Do I Have to Use the Hotel's In-House AV Company?

No.

Just because your hotel has Encore, Five-Star or another in-house AV company doesn't mean you have to use them to produce your event.

You can almost always bring in your own event production company.

The hotel or in-house provider may still control things like rigging, power and internet. That's normal.

But the production itself? You have options.

Why does the hotel make it sound like I have to use them?

Because they're in-house.

They're already in the building, they're part of the hotel's sales process, and in many cases the hotel has a financial relationship with them.

That doesn't make them your only option.

Is bringing in an outside production company cheaper?

Almost always.

One of the biggest differences is the surcharge. In-house AV companies can have service charges around 20% added to the bill.

On a $100,000 production, a 21% surcharge is another $21,000.

An outside production company doesn't have that hotel surcharge.

You may still have to pay the hotel or its in-house provider for things they control, like rigging, power and internet.

But you're not paying an additional 21% on the entire production just because the AV company is inside the hotel.

What about different hotels?

Same rules apply.

Whether your event is at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort, The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, MGM Grand Las Vegas or another major hotel, having an in-house AV provider doesn't mean they have to produce your event.

We've produced events in hotels and convention properties across the country. The names change — Encore, Five-Star and others — but the process is basically the same.

The hotel or in-house provider handles what they're required to handle.

We handle the production.

Will the hotel care if I bring in my own company?

Usually, no.

We work alongside hotels and their in-house AV companies all the time. They handle the services they're responsible for. We handle the production.

When should I tell the hotel?

As early as possible.

Tell the hotel you're bringing in your own production company.

Don't ask if you can.

Then find out what services the hotel or in-house AV company requires you to use and what those costs are.

That's it.

What if Encore or Five-Star already sent me a proposal?

You can still get another proposal.

Receiving an Encore or Five-Star proposal doesn't mean you've committed to using them.

I've watched clients assume for years that because Encore is in the hotel, Encore has to produce the event.

They don't.

Tell the hotel you're bringing your own production company.

Let the hotel tell you what services they require you to use.

Everything else is your production.