CVC's founder Gill Smillie has always believed in offering a highly professional service to clients when choosing venues for their events. Therefore with its experienced and motivated team of Associates, CVC Consulting is well placed to offer venues expert advice from both the client's as well as the venue's perspective.

The aim of CVC Consulting is to bring together all aspects of good business practice and ensure that your team and therefore ultimately your venue is reaching full potential and that the well being of your clients is at the same time being protected.

In essence CVC Consulting is a "one stop shop" for all your Sales and Marketing activity at whatever level. You can cherry pick the areas that need addressing either all in one go or over a period of time until you are satisfied that your venue is back on track.

Our network of Associates can also provide you with Back of House support, advice on the use of computer reservation systems and assistance with marketing print and PR.

CVC is proud to be a Founder Member of the Meetings Industry Association, the professional body for the meetings industry and supports its aim to bring best practice to all participants in the meetings marketplace.

The degree of involvement will depend not solely on budget but upon your type of venue, the current operation and the business potential.

In essence CVC Consulting can undertake to:
• Provide a confidential venue audit to see how the business is currently operating and being handled
• Put forward recommendations as to the areas that it is believed needs addressing
• Propose after discussion a staged action plan
• Agree a time scale along with outline budget
• Regular monitoring once off site
• Provide a follow up review


Areas that can be covered include

Yield

• Yield and the maximising of Sales in all areas - Reservations, Conference and Banqueting, Sales, and Food and Beverage.

Systems

• Implementation of Sales and Chase systems in all relevant areas
• Recommendation and implementation of Front Office and Food and Beverage Control Systems

Training

• Training of all "sales" personnel in all venue outlets at relevant levels
• Business charting
• Regret policy
• Upselling
• Negotiation skills
• Customer service
• Client complaint procedures
• How to retain market share?
• Client researching guidelines

Marketing

• General as well as specific guidelines for Corporate, Agency, Conference and Banqueting, and Leisure business, including Travel Trade and Retail
• Tele Sales service
• Exhibition representation
• Personnel sourcing
• Production of marketing print
• Third Party Partnership proposals
• Above and below line advertising proposals

Interested? Then ring Gill Smillie on 01306 886656 to discuss OR email info@cvconline.co.uk for further information.



GILL SMILLIE

Gill has over thirty years experience in the meetings industry. Working initially in the conference offices of large hotels owned by Grand Metropolitan, Forte and the Metropole Group she has been a conference agent since 1981 establishing CVC in 1984 at that time one of only a handful of venue finding agencies in the UK.

The move into consultancy was prompted early on by requests from a number of the venues with whom she worked on a regular basis, seeking independent advise on how the product could be improved.

She is co-founder of the Meetings Industry Association, established Conference Centres of Excellence (a marketing consortium of independent conference centres), and a member of the International Association of Conference Centres.


AUSTEN SCATTERGOOD

With a career spanning 27 years in the hotel and leisure industry, Austen commenced as a Graduate Trainee Manager with Grand Metropolitan Hotels, with senior management positions covering Conference and Banqueting, Front of House and Food and Beverage culminating as General Sales Manager UK of the Queens Moat Portfolio until 1993.

Since, he has been involved in the Leisure industry, mainly on the direct sale arm, then returning to hotels in a Corporate Sales role for Scotlands largest privately owned hotel group, before branching out into the world of consultancy, with a client base in the hotel and leisure industry

Austen was a founder member of the Working Party for the Meetings Industry Association and served on the MIA Council in the Corporate Market and British Incoming Tour Operators Association in the Leisure Market


ROBERT CARTER

Robert Carter has held senior management positions at The Connaught, Claridge's and the Ritz hotels. He was sales manager for both conference and agency sales at The Park Lane Hotel.

Robert opened Hever Castle in Kent for Broadland's Property and then spent five years as managing director of Lucknam Park Hotel. He now works for several property developers as an hotel consultant as well as running his own design company, specialising in hotels and restaurants.
In addition to having extensive sales and marketing experience Robert has large expertise in hotel and leisure management, particularly in the front office and food and beverage areas.