Everyone has their own opinion on what makes a good meeting room, but some are just plain wrong! Here are just a handful of the worst pieces of advice we’ve heard about choosing meeting rooms in Leeds:
- The layout of the room doesn’t matter – all you need is a table and chairs. As our blog points out, so many people are under the misconception that for a meeting to happen, all you need is a group of people gathered in a room with somewhere to sit. This just isn’t true, as the layout of the room can make a huge difference to the outcome. For example, you might need space to collaborate in small teams, or one speaker might need to address a large number of people at once. You don’t want to run out of room for everyone, have people facing the wrong way and having to crane their necks or not being able to see someone properly (or look them in the eye while they’re talking). There are lots of different layouts you can try to ensure you get the very most out of every meeting – take a look at Geoff Dollar’s Slideshare presentation to get some ideas and invaluable advice on layouts for your next conference.
- It’s a good idea to choose a venue that is plain and austere in its décor, so that people can concentrate. The idea behind this is that some people are so easily distracted that good design and interesting colours will distract them from focusing on the meeting – which we all know is a load of nonsense. The opposite can actually be true, where people feel inspired and extra-creative when they meet in well designed, well decorated spaces.
- You don’t need a meeting room if you’re a home worker – you can hold it in your home office! Picture your home office and imagine your dream client – that big fish you’d absolutely love to land – sitting in it, and you’ll see why professional meetings in home offices don’t work. However much you try to separate home or work life by creating a dedicated workspace, home distractions will soon start to seep in – as smarta.com points out in a recent blog. You end up distracted by phones ringing and clearing up clutter as fast as you can, while your meeting participants feel uncomfortable hearing kids yelling and dogs barking while they try to discuss important issues. The bottom line is that this kind of unprofessional setup won’t impress anyone, and they’ll leave thinking that you too are unprofessional.
- Always go for the cheapest option available. After all, you only need a closing door and somewhere to sit to have a meeting, right? Wrong! The space you choose for your meeting is hugely important and it needs to be tailored to your needs. You need to have enough room, access to the right facilities and technology and extra services like hospitality, Wi-Fi and toilets so as to impress important attendees and keep them happy through longer sessions. Holding your meetings in a bargain basement (sometimes quite literally) space just won’t cut the mustard – it will make your company look cheap, unprofessional and like it doesn’t care about the comfort of its meeting participants. Besides that, you’re not very likely to get very much done in a cramped, cheap meeting space that doesn’t meet your needs.
- You should always go for a city centre location. While this can be useful if everyone in your meeting is coming from the same small, central area (which hardly ever happens), city centre locations can actually be very inconvenient for many delegates. Public transport can be crowded and expensive, while the roads are congested. What you should be looking for is a location near to a big business city like Leeds or Manchester, close to public transport and road links but without all the issues of the city centre. A location just on the outskirts is perfect, and you might even end up with a lovely view of some greenery and countryside rather than just miles of concrete and glass.
- Extra services are a waste of money. When considering meeting rooms in Leeds and trying to find the best space for your needs, you’re likely to come across venues like Carrwood Park which offer extra services as part of meeting packages. If you think they’re a waste of money, consider the meetings you’ve attended over the last 12 months. How many times did you experience technical problems, when it would have been amazing to have an IT support whizz swoop in and set things straight at no extra charge? How many times have meetings overran and everyone is desperate for something to eat, and it would be great to have hospitality on hand with refreshments without disrupting the meeting? What about printing and faxing, or accessing data that you don’t have with you – or needing to start a video conference with someone who couldn’t make it but whose input you really need? These are the reasons why extra services can be invaluable, and well worth paying a little extra for.
There are lots of things that can spoil a meeting – as Eric Matson explains on Fastcompany.com – but choosing the wrong meeting room can be one of the biggest problems. Don’t listen to the bad advice! Think about what you need from a space and what your meeting participants expect, and go for good value, professional and flexible Leeds meeting rooms every time.
For more advice and tips about choosing meeting rooms and indeed, running a successful meeting, subscribe to the regularly updated Carrwood Park blog.
See the below posts for recommended articles relating to Meeting Rooms in Leeds:
10 Signs you should invest in Meeting Rooms in Leeds
10 things you should know about Business and Meeting Rooms in Leeds