The Isaac Advantage June 11, 2014 by Dave Lutz Conference organizers who are in it for the long run know that partnerships really matter. In my mind, the best partnerships are the ones where your supplier is doing everything they can to help you win. If you’re strictly looking at them as an expense that needs to be cut, you’re probably working with the … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, meeting planning best practices, technology, tradeshow
Revamping Your Conference Social Media Strategy May 29, 2014 by Dave Lutz Are you bald yet from pulling your hair out dealing with recent social medial platform changes? Or perhaps you’ve spent all afternoon biting your nails wondering how to adapt your conference social media strategy to the platform changes. Social Media Platform Changes Yet Again In the past few months, Facebook has dramatically changed how company … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing Tagged With: , conference ecommunity, conferences, inbound marketing, social media best practices
Three Amen-Astonishing Ways To Improve Your Conference Networking April 21, 2014 by Dave Lutz Networking! It’s one of the top reasons participants say they attend your conference. Yet few know how to do it effectively. Give them a helping hand. Networking’s Value Proposition Networking can be the most subjective and variable portion of your conference value proposition. For some, one or two meaningful interactions can more than justify the … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Networking, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, connections
Sponsorship: From Uninspiring To Really Mattering March 21, 2014 by Dave Lutz When attendees interact with your sponsors, do they feel marginalized or like they really matter? Are you forcing your sponsors’ messages on your conference attendees or helping sponsors offer insights that attendees may actually value? Remember That Last Event You Attended Think back to an event that you attended. Quick: Do you remember any of … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference sponsorship, sponsor acquisition, sponsors
7 Fundamental Ways To Drastically Improve Conference Breakouts February 25, 2014 by Dave Lutz Concurrent sessions, often known as breakouts, are the meat and potatoes of conferences. They are also one of the most difficult areas for your continuous improvement efforts. In many associations, volunteers vet submissions, decide topics and select speakers for their annual meeting’s concurrent sessions. While well intentioned, volunteer committees rarely are equipped with a big-picture … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference education, conference session, conferences, learning trends, meeting industry trends
Proving Conference Emotional Marketing Sponsor Spend January 14, 2014 by Dave Lutz Exhibit-booth footprints are shrinking across nearly every industry. The Good News There is a silver lining though: the opportunity to develop fruitful strategic partnerships. Just be ready to prove why a sponsor’s dollars are well spent on your organization. The Bad News More companies are demonstrating their products and services via digital technology rather than … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference revenues, conference sponsorship, expo revenues, expo sales, sponsor acquisition, sponsorship activation, sponsorship sales
Time To Reboot Your Conference And Event Marketing December 16, 2013 by Dave Lutz Is your event and conference marketing like this… We’d love for you to attend our open house. There will be 99 dishes, 15 colors of napkins, seating for 75, and two buffet tables. Five speakers will present 15 minutes each while you watch in amazement. I bet you can’t wait! If yes, it’s time to … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing Tagged With: , Attendee Acquisition, conference marketing, event marketing, target market
Engaging Conference Attendees At Hello Results In Big Rewards November 22, 2013 by Dave Lutz Are you looking for ways to improve your conference attendee loyalty? If yes, and I’m sure you are, here’s an effective strategy: Integrate a deliberate on-boarding effort for new attendees into your attendance-marketing plan. Master this and you’ll receive big rewards! First Time Attendee Trend Our industry is experiencing an interesting trend with the increase … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Networking, Experience Design Tagged With: , attendee loyalty, conference marketing, connexity, event marketing, networking
The Sponsorship Whisperer Builds Trust With Each Encounter November 8, 2013 by Dave Lutz Horse whisperers move carefully, listen intently, and earn trust through each encounter, even with the most unruly of horses. And there’s a lot they can teach us about sponsorship sales. Many conferences struggle with flat or declining revenue from exhibitors and sponsors. For some, it’s because their attendees don’t have enough buying influence or authority. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference revenues, conference sponsorship, expo revenues, expo sales, sponsor acquisition, sponsorship activation, sponsorship sales
Three Conference Speaker Ahas You Need to Know November 6, 2013 by Dave Lutz How does your conference speaker selection process compare to other organizations? What’s working and what isn’t when it comes to selecting and securing industry and professional speakers? The Use Of Professional And Industry Speakers The past summer, Velvet Chainsaw partnered with Tagoras, a leading market research and consulting company for learning, to survey conference professionals … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , association trends, conference education, conference tips, conferences, industry speaker, meeting industry trends, speaker
