Conference Matters 141

TIPS&TRICKS

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Keep sharing Keep sharing your budget with your client regularly. Depending on the lead

Keep time in mind The decision-making process or lead time for an association conference is long. It can take two to four years between submitting a bid and the actual conference. Be sure to take into account current and expected inflation figu res. Make the estimate clear If you make an estimate, indicate it properly, not only verbally, and be sure to include it in the budget. For example, you may not know the number of speakers or the cost per speaker. The best thing is to base yourself on the previous edition of the conference and make it clear that it is an estimate. Version control In the event of changes or if you have collected more information, continue to adjust the budget during the project. Save all these versions as well, so that you can analyse where and why these changes occurred later. 8 9

Additional income To generate additional income, see if you can get more from your sponsors.

time and the number of changes, do this once a month or once every two months. Complete transparency helps provide peace of mind.

Be sure not to limit yourself to any packages that you have devised beforehand. By asking spon sors about their specific needs, you can offer additional valuable products and services.

Take a closer look Since hiring equipment and staff is expensive, take a closer look at what

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VAT check Be sure to include VAT in your budget. The suppliers who will provide you

audiovisual equipment you need. If you plan to stream, is one camera enough or do you want to film from various angles using a camera techni cian? Hiring screens is also expensive, as the costs quickly add up.

with quotations sometimes include VAT, and sometimes they do not. Check this carefully so that there are no surprises later!

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Speakers from abroad Will speakers from abroad be coming? Consider what their expectations are

Catering costs When estimating the catering costs, also include additional costs such

Fifteen tips for

an effective budget

for travel and accommodation. Do you need to buy a first-class plane ticket or is economy class just fine? Do you need to book a five-star hotel or will a budget hotel do?

as catering furniture and personnel costs. For example, a coffee with a biscuit in itself may cost € 2.50, but including someone who prepares and serves it from a hired folding table, perhaps the costs are more towards € 7.50 per coffee.

Concluding that the financial basis of a conference was insufficient is unpleasant, to say the least. These 15 tips from the Educational Events & Conferences team at the University of Amsterdam can help you draw up an effective budget.

The Dutch Pre-financing & Guarantee Fund Are you organising an international conference lasting at least two days in the Netherlands? For more financial security, you can make use of the Dutch Pre-financing & Guarantee Fund. This free service can help you in one of two ways: Pre-financing scheme The pre-financing scheme allows conference organisers to apply for an interest-free loan at no charge. The maximum loan amount is capped at €90,000. This scheme finances the initial costs that conference organisers incur in the early stages. For example, these funds could be used to make the first down payment for the accommodation or to develop the conference’s website. Guarantee scheme The guarantee scheme provides conference or event insurance that offers great financial security. The amount that may be insured, the guarantee, is capped at €90,000. This scheme covers possible losses due to disappointing numbers of attendees. The fund aims to guarantee that the conference can take place, regardless.

Photo: Shutterstock

BEFORE YOU START

GETTING TO WORK

Cash flow opportunities Be sure to provide insight into cash flow opportunities outside of registration fees. Think about who would like to get in touch with your visitors and how you can make this happen. Financial objectives An organisation’s financial objectives must be unambiguously clear. Can there be money left over or do you have to break even? 3 4

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Round up the costs Budgeting well in advance means avoiding arguing about it later. Give yourself more

A clear picture Make sure you have a clear picture of the event, location, audiovisual equipment that needs to be hired, catering, and social pro gramme, as well as the expected programme costs (such as speaker fees, travel costs and gifts), printing costs, and transport costs. Use quotations Try to base your budget on quotations as much as possible, as they provide the most realistic provision of the costs. The quoting party can also point out supplies or services that are missing from your briefing. 2

spending leeway.

Not every visitor pays Members of the organising committee, speakers, PhD students, and other people who contribute to the conference should par ticipate free of charge. Be sure to take this into account when calculating your number of parti cipants.

https://vgfholland.nl/en/

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