Posted by Liz Holtby, Vice President, Operations, Meeting Escrow Inc.
I am often scanning event industry articles and, when James Lancaster at M&I writes them, I take particular interest. James has done a terrific job of summarizing the key findings of the Northstar UK Pulse Survey as outlined in this article https://mitmagazine.co.uk/shorthand/outlook-confidence-rising-as-planners-take-on-new-projects/?oly_enc_id=1983B3238156J0V.
Norstar's UK Pulse Survey confirms that although confidence is rising, one of the findings is that there is a fear of commitment when it comes to moving forward with live events. This is where Meeting Escrow solutions can help get DMC and hotel contracts signed with confidence. As Vice President of Operations at Meeting Escrow, our team has been working closely with clients during COVID-19, on the rebooking and cancellation process. For these clients, their advance deposits for future events were held in escrow. With all advance deposits securely held in Escrow Trust accounts, our clients and their vendor partners negotiated quickly and efficiently towards mutually acceptable terms. With advance deposits held in escrow, neither party can use possession of the funds to their advantage. In the case of the cancelled programs, the vendors’ cancellations fees were quickly paid from the escrow accounts, and the remaining balance was refunded to the client(s). For the postponed programs, revised escrow agreements were signed, and all parties were satisfied with the outcome.
The industry is doing a great job on addressing health and safety requirements and contract flexibility but for clients that are focused on financial risk management, looking for transparency, accountability, and financial trust account solutions, clients and suppliers can work with financial event solutions companies like Meeting Escrow to provide the assurance they require.
Here is a link to the complete Northstar UK Pulse Survey results: https://www.northstarmeetingsgroup.com/News/Industry/Weekly-Survey-Tracking-Coronavirus-Meetings-Response
Summary
Meeting Escrow's advisors will help you analyze your risk management needs and advise the best strategy and most cost-effective solutions. Our Advance Deposit Escrow solution will ensure your organization can move forward safely and securely with in-person, hybrid, or virtual events as we begin the road to recovery from the COVID pandemic.
For more details on Meeting Escrow’s Solutions, please contact info@meetingescrow.com.