With three versatile venues across two central locations all looked after by one expert team – it’s really is as Easy as 1,2,3 to find the perfect space solution across Birmingham…
NEC Group Conventions, based at ICC Birmingham, NEC Birmingham, and the Vox Conference Venue, recently announced a newly restructured, all-female sales leadership team, following investment into its sales operations.
As part of this restructuring, Kelly Moore, who has been with the NEC Group for more than 20 years, was promoted to lead the newly formed Agency team. Her role? To manage, grow, and nurture relationships with some of the team’s largest agencies, venue finders, and production companies.
Chatting to Kelly about her new role, we found out why the team change was made, the importance of agencies to the Group, her relationship with agencies, and insight into agency event trends.
Tell us more about your team. What are your plans for the coming year?
“We understand that agencies are constantly juggling high expectations, short lead times, and the pressure to deliver. We felt that a dedicated team, focused purely on building and maintaining relationships with our agency partners, would give them the tools needed to deliver for their clients.
“We’re a dedicated team of nine, based across all three of our venues – at the ICC in Birmingham city centre, the NEC and Vox Conference Venue on the NEC Campus.
“Having nine people solely focusing on agency business allows the team to understand agents, what their drivers and challenges are. By developing these relationships and having a deeper understanding, we can work more collaboratively to ensure we are working in their best interests.
“Currently, we’re focused on really understanding our agents: who their clients are, their objectives, and ways of working. We are actively on the road visiting their offices or inviting them in for personalised familiarisation trips.
“Ultimately, the closer we work with an agency, the more we get to each other, ensuring a great event experience for their clients.”
Why are event agencies important to your team?
“We recognised the value that agencies bring — agency business makes up over 30% of our overall Conventions revenue. We have 110 that are directly managed by our account team, but we are picking up new enquiries too.
“Our Agency Account Managers work in a hybrid role compared to the other NEC conventions teams. We support the growth of repeat business as well as new clients that the agency represents, to bring them into the venues. The aim is to provide a trusted, personal point of contact that looks after them from enquiry to event delivery and beyond.”
Have you had positive feedback from the agencies?
“Initial feedback has been really encouraging, and we aren’t currently aware of any other venue that offers a specific team for agencies.
“By managing the agent as our account (not the end client), we can support them in finding the best venue and packages, which in turn, strengthens the relationships between the venue, client, and agent.
“It also helps that we offer more than just flexible spaces. We provide a full event-ready package. From award-winning catering to expert AV and flawless operations, we take care of the details so that the agent can focus on their clients.”
Who are your key accounts?
“We have relationships with more than 110 agencies, which we’re always looking to grow! But to name a few – DRPG, Pandora Events, Premier Events, Inntel, BCD Meetings & Events, A&I Events.
“Pandora Events is a great example of how nurturing a long-term relationship can lead to brilliant event outcomes. We’ve worked with one of their clients for over a decade, accommodating events from 500 to 4,000 attendees. It was also one of the first events hosted at the Vox Conference Venue when it opened nearly 10 years ago.
“We love working with Pandora, and we know they value the partnership too. The support we offer each other goes both ways.”
What trends are you noticing among the agencies?
“From speaking to our contacts and through general trends that we’ve seen in recently contracted events, we’ve noticed that clients are taking longer to commit and make decisions on their events. This, coupled with smaller budgets and high expectations, means that there is a lot of pressure on agencies to deliver.
“We hope that by working closely with the agencies, our team can help to relieve pressure and support them to deliver for their clients.
“If you’re an agency and would like to chat to us about how we can support your team, please visit our website.”
Our Sales Team is ready and raring for the
next challenge! Get in touch today.