Success Story: Reno Sparks Convention & Visitor’s Authority

Staff were reluctant to use their previous software due to its complicated user experience. Many found their own work-arounds to avoid interacting with it. “Half our team used the old system and the other half just completely disregarded it,” Renee recalled. “We would put information in our previous system but it wasn’t always reflected in the shared files the non-users accessed, so the work of one event was often doubled across our entire staff due to the back-and-forth.”

Renee was surprised to see how easily and quickly staff members began incorporating VenueOps into their daily work. “Because many of our staff members were wary of our previous system, there was a bit of skepticism about transitioning to a new one at first. I think the assumption was that any booking system would be cumbersome,” she explained. “Then there was another portion of our  team that was excited about a new system, because they knew it couldn’t be worse than the one we currently used,” she said.

Regardless of what their initial feelings were, Renee explained how all staff members were pleasantly surprised in their first VenueOps training. “This is so easy. Wow, this one task doesn’t take 20 steps,” were the comments Renee recalled. “So, we actually saw the other 50% of our staff come around to VenueOps pretty quickly,” she concluded.

One of the biggest challenges the team at Reno Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority faced with their previous software was the inability to see all of their venues in a single calendar view. “We couldn’t see all of our properties on one screen so we would actually have to have four different windows open at the same time,” Renee explained, “So one of our goals was to unify all four properties so it could feel like we were all one team working together—rather than smaller, disparate groups stepping on each other’s toes.”

The different ways VenueOps can display venue and event information in a calendar view proved to be extremely helpful. Users have the option to see as much or as little detail on the calendar as they want, depending on what filters they apply. “Having all four venues available on one screen made a huge difference, and unified our team in a way our previous system couldn’t,” said Renee.

Prior to adopting VenueOps, Renee explained how their operations team was heavily “paper based” and relied on circulating paper copies of event orders and other important information. “It was easy for someone to mistakenly reference an out-of-date copy, or simply forget to bring the right copy with you to the other side of the property.”

The lack of instant access to updated information was also a challenge for their sales team if a client was visiting on-site prior to an event, and wanted information about room availability “on the fly.”

“We always try to anticipate a clients needs,” Rennee said, “but sometimes they’d be thinking out loud and wonder—’What about that room over there?’ or ‘I actually like this space better, will this be available?’ and I couldn’t give them a definitive answer on the spot without running back to my desk to check on my computer. I’d have to make a note of their question and get back to them later, rather than being able resolve it immediately.

Because VenueOps is mobile friendly, Renee explained how all the information her team needs is now at their fingertips. “We can access up-to-date, accurate information in an instant with VenueOps on our phones,” she said, “and that has been a game-changer for our operations team, our sales team, and several others.”

Without the “back and forth” dynamic that came with their paper processes, Renee estimated that VenueOps has sped up their usual tasks by 50% and saved them about $10,000 on paper and ink costs alone.

“Take an event order, for instance—we’d have to print all those papers out, put them in order, and distribute them. Or I’d have to say ‘let me get back to you on that’ to any given client with an unexpected question about availability if I wasn’t in my office. The time saving is great, but then there’s the very real savings on the cost of paper and ink. I’d say it’s $10,000 at least.”