Tag: event experience


A Journey Down Conference Street

So go downtown Things will be great when you’re downtown No finer place for sure, downtown Everything’s waiting for you* *Downtown as sung by Petula Clark. Take A Mental Stroll It’s time to take a nostalgic journey downtown on Conference Street. Visualize yourself walking down a traditional city lane. Both sides are lined with the … [Read more…]

Our Screwed Up Thinking About Creating Conference Experiences

As conference organizers, we need to learn about the power of experience. Well, we already know about experiences. We have them all the time. We’ve had experiences with our families and friends. We’ve had experiences with work. We’ve had school experiences. We’ve had experiences with institutions and organizations. We’ve had vacation experiences. Terrible, Horrible, No … [Read more…]

Attendee Experience The Next Frontier For Differentiation

Most conference experiences are very similar. They have similar schedules, receptions, general sessions, breakouts, exhibit halls, lecture-style education offerings, quality and price. They all look and feel alike. Too many conferences are on the verge of commoditization. One of the conference’s main offering—delivery of information disguised as education—is so widely available and mutually interchangeable with … [Read more…]

Conference Organizers Should Be Great CEOs: Chief Experience Officers!

What do conference organizers really do? They organize all the aspects of the conference experience. I believe that title—conference organizer–doesn’t serve us anymore. It doesn’t convey the right information as putting together logistics is like putting together quilt pieces without any plan. It’s just stitching pieces together and crossing your fingers that it will result … [Read more…]

Some Conferences Are Like Bad Funerals

Many annual meetings are like funerals of the past. Quiet, stoic, painfully long, full of tradition, and extremely passive. It’s hard to tell who really died as the audience is just as lifeless as the deceased. Sometimes these traditional conferences have doses of fear and damnation trying to scare people into doing something they don’t … [Read more…]

Why Conference General Sessions Should Be More Like The Olympics

The 2012 London Olympics were an interesting diversion from U.S. politics, the scorching heat and a questionable economy. They captivated our attention as we rooted for our countries, the underdog and individuals that had overcome great odds. Even when an athlete from another part of the world broke some amazing record, we united with our … [Read more…]

Exceeding Conference Attendee Expectations

What would it take for your conference attendees to call your annual meeting the greatest event on the Earth? Animal acts? High wire tightrope acrobatics? Clowns? Three rings of ongoing entertainment? A live band? It’s challenging to keep annual meetings fresh and exciting while maintaining integrity. Yet it’s very easy to duplicate last year’s event … [Read more…]

Improving Conference Attendee Experiences

Experiences are better when conferences are built around people. The conference experience greatly improves for all stakeholders when they are built around people and their relationships. Traditional Conference Experience The traditional conference is built around logistics and content. The majority of the conference organizer’s time is spent selecting and scheduling speakers. Organizers choose speakers based … [Read more…]

Going Viral: Be The Real Thing

I took my friends to one of my favorite weekend haunts, Kirin Court, a Chinese dim sum experience in far North Dallas. On weekends they offer a special buffet-type affair from 10 am – 10 pm. The Sunday wait time is usually at least an hour. The lines are long even though the restaurant seats … [Read more…]

Roller Coaster Scream Machines, Ho-Hum Train Rides And Event Experiences

Your palms sweat. Your heart races. Adrenalin pulses through your veins. The closer you get to the main entrance, the more your body is on high alert. Part of you wants to run away as fast as possible. Part of you wants to stay and conquer. Finally, it’s your turn. You sit in the small … [Read more…]