Aug 18
Ashley ChalmersMember News, Tips for Meeting Planners, Trade Shows ASAE & the Center, attendee interaction, Event Industry Networking, Keep America Meeting, meeting education, social media, Trade Shows
What are planners looking for from the ASAE Expo?
A survey taken on the floor the first two days found planners looking for new ideas and new partnerships. To quote one association planner,
“In order to be successful, we look at our exhibitors not just as exhibitors, but as business partners.”
Face to face interaction with business partners at the expo is an important way to foster connections.
After ASAE has concluded, planners can solidify these new relationships by using ConventionPlanit.com as a web portal to our varied portfolio of suppliers.
Technology, especially social networking, are important components to the meetings industry, but can be made much more successful through new face to face connections!
Aug 04
Ashley ChalmersContests, Tips for Meeting Planners attendee interaction, economy, meeting ideas, meeting planner feedback, Tips for Meeting Planners
A smart way to save on your meeting costs is by cutting back on the breaks.
We worked with a hotel to provide vouchers for breaks instead of serving an expensive break time. Each participant was given vouchers to go to the snack shop located in the hotel lobby.
Each voucher was worth $3. For each item the participant chose, they turned in a voucher. The vouchers were then counted and charged to the master account. This wound up costing considerably less than paying for breaks. Hope this tip helps you in your planning!
…this idea comes from Kathy Craig, Administrative Assistant with Ecumenical Stewardship Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, who just won our July Stellar Tip Contest.
If you have a meeting tip to share, enter the August contest to win a $100 prize!
Jul 29
Ashley ChalmersNews, Tips, Tips for Meeting Planners, Trade Shows attendee interaction, meeting education, meeting planner help, technology, Tips for Meeting Planners
If yesterday’s tech info post tickled your fancy…
…here’s some extra help to get you started:
Watch this short video from MeetingsPodCast.com on how to use Flickr Video for your next meeting or event.
Jun 12
Ashley ChalmersNews attendee interaction, meeting attendance, meeting industry
Technology has certainly helped to improve meetings, but does technology also have the ability to hurt face-to-face meetings?
Carolyn Burns Bass’ comment from our “Meeting Attendance Costs on the Rise” discussion brings this issue to light. She said…
“Social media has made great inroads into corporate communications. Blogs, discussion forums, webinars, etc., are great tools for ongoing projects, planning, and performance boosters. Still, as great as these tools can be, they can’t replace the in-the-skin experience of an on-site meeting, convention, or incentive trip.”
…What do you think? With all of the rising costs facing meetings we’ve discussed, are online meetings such as webinars going to increase, or replace face-to-face meetings? Through podcasts, webinar participants can even simultaneously watch the same lectures…without any travel costs.
The added bonus for this? The podcast can be uploaded onto iTunes, for example, and used for future reference. Not only are similar web-based alternatives more cost efficient, but they eliminate the hassle of travel and conserve the environment.
How can online meetings hurt a company? What do you think the future holds for the industry?
Mar 17
Ashley ChalmersTips for Meeting Planners attendee interaction, Tradeshow Name Badges
Name badges can become a focal point of a meeting and a great way to promote lively and fun interaction among attendees with just a little creativity.
Sue Tinnish of SEAL Inc., who is a popular facilitator, speaker, teambuilder, and trainer, offers these tips for sprucing up name badges:
Add a favorite childhood game, three numbers that are significant to you, a significant accomplishment during the past year, something positive about you, something you could use help with, and/or something you know quite a bit about to the nametag.
Reverse the traditional nametag by writing “My Name is NOT. . .”
Add three things about yourself, two of which are true.
Write the nametag in the form of a headline, such as “Sue Tinnish Lands Big Account with XYZ Association.”
Decorate a fingerprint and decorate it.
Rename your job in layman’s language. For example, an informational system specialist wrote, “Help. Help. Help.”
Set up a “Decorate Your Badge” table with stickers, pins, and other decorations for attendees to personalize their name badges.
Use technology for name badges such as ntag, SpotMe, or SmartBadge. These name badges can communicate with each other and identify specific people for you using Radio Frequency Identification based on information such as name, company, or even your hobby.
“I can’t tell you the number of times I have seen meetings totally energized by using some of these name badge innovations,” Tinnish says. “People get totally into it and before you know it they are learning things about their colleagues that they never would have known otherwise. It’s just great!”
For more great meeting ideas, visit ConventionPlanit.com and click on the “For Planners Only” section and go to the “Stellar Tips” link. There is no registration required and you can even enter your own Stellar Tip for a chance to win a valuable prize.
Sue Tinnish publishes a monthly newsletter, “Tips for Innovative Meetings and Events.” You are invited to subscribe or find past issues at Sue Tinnish’s Website.
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