It’s the big moment of the year: the time when budgets take shape!
Some properties have already finalised their forecasts and action plans; others are still working on them. No panic: the goal isn’t to go fast, but to build a solid foundation for a realistic and ambitious 2026.
Strengthen your 2025 forecasts
Before projecting 2026, make sure your year-end forecasts truly reflect reality. Adjust them with the latest figures from your pipeline and your actual performance.
This will allow you to build consistent targets based on reliable data, not wishful thinking.
Keep control of your pipeline
Your year-end pipeline partly determines your Q1 2026.
Set clear conversion targets up to mid-December: after that date, the volume of signed business slows down significantly. And above all, avoid backloading: counting on a miraculous Q4 has never worked if it never has before.
Q1: the key conversion quarter
In banqueting and MICE, the first quarter is often the conversion quarter: corporate clients, kick-off meetings, launch seminars… Anticipate this now in your sales strategy: plan your marketing actions, newsletters, client events and get your teams ready.
Analyse your major past events
Identify the major 2024–2025 events (those representing more than 20% of the monthly revenue). Ask yourself: will they come back? Were they exceptional? Could their absence explain a temporary dip?
Marking these events in your budget helps you distinguish structural gaps from one-off effects.
Reactivate your former clients
Don’t limit yourself to the last 12 months. Look at 2023 and 2024: who were your recurring groups? Which accounts have disappeared? Reactivating a lost client is almost always cheaper than acquiring a new one.
A simple personalised message or a targeted offer may be enough to restart a collaboration.
Dream your segments… and plan your actions
A good budget is also a vision: imagine the segments or types of clients you’d like to attract in 2026. Then translate that into concrete, month-by-month action plans.
For example, block out half a day every two weeks for proactive actions: prospecting, competitive intelligence, follow-ups, fine-tuning your offers.
Prioritise profitability over volume
Don’t just chase the number of events: work on the average value per client. Put in place simple, repeatable upsell routines, such as: “Our Chef has created a new morning break menu with a seasonal live station: it’s an extra €5 per person, would you be interested?”
When they’re well integrated into your process, add-on sales can transform your margins.
Use the right tools
Feel free to rely on tools like ChatGPT to refine your ideas, generate action plans tailored to your resources (time, team, budget), or even simulate different budget scenarios. AI is an excellent partner to structure your thinking and boost your creativity.
In short: be realistic in your targets, proactive in your actions, and creative in your ambitions. The key to a strong banquet budget is not only predicting correctly, but steering it effectively throughout the year.
Want to go further?
Contact Agathe Carreau, Consultant & Trainer at Rev4Hosp, who runs MICE Workshops to boost your banquet sales performance: agathe@rev4hosp.com
