, small- to medium-sized meetings.
For the first time since 2002, Convention Sales exceeded its room night goal for two consecutive years. With the status of a future 1,200-room headquarters hotel near the Minneapolis Convention Center uncertain, the department identified opportunity dates and set 2007 sales strategies to impact those dates.
Several years ago, the department started focusing on short-term business. In 2007, 80% of the definite bookings were short-term meetings occurring in 2007 and 2008. Of the department’s 328 bookings in 2007, 44% were for meetings occurring that year. Another 36% of the meetings secured were scheduled for 2008. These short term bookings positively impact short-term occupancy rates for hotel communities.
Delivering Business Through the Republican National Convention
During the year, the Convention Sales team served a variety of roles with the 2008 Republican National Convention (RNC). As a liaison between the hotels and the RNC’s Committee on Arrangements (COA), Meet Minneapolis held regular informational meetings with hotels in the block, keeping them informed about what to expect and key deadlines. The department played a major role in coordinating hotel contracts and also negotiated the terms for holding a community event – Civic Fest, A Very Minnesota Celebration – at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
Hosting Innovative Sales Events
In 2007, Meet Minneapolis continued to host unique events to sell Minneapolis to potential clients. By hosting 50 members of the Health Professionals Network for its Spring meeting, these volunteers who represent health professional associations got to know what Minneapolis has to offer. During the event, attendees visited cultural institutions, saw numerous hotels and meeting spaces, met at the Minneapolis Convention Center, got guided city tours and floated along the Mississippi River on a gorgeous April day.
In June, Convention Sales brought in 13 meeting planners from the Washington, D.C., and Chicago offices of Smith Bucklin and Courtesy Associates, the world’s largest association management corporation. Minneapolis was one of only two destinations the company chose to visit that year, and attendees were wowed during this destination education experience on a Lake Minnetonka cruise, hotel tours, visiting cultural facilities, touring the Minneapolis Convention Center and other meeting spaces, going on a downtown dine-around, and shopping at Mall of America. How many leads? Bookings?
Attendance at an event in conjunction with the Bears/Vikings Monday night football game in December exceeded expectations with the hometown team on fire and boasting the NFL’s hottest player – rookie sensation Adrian Peterson. 23 meeting planning clients from around the country (37 total guests) enjoyed the game from a suite. During their visit, they also got hotel tours, attended holiday events (A Christmas Carol and Macy’s Holiday Auditorium Show), visited cultural institutions, and had a “tailgate party” at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
