TH223-2: Analyze the different meeting market types in a hospitality scenario.

"If you pursue a career in convention sales and services, you must have an understanding of the critical differences between association and corporate meetings. This knowledge will be vital when responding to a request for proposal (RFP) or selling to meeting planners face-to-face." (Abbey, 2021, p. 43).

Scenario: Listing your property, regardless if you work for a convention hotel or convention center, with online meeting directories is a cost-effective method of reaching meeting planners. The website listed below allows meeting planners to search for hotels and convention centers to send out requests for proposals (RFPs). The properties listed generally pay the site a commission for each RFP that results in a booking. These sites also offer the opportunity for venues to purchase banner ads and priority listings. The volume of RFPs from these sites continues to grow as meeting planners see "online shopping" as one of the most desirable ways to research potential convention sites.

Log on to the website (Cvent at: www.cvent.com) or conduct research of your own to address the checklist items that follow:

Checklist:

• Analyze the scenario as the convention sales manager and explain how you would market your venue to corporations, associations, and non-profit organizations.
• Analyze and discuss three (3) current trends in meeting planning.
• Sales and event management software helps hospitality teams globally to increase group business by efficiently selling, organizing, and managing events. Examine three (3) sales and event management software types and share your findings.
• Investigate how the Internet can assist the convention center sales department and summarize your findings.