Planner's Perspective with Cindy Lo
Meetings South (March 2005)
Cindy Lo - President/Owner - Red Velvet Events - Austin, Texas
Describe the event - As an independent meeting planner, I plan a variety of events. The most memorable event from 2004 was a statewide event benefiting the Texas Federation of Asian American Chambers of Commerce, which welcomed more than 500 attendees to Austin's Renaissance Austin Hotel. What made this meeting unique was the short time frame for pulling it all together, in just 12 short weeks. The event was a huge success in attendance, fundraising goals and local presence. Guest speakers included Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Austin's mayor, Will Wynn.
Did you incorporate any interesting excursions and/or activities into the agenda? - The only special excursion we included was a dinner boat ride out on Town Lake. Due to a limited budget, we had to keep the event simple and found that of the three options we offered—including the Texas State History Museum and a city tour on both land and water, known as the Duck Tour—people generally picked the dinner boat ride.
What did your attendees seem to enjoy the most about the event and/or the city? - They definitely enjoyed the formal evening banquet where we had both local celebrities and Lisa Ling present.
What is the outlook of corporate meeting budgeting heading into 2005 Are budgets expected to increase? - Meetings definitely took a backseat after 9/11. But some companies continued to have events on a regular basis, and I don't see their budgets increasing much. The big change this year is that companies that have put off or canceled events in the last few years are nowconsidering new events or resuming the old events. This is great news for independent planners in the market.
What changes have been made to corporate meeting programs over the past year in regard to corners being cut? Will this continue through 2005? - I've seen that most of the high-profile type of events have slowly been eliminated. For example, during the dot.com boom, it wasn't out of the ordinary to see car giveaways at trade shows, but now it's back to more conservative budgets at events. It's more reasonable now to give away a trip or a $1,000 cash prize at a trade show and still make a statement. I think as budgets get tighter, I definitely see more executives questioning how marketing dollars are spent.
Please add any insight or information about current trends in the corporate meeting planning industry segment. - As the meeting industry becomes more recognizable as a career vs. just a job description, I see corporations bringing people on board who will be solely responsible for planning the company meetings and social outings. Furthermore, a company that already has dedicated staff for meeting planning will likely merge staff to avoid duplication of effort and increase negotiating leverage.
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"When our marketing team works with the RVE team, we know we have a sure formula for success. The RVE team is results-driven and extremely detail-oriented, just like Lombardi. Every time we work with them, we feel like all their energy is directed at our event."
Alan Godfrey, Executive Vice President, Marketing & Business Development Lombardi Software, Inc.
"When I work with the Red Velvet Events team, I know I’m going to get a memorable event for Chinatown Center and for the Asian-American community in Austin. We just produced the largest Chinese New Year celebration ever in Austin, and the RVE team made it happen."
Alex Tan, CEO, Tan International Group & Chinatown Center
"Can’t ask for much more when it comes to working with an event management company – Cindy and her team are extremely organized and they helped us turn around our event in a short time frame and most importantly, they handled all of our last minute changes! We’re a rapidly growing firm, and we need someone that can keep up with our pace."
Mickey Millsap, Vice President, uShip, Inc.
"Hiring Cindy and RVE to plan our wedding was the smartest decision we made during our engagement. A consummate professional, Cindy was available around the clock to answer our questions promptly and politely. Her knowledge of weddings and event planning put us at ease at every step in the planning process and helped us blend our families’ traditions, our personal tastes, and the needs of our guests into our big day. The day we got married, RVE took care of the “chores” while we focused on enjoying ourselves with our family and friends. Our wedding day was more fun, joyous, musical, and touching than we anticipated.
Not only was working with RVE a total blast, it gave us the wedding of our dreams. RVE receives our highest recommendation, and we look forward to working with Cindy and RVE again."
Ella & Francisco
"Cindy’s services were invaluable in every aspect of the planning and execution of our event. She created the event’s theme and kept us on task. She was extremely organized and communicative throughout the planning process. Cindy was respectful of our limited budget as a non-profit organization and creatively stretched every dollar by negotiating great deals with vendors.
Knowing that the event details were in Cindy’s extremely capable hands allowed me to enjoy our fundraiser and effectively do my job as Development Director by greeting guests and raising money!"
Megan Heredia, San Juan Diego Catholic High School, Development Director
"Working with Red Velvet Events was a pleasure. They handled all the logistics to ensure a successful Grand Opening and continued to provide support on the following weekends where traffic flow is the generally the heaviest. I was especially impressed with Cindy’s ability to think thoroughly on all the details and make sure we had a plan for everything."
Nicole Miller, CarMax, Grand Openings Manager
"What we envisioned as our dream wedding, Red Velvet Events helped made come true. From the walk down the aisle, to our first glimpse into the reception, it was a moment that took our breath away.
We are thankful for Red Velvet Events and for what it stands for – excellence. Cindy accommodated to our needs, was patient and professional, delivered quality work, and was a pleasure to work with. She referred us to extraordinary vendors and incorporated tradition into our wedding. We can truly say that our wedding is a day we will always remember. Thank you Red Velvet Events!"
Aloisy & Van
"Red Velvet Events was able to help me organize transportation, gift bags, dinner reception and the overall schedule for a team competition with only two weeks of notice. Their flexibility, organization and constant communication made me feel very secure about the success of the event. Red Velvet Events was a great choice for an event planner, and I look forward to working with them again to plan our competition next year."
Lauren Davis Director, Liemandt Foundation
"Red Velvet Events performed in a most professional manner and carried off a first time event very smoothly."
Representative Martha Wong, Houston, district 134
"Since I've known Cindy, she has never ceased to amaze me with her level of creativity, energy and eagerness to help. I could always depend on Cindy to exceed my expectations. Having known and worked with her at Trilogy, I know she will always put her customers' needs before her own."
Jeanne McNeil, Trilogy Software Inc., President of Trilogy Employee Foundation
"Having Cindy plan my husband's 30th birthday party was a life-saver for me. I just had a baby and did not have the time or energy to put this together. Cindy took care of everything - from invites and favors to scoping out potential venues and decorating the cake! She knew exactly the kind of party I wanted and was able to do it well under my budget. Cindy's enthusiasm, energy and her dedication to perfection made the night a huge success. I definitely plan on having Cindy take care of all my future parties."
Ann Kim
"My dear friend Shelley and I decided to throw a BIG party for our 40th and 30th birthdays. This was going to be, in our words, THE party of the year! We were introduced to Cindy, who willingly took on the project of planning a birthday bash in Houston, Texas. Shelley and I, both very busy with work, were extremely grateful at how flexible and accommodating Cindy was through the whole planning process.
The night of the event, Cindy managed the entire party, making sure everything was taken care of to every last detail. She even took the time to bring her digital camera and capture candid photos of the event. Shelley and I were able to enjoy our evening and our guests without a worry in the world. Cindy handled everything like an industry expert and thanks to her services, the party was a great success..."
Melissa Arriaga
"Cindy, our wedding reception was amazing! Your organization shined through -- from the name place cards to the elegant menus you personally designed, to making sure the whole evening went just the way we wanted. We will definitely refer you to our other friends who are getting married."
Ardis Peterson
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