Thanks to the sluggish economy, "budget planning" is an increasingly important part of "meeting planning." Successful Meetings blogger Tim Brown therefore recommends keeping track of "value" measurements to help you build your case for meetings and events with senior management. One such measurement is cost savings. "From your countersigned contract, create a cost savings report for each meeting, breaking down savings by category (room rates, concessions, hotel fees and surcharges, hotel support services, preferred supplier volume buying, etc.)," suggests Brown, who is CEO at Meeting Sites Resource, a global specialist in meeting site research and hotel/contract negotiations. "The key here is transparent and realistic metrics to calculate a dollar amount and be prepared to defend your math."