We recently hosted a Knowledge Exchange to share details of the support available in Edinburgh when it comes to the bidding and planning stages of a conference, allowing you to focus on bringing people together in the beautiful Scottish capital. Here’s what we covered.

• Working in partnership
• The initial steps to planning a conference
• What is a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO)?
• Why work with a PCO?
• How to choose the right PCO
• Request for tender documents
• Previous conference organisers share their experience
• Five top tips for organising a conference

Working in partnership

“Conferences aren’t just about venues or destinations but are also about economic, professional and community outcomes. Therefore, success in bidding for a conference is best achieved by working in close partnership with many people in the city”, explains Elaine Miller from the EICC. 

“By working in partnership with the city, your venue, and Professional Conference Organisers (PCOs), a first-class proposal is produced demonstrating why your association or society should choose Edinburgh. It will take some of the legwork out of the organisation and leave you time to focus on the programme and your day job.

The initial steps to planning a conference 

The bid

Bringing a conference together can feel like a fairly daunting process. Lyndsey Rafferty is Senior Association Manager for Convention Edinburgh. She explains more about how Convention Edinburgh can help you put your bid together. 

“At Convention Edinburgh we represent anything and everything that can assist with your bidding process. That could be initially preparing the bid with the venue of your choice […] where we work with you to identify the next open year for your conference. 

“We can put a city bid together to include relevant information about Edinburgh. This often covers flight and general transport links. We can focus on the inclusivity and sustainability of the city - all of which is valuable information to include in the bid.”

“The aim of the whole city is bringing people into our wonderful capital to experience what Scotland's like, and to really put Edinburgh on the map as a conference destination.”
Lyndsey Rafferty, Convention Edinburgh

Lyndsey explains that the benefits of the city are highlighted in the bid document, which Convention Edinburgh work with you on to send to the decision makers for your association’s conference. 

“We have all of the latest information from a city point of view, but we need you to tell us the gems of information about sector and your institution, so that we can help you to demonstrate why Edinburgh should be considered for the next rotation of your conference.

“We can help with venue sourcing, and accommodation sourcing if you require it, as well as the all-important social programme - because as we all know, this is where connections are made!”

Social programme activities or events - can involve anything from whisky or gin tasting during a welcome reception to tours for delegates around Edinburgh or Scotland. “The aim for the whole city is bringing people into our wonderful capital to experience what Scotland is like, and to really put Edinburgh on the map as a conference destination.”

Online resources

Convention Edinburgh has a wealth of valuable resources available on its website, including a toolkit to help you put your bid presentation together to present Edinburgh as a potential next destination. There is information on Edinburgh as well as a venue shortlisting tool, which Lyndsey explained:

“You can input that you need a 200-person theatre, and the tool will shortlist the spaces most appropriate for your size. You can then take it forward and put your request for a proposal to the venue directly. The venues will then come back to you with their best proposals. Alternatively, we can do that sourcing for you.”

What is a PCO?

A PCO (Professional Conference Organiser) specialises in the planning, management and execution of conferences and other larger events. They provide a full event management service, including aspects like venue liaison and financial management.

Speakers at the Knowledge Exchange included Margaret Sherry, Founder and Managing Director of In Conference, a full service PCO company, and Jenny Elliot, Director of Events at PCO and Management company, Fitwise Management. Margaret explained the role of PCOs.

“Usually, a good PCO would be accredited - either a member of the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO) or IAPCA. So there's lots of different ways to look at a PCO and see whether that’s a good fit for you.”
Margaret Sherry, In Conference

“There are various types of PCOs; those who are locally based and know the venue and the geographical area really well. There are also those, like In Conference, who do events throughout the UK and overseas. So they have a wider knowledge of what it’s like to organise events in different cities, which I think is important. 

“Usually, a good PCO would be accredited - either a member of the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO) or IAPCA. So there's lots of different ways to look at a PCO and see whether they will be a good fit for you.

“Having a PCO from day one is, I would say, absolutely crucial. Without any obligation, a lot of PCO’s would assist you particularly in the bid stage, to understand whether the bid that you're putting forward is realistic and achievable. I think having that support, knowledge and experience is essential.”

Why work with a PCO?

Jenny explained that one of the biggest challenges PCOs face is that people don't necessarily know that they exist. 

“Having a PCO is a bit like a marriage - you're going to be working with them for a long time. So choosing the right PCO for you is really important.”
Jenny Elliot, Fitwise Management

“Often, people don’t know that there is such a thing as a professional conference organiser. It’s important, from the outset, to recognise that events are complex.

“We will always say to our clients: you organise the programme, and we can do the rest. But we can be involved as much or as little as you would like us to be. 

“We recognise that you are very busy people. It’s important to consider who would do the marketing, or the communications? Who would make sure that you are compliant, whether it’s GDPR, VAT or the finance side? You need to ask yourself if you can do it all alone, or if you would benefit from reaching out for professional support - in whatever form that takes. 

“Having a PCO is a bit like a marriage - you're going to be working with them for a long time. So choosing the right PCO for you is really important.”

How to choose the right PCO

Choosing a PCO who has good local knowledge is key, explains Margaret. 

“Having a local PCO can be very beneficial; they’re on your doorstep, they understand the venue, they understand the geographical location. 

“In Conference does events around the world, so we know how to run events wherever they take place, and a lot of the processes are the same. But having someone who knows everything about the geographical area is an absolute bonus. 

“If you're interviewing or researching PCOs, try to identify how they charge. It’s quite a complex area, and different companies do it in different ways. If you have access to initial support - which we offer - we can put a template together which outlines the big questions you should ask.”

Request for tender documents 

When working with a PCO, often you’ll have the opportunity to pull together a request for tender document - or a request for proposal (RFP). Jenny explains more about this. 

“From the outset, we’d advise reaching out to the Convention Bureau, or through ABPCO, so you can find a reputable PCO. When it comes to your RFP, it's really useful to give your PCO enough information. If possible, include historical data and some previous financial data, which gives the PCO an idea of how to structure their fees to work for you. 

“Be as clear as possible from the outset and outline what your requirements are, what your objectives are for your event, and build that into your RFP. Getting it right at that early stage is key for a happy marriage!”

Previous conference organisers share their experience

Professors David Wilson and Richard Russell from the University of Edinburgh organised the Paediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease (PIBD) Congress at the EICC in 2022. They discussed their experience of bringing their global event to Edinburgh. 

“It’s one of the nicest cities in the world, people love coming here. So you don't have to sell the venue and the city too much.”
Richard Russell, University of Edinburgh

“I'd never heard of a conference bid document before, but the EICC were very helpful in putting this together”, said David. “We put a draft budget together with a glossy brochure and a video. I’d say right from the start to contact the EICC as soon as you’re thinking about holding an event there.

“In our bid, we secured letters of support from the University of Edinburgh, from our Scottish society, from our British society, as well as from the City of Edinburgh Council, Convention Edinburgh and the EICC. So it made it look very professional.”

After facing some challenging hurdles ahead of and during the event - including COVID-19 waves, Brexit, and then the announcement of Queen Elizbeth II’s death in the middle of their conference - David and Richard’s event journey was not always smooth. However, they praised the support they received from the EICC.

“The team at EICC were absolutely fantastic. Throughout this, they were very, very flexible, working with us to move the conference from 2021 to 2022, when they were bringing new business in but trying to look after the people from mid 2020 and 2021 whose conferences had been lost. They stuck by us at a really difficult time. 

Richard also highlighted the flexibility of the EICC in terms of organisation as well as the space itself. “The whole venue really is a great space, which allows delegates to move easily from one area to another. I think hosting meetings in Edinburgh, in general, is pretty easy. It’s one of the nicest cities in the world, people love coming here. So you don't have to sell the venue and the city too much.”