How to Work with San Francisco Travel's Convention Services Team

This article is part of our Member Orientation series. To continue the series, click the next step button at the bottom of the page.

San Francisco Travel's Convention Sales and Services teams work to attract and support meetings and events in San Francisco and the Bay Area. They offer hotel and venue selections, meeting availability dates, and attendance-building tools, as well as sourcing activities and suppliers, and providing general advisement on San Francisco meeting experiences.

Read on to better understand the work these teams do and how you can leverage their expertise through your membership.

Convention Sales

Our sales team works with The Moscone Center ("citywide" business) and area hotels ("self-contained" business) to encourage bookings and meetings. In addition, there is a MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and events) team to assist with international meeting opportunities.

To work with the team on room block opportunities at your hotel, contact [email protected].

Convention Services

In support of the sales team's efforts, the Convention Services team works directly with meeting planners and event professionals to recommend special event and banquet facilities, meeting resources, group activities, and suppliers that make for successful events. Here are some important ways in which you can maximize your opportunities with Convention Services:

• Convention Services Contact - Make sure to identify a Convention Services contact person at your organization who can receive inbound requests on meeting and special event opportunities. Whether you are a hotel, event suppliers such as a photographer or exhibit designer, or an attraction or restaurant, we're always looking to provide ideas to meeting planners. You can update your contacts through the Member Portal under Manage My Account > Company Information > Contacts.

• Venue Specs - Members at the Convention and All Access levels who have event space should ensure that their venue specifications are current. When our staff and our clients research venues, they do so through our Venue and Supplier Search tool. You can update this information through the Member Portal under Manage My Account > Event Spaces. Please also include floor plans and event space photos if available.

• Visitor Deals - Members at the Convention and All Access levels are eligible to offer special deals and unique offers to visitors through our website. Very often, our Convention Services team will integrate these deals into conversations with meeting planners who are organizing convention attendee activities. Eligible members can enter deals through the Member Portal, under Manage My Account > Company Information > Deals. For more information, please contact [email protected].

• Member Showcase - Members at the Convention and All Access levels are strongly encouraged to attend one of our monthly Member Showcase events. Member Showcase is the perfect opportunity for members to meet with San Francisco Travel staff, including Convention Services, and promote their organization's products and services. It is also an opportunity to meet and connect with other San Francisco Travel members, with the potential for collaboration. New members, and existing members looking to stay top-of-mind, can sign up for the next available Showcase here.

More Convention Services Tips

Members at the Convention and All Access levels enjoy access to key industry data and research through the Member Portal:

• Convention Calendar - San Francisco Travel shares our booked convention and meeting business on a two-year outlook. Members should use this calendar to identify upcoming periods of increased visitation in the city. Many conventions and meetings will list meeting planner contact information, an invitation for our members to reach out and pitch meeting attendee opportunities.

• Meeting & Lodging Research - A wide selection of industry research is available in the portal. Members should use reports such as Daily Room Flow Calendar, TAP Pace Reports, Lodging Market Impact reports, and more to review trends and inform budgeting and staffing decisions.

To access the Convention Calendar and industry research, eligible members can enter the Member Portal and navigate to San Francisco Travel Data.

Annually, the Convention Services team hosts an educational Market Briefing, "How to work with Meeting Planners." Keep an eye on our Member Events calendar to save the date for the next scheduled opportunity and register.

Finally, our lodging and event venue members should schedule a site visit by our Convention Services team at your business or property. By hosting us on site, we are better able to understand your venue specs and amenities. To schedule a visit, contact the Partnership team here or the Convention Services team here. We do request that members first complete their Member Portal profile set up, attend a Member Showcase, and also attend at least one Membership Event before a site visit.

For answers to any questions you may have on how to work with Convention Services, please contact the Convention Services team at [email protected].

Next: How to Work With the Global Tourism Team