The 2024 LAI Inspire & ALHI Showcase at the Watergate Hotel, WDC last Friday wowed meeting professionals with a unique event experience. Leading Authorities, Inc. sponsored distinguished speakers who inspired a packed ballroom of meeting professionals. Guests mingled during lunch and a reception with live music. Whimsical lip readers, liqueur tastings and more, delivered an amusing backdrop.
February 7 2024
New sustainability report shares behind the scenes success and learnings ahead of IMEX Frankfurt 2024
Ahead of this year’s IMEX Frankfurt, taking place 14 – 16 May, the team has published a Sustainable Event Report revealing the successes, experiments and learnings from last year’s show.
The report lifts the lid on sustainability planning in the run-up to and execution of IMEX Frankfurt 2023, sharing notable achievements in waste diversion and energy use, as well as highlighting opportunities for improvement.
| READ FULL RELEASE |
| For further information, please contact: Emma Blake: emma.blake@imexevents.com |
DISCOVER DUNWOODY LAUNCHES PRODUCTION/TRAVEL/PROCUREMENT ASSOCIATES PROGRAM
DUNWOODY, GA – [1/17/2024] – Discover Dunwoody is excited to announce the launch of their Recognition Program for Production/Travel/Procurement Associates. This program aims to honor the exceptional efforts and contributions of individuals within the entertainment industry, specifically in the areas of production, travel, and procurement.
Mark Galvin, Vice President of Marketing at Discover Dunwoody, comments on the initiative, saying, “Our Recognition Program underscores Discover Dunwoody’s commitment to highlighting and honoring the vital contributions of Production, Travel, and Procurement Associates. This program aligns with our mission to support and elevate professionals in the entertainment industry and helps Dunwoody connect to the professionals that can book room blocks in our destination. Since we are only “12 minutes from set to bed” when considering Assembly Studios, we are a great option with 2,100 hotel rooms, 300 places to shop and 200 places to eat.”
In order to broaden our influence and increase awareness, we are partnering with Georgia Production Partnership (GPP), Women in Film and Television Atlanta (WIFTA), and Georgia Entertainment News. This collaboration ensures a fair and expert selection process, ultimately leading to a diverse range of nominees. These industry leaders play a crucial role in spotlighting exceptional individuals across renowned platforms. Nominations can also be submitted at www.discoverdunwoody.com/nomination-form/. Winners enjoy widespread recognition, solidifying the program’s credibility and significance in the entertainment community.
Production/Travel/Procurement Associate Recognition Program Highlights:
Feature Production/Travel/Procurement Associate Monthly recognition:
Quarterly Awards:
2024 Associate of the Year:
Nominate a Production/Travel/Procurement Associate:
Monthly nominees will be highlighted through articles published on the Discover Dunwoody website, social media platforms, and other entertainment outlets.
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For media inquiries, please contact: Ashley Rossolillo, Entertainment Coordinator, Discover Dunwoody, (630)-608-8269,, ashley@discoverdunwoody.com
About Discover Dunwoody:
Discover Dunwoody, the Convention and Visitors Bureau for Dunwoody, Georgia, is dedicated to promoting Dunwoody as a premier destination for leisure, meetings, and events. With its unique blend of modern amenities, a beautiful natural landscape, and vibrant cultural experiences, Dunwoody offers something for everyone. Discover Dunwoody works tirelessly to showcase the city’s exceptional offerings and provide outstanding support to its visitors, partners, and stakeholders. Dunwoody is only 12 minutes set to bed from Assembly Studios.
Providing the best hotel service and amenities is an art that Peppermill Resort has perfected for over 50 years. Exceeding client expectations with a unique experience has been at the forefront of this family-owned and operated resort. Peppermill Reno boasts an experience unlike any other with 1,621 guest rooms and suites as well as 106,000 square feet of flexible event space, which includes Northern Nevada’s largest clear-span meeting space at 62,000 sq. ft.
Attendees will always be provided with a fresh experience at Peppermill Reno, as we are undergoing a transformation in our Peppermill Tower, which features newly remodeled rooms and suites. Located in Reno-Tahoe and spanning more than 45 acres, the property takes pride in continuously reinvesting in the AAA Four Diamond Resort. We offer a complete range of in-house services providing you with control over the cost and scale of your event, while we attend to every need with expert skill, quality, and service. Let the Peppermill Resort help you set the stage for a remarkable event in Reno, Nevada.
Looking for the perfect elevated venue for your special event, wedding, opening reception or product introduction? The Havana Room is truly the perfect choice to impress you and your guests. This lavishly designed space at the Tropicana Las Vegas – a DoubleTree by Hilton is adorned with a magnificent crystal chandelier as the focal design element and located conveniently near the North Tower entrance for easy access. Other highlights include custom banquette-seating areas, an impressive dark wood dance floor, premium built in audio-visual technology, an expansive outdoor area as well as numerous branding opportunities. The Havana Room can easily handle up to 225 for a seated function and 800 people for a fabulous reception. There are still great dates available to utilize this amazing space in 2023 and we have some incentives for those that meet the minimum spend and book and actualize an event before December 30, 2023. These include 3X Hilton Honors Meeting Planner Points on banquet spend, upgraded bar packages, complimentary welcome cocktail/beverage, and much more. Please contact us at Sales@troplv.com for more details and availability.
But it should never come off feeling gratuitous by those who are being shown your gratitude. My number one rule has always been this: make it authentic genuine, and sustainable.
We used to do things like bring pizzas to different departments and also gave away gift cards, movie passes, etc. Those special times were always very much appreciated, as it was a fun way to let off steam, particularly after a demanding group left the hotel. It’s like being back in school – anything that is a break from the doldrums of everyday tasks or schedules is embraced by many and seen as a good thing. Those type of “breaks in the action” to show gratitude are important for team camaraderie and strengthening the bonds between fellow employees who come through for you in some way every day. Too often their deeds are taken for granted.
But there is a very important additional element to all of this high-fiving and pizza, cakes and celebrating together. It’s called sustaining those warm & fuzzies all year long.
Many fellow staffers love the celebrations, and I’m not suggesting you cut those out. But what they really appreciate on a deeper level is a more sustained, constant dose of empathy, understanding, and spirit of cooperation for 52 weeks a year; day in and day out, through the easy days and the rough days. The recommendation here is to show “in the moment” reinforcement and gratitude when it happens or when you see it, when there is no big show to be made. That awareness of those people will pay off in gold. Those little moments, done with consistency, mean more to most than the once-a-year office celebration.
Las Vegas, Nevada, Thursday October 19 – The 12th edition of IMEX America closes on a note of welcome reassurance for the global business events industry today marking its biggest show ever.
With almost 15,000 confirmed participants on the show floor at Mandalay Bay, of which over 5,000 were buyers (including 4,000+ hosted buyers), the success of this year’s IMEX America confirmed the sector has made a fast, robust comeback with growth in all areas, and both short and long-lead business being booked. Exhibitors also reported the welcome return of incentive trips and citywide, multi-venue events.
Buyers, of which one fifth represented the corporate sector, took part in over 80,000 pre-scheduled meetings in three days, of which 73,000 were 1-2-1s with exhibitors.
Beth Olson, director of sales at Visit Santa Barbara, said: “The walk-up meetings have been as beneficial as our scheduled meetings – that was a hidden surprise for us! Our booth partners already have several RFPs in hand and in four days here I’ve covered more business than in four months!”
“We invested in our own booth for the first time as we wanted a stronger presence at the show,” explained Daniel Palamo, Director of Global Sales for Houston First Corporation. “We’ve had more meetings than ever before and a great quality of buyers. They’re coming to us ready to close business.”
Personalization
Many exhibitors attracted strong interest from buyers with their personalized merchandise and unusual activations. The Visit Phoenix booth was constantly busy as buyers lined up to have their photos printed onto an edible cookie. Visit Baltimore’s temporary tattoos also created a buzz, while Brand Makers saw crowds of buyers lining up to design and brand their own baseball cap.
Elsewhere the show’s biggest ever Inspiration Hub, sponsored by WebEx, saw over 2000 people attend education sessions in a variety of formats across six tracks. Topics ranged from the personal – how to manage individual and team members’ mental health – to future trends and forecasts for different territories, sectors and worldwide. As an example, Data Driven Event Marketing Insights with Brittney Hegarty and Nicola Kastner, was set for 30 people but 85 showed up. The high level of interest spoke volumes about how event planners now using data to design events that achieve greater marketing leverage.
AI and event technology were both big talking points among exhibitors and buyers. Interest in AI is clearly strong, although anecdotal reports suggest that so far only a few companies are using it at an enterprise level.
Convenience on the go
Reaction to the ease and simplicity of the new IMEX app powered by Expoplatform was positive, with buyers appreciating the ability to schedule meetings ‘in the moment’ when they spotted business contacts live online. Several exhibitors with a few meeting spaces to fill successfully tapped into the app’s ‘promoted posts’ feature to fill up their schedules within the day. Now that lead-scanning is free and built into the app, the data showed that 124,000 contacts were scanned during the week. The majority were supplier to buyer, but a proportion is also buyers connecting with buyers and exhibitors with exhibitors, confirming the collaborative nature of the industry and the multiple ways in which value and human connections are created face to face at IMEX. In addition, 3000 meetings were booked via the app during the show – a new feature that served its purpose of ‘convenience on the go’.
IMEX Group, CEO, Carina Bauer, remarked, “I’m delighted the industry turned out in such strong numbers from across the globe this week and that IMEX America once again provided a carefully-designed platform for everyone to come together for business, building better human connections around the world, growing and learning from each other. This was our biggest show ever, which was clear from the fact you can’t see the edges anymore!”
Speaking at the show’s traditional closing press conference alongside IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom and CEO, Carina Bauer, were Steve Hill, President & CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Stephanie Glanzer, Chief Sales Officer & Senior Vice President at MGM Resorts International and Drew Holmgreen, Chief Brand Officer at Meeting Professionals International.
IMEX America 2024 will take place at the Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, and opens with Smart Monday, powered by MPI on Monday October 7, followed by the three-day trade show October 8 -10. www.imexamerica.com
This month, ConventionPlanit.com celebrates 20 years of providing direct access to meeting professionals. Twenty years ago, we began as a simple search directory. Fast forward 20 years and we offer a variety of services for meeting professionals, including our cost-free and template-free RFP Valet amenity with white glove service.
Our goal has always been to serve our meeting professionals by providing free resources and a direct conduit to the seller. With a rebound in group business and budget season upon us, below are our tips to circumvent staffing issues and experience greater sales production 2024.
ConventionPlanit.com uniquely produces pre-qualified and unduplicated RFPs that are narrowed to a short list for a higher conversion rate and spin-off business.
Empower your sales team to work with today’s buyers.
Spoiler Alert, and a unique opportunity, too! Gary Hernbroth of Training for Winners, our frequent contributing author on sales tools, tips and coaching, has just informed me that his first book is due out in the first quarter of 2024 and will be titled “Twist the Familiar.” How cool does that sound? It’s about achieving success by doing things in new ways, of thinking differently, of unleashing your innovative, creative spirit, whether in sales, leadership or running your own business. Gary shares some keys for training, prospecting, and making big impacts in the coming year:
“Challenge yourselves to do things in new ways. Even familiar products can and should be presented in different ways since things change so fast, and audiences look for something new. What is new about your company or product? What new stories do you have to tell? What new testimonials can you share? What new problems can it solve? Customers are changing, too, so don’t be afraid to turn over new rocks and “twist the familiar.”
Special Offer: Gary is extending a 20% discount on his training/facilitation, one-on-one coaching, and speaking fees for 2024 exclusively for ConventionPlanit.com members who mention it.
Phone: 925-736-9392/email: gary@trainingforwinners.com
Reach today’s new meeting professionals.
Today’s meeting professionals can no longer be pinned down to any specific location. Commission-free, ConventionPlanit.com attracts 47% of salaried meeting professionals with associations (55%), or corporate (35%) and SMERF/Government (10%). Many of them work hybrid. A whopping 37% are independent meeting professionals who reside in a variety of locations and book anywhere for any market segment.
20 for 20 Special Offer: Learn how to customize a plan to reach more buyers with cost-effective efficiency. To commemorate this milestone, we’re offering 20% off all listing, banner ads, e-mail marketing and e-Newsletter ads and advertorials.
Info@ConventionPlanit.com | 240 347 4459
ConventionPlanit.com members can maximize their presence for free!
Reach out planners where they can also find you. If you’re already a member of ConventionPlanit.com you can take advantage of our free offerings, as follows:
We invite you to schedule time at IMEX America to meet the ConventionPlanit.com team and learn more about our time-saving resources. You will also be automatically entered to win Two Tickets to Paradise!
Click here to make an appointment at IMEX ConventionPlanit.com Booth C4547
ConventionPlanit.com celebrates 20 years offering meeting professionals:
We look forward to meeting you and discussing your needs.
This year’s IMEX America education program, an important adjunct to the show’s powerful business and networking engine, combines education, entertainment and clever new formats to appeal to seasoned veterans, industry first-timers and everyone in between.
As always, all IMEX professional education, including the show’s specialist events for association, corporate and agency planners, is provided free of charge.
Tahira Endean, Head of Programming at IMEX, says this year’s program has been designed with one eye on helping people navigate the future: “The demands on experience design are always evolving which means we approach each education program with a clean slate. IMEX America this October is no different. With an understanding that we all digest information in different ways, and we all want choice, IMEX has developed a ‘pick and mix’ of formats. Attendees can also stop by for a few minutes to listen in if they pass a session that takes their fancy. Above all, we’ve designed content that’s unexpected and prompts people to think about themselves, their roles and their talents differently – if they come away with three to five learnings they can immediately apply, then we’ve done our job!”
Image: Tahira Endean, Head of Programming at IMEX
All IMEX America education is delivered within six tracks: Technology and innovation; Trends and research; People and planet; Business practices; Experience design and the increasingly popular Event marketing. Attendees can choose from over 150 sessions, many of them taking place on the show floor’s newly redesigned, multi-theater Inspiration Hub, sponsored by Webex.
Expect the unexpected
The Party Scientist – aka Jacques Martiquet – more than fits the description of ‘unexpected’. An ‘international joy facilitator’ for Fortune 500 companies and international events, his aim is to help corporate leaders apply the science of human connection. Jacques explains: “My mission is to give as many people as possible the greatest antidepressant: Joyful Human Connection. I do this by uniting and uplifting humans as a speaker, workshop facilitator, entertainer and… party crasher.”
Image: The Party Scientist – aka Jacques Martiquet
Visitors can also expect the unexpected at EventProfs Unplugged – a series of interviews with senior industry leaders in a chat show format where anything can happen! “We’re experimenting with some new formats at the show, and this is one of them. We don’t know what’s going to happen and that’s what I love about it – it’s going to be dynamic and surprising,” says Tahira. “This is where education meets entertainment, which is vital in an age of soundbites, memes and TikTok trends,” she adds.
How can you use visuals to tell a story? This question sits at the heart of a series of daily filmmaker workshops. Creatives from around the world will share their own films and then lead a workshop unpacking how they approached various themes including identity and regenerative tourism.
Encore, Maritz Global Events, DRPG and PCMA are among the organizations sharing new – and often surprising – ways to use technology. Sessions cover AI, the metaverse and hybrid events, centering on real-world experiences and how these technologies are being applied. Tahira explains: “We’re focusing on the human implications of technology. For example, how AI can free up time – our most prized asset, surely? – allowing us all to be more creative.”
Google Xi’s new CoLaboratory
IMEX America 2023 also marks a new milestone in the development of the Google Xi CoLaboratory. With a focus on collaborative exploration, learning and growth, Google and various exhibiting partners and speakers have devised a special program of sessions and spaces focused on experience design and the principles of belonging.
Acclaimed disability advocate, Maayan Ziv, founder of AccessNow and part of IMEX AVoice4All – thought leadership – in association with Destination Toronto, will also be sharing her specialist knowledge: “We’ve seen a considerable shift since the pandemic – an acceleration of organizations’ awareness and understanding of accessibility. It’s a potent economic driver that brings benefits for everyone.”
Image: Maayan Ziv, founder of AccessNow and part of IMEX AVoice4All
In line with current trends and preferences, well-being activities will be embedded across the show and in various styles designed to offer life-hacks, learning, coaching, fitness, nutritional and mental health guidance.
Full details of all education sessions can be found here. All eligible sessions throughout the show carry CMP and other accreditations .
IMEX America 2023 takes place at the Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, and opens with Smart Monday, powered by MPI on Monday October 16, followed by the three-day trade show October 17-19.
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