Thanks a million — dollars, that is. That's how much Vicky Betzig, CMP, a Brookfield, Wis.-based consultant and independent meeting planner, saved a client on food and beverage costs by simply tightening up the food and beverage guarantees.

Previously, the group had guaranteed “everybody for every meal,” she says. So, for a meeting of 6,000 people, that meant 6,000 breakfasts, 6,000 lunches, 6,000 dinners, every day — for five days. But when she dove into the history, demographics, and past behaviors, Betzig found that not everybody went to all the meals, particularly on the last day of the conference when people were leaving for home.

“For a big group like that, it was almost a full-time job (getting a handle on how much food and beverage to guarantee),” says Betzig. Or, planners can make attendees sign up for meals in advance and exchange a ticket for each meal.

“The No. 1 way to cut costs in food and beverage is to spend the time and effort managing guarantees better.”