Are You A Risky RFP Abuser? April 12, 2012 by Dave Lutz Our profession is at risk. More small meetings, shorter lead times and RFP abuse are on a collision course for commoditizing our industry. It shouldn’t be commoditized! Hotels react by throwing technology and lower-level sales professionals against the problem. The model is not sustainable. Group Meetings Are Big Business Even a small meeting of 25 … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, hotel group sales, meeting planning best practices, meeting professionals, RFP, securing meeting venues
Deal Or No Deal: Overcoming Barriers With Hotel Contracts March 23, 2012 by Dave Lutz You’ve found the perfect hotel for your meeting. It’s a great location. You were able to negotiate a good room rate. The concession package and your meeting space flows well too. The Contract’s T&Cs Cause You To Pause The hotel sends you a contract to secure the deal. As you review the 14-page document, you … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , contract negotiations, contracts, meeting planner, meeting planning best practices, meeting professional
Leveraging Professional Speakers For Conference Impact March 15, 2012 by Dave Lutz Most conference expense budgets are tight and limiting. Technology innovations, including Skype, Snagit, DIY screen capture and affordable video editing tools, can help you bring more thought leaders to your conference experience. Increasing Conference Value With Professional Speakers Professional speakers are often the most remembered, valued and polished elements of a conference. Typically they are … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design, Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, presentation best practices, professional speakers, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices
Six Conference Committee Improvements February 22, 2012 by Dave Lutz When it comes to the traditional volunteer conference planning committee model, there seems to be plenty of room for improvement. Here are a half-dozen ways to create a more rewarding experience for your volunteers and better results for your organization: 1. Stay out of the weeds. If your committee charter includes selecting what kind of … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , association best practices, conference best practices, conferences, meeting planner, meeting planning best practices
Four Ways To Get Your Conference Education Out Of A Rut February 6, 2012 by Dave Lutz Ruts. We all have them. A rut is a settled or established habit or course of action, especially a boring one. It is usually a boring, predictable, stale routine. So, is your conference education stuck in a rut? Have you created predictable tracks and paths? If you’re like most meeting professionals, you start planning for … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning, adult learning principles, adult learning strategies, conference best practices, conference education, meeting planning best practices, presentation best practices, speaker tips
Do Not Let Your Legacy AMS Kill Your Conference January 25, 2012 by Dave Lutz Here’s a newsflash for your IT department: Technology that is built for purpose (registration, expo sales, speaker management, etc.) does not need to integrate with your legacy association management system (AMS) in order to be implemented. Read that again! It’s true and something you need to understand before your AMS kills your conference. Your Customer … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Technology Tagged With: , association best practices, conference best practices, conferences, event technology, mobile, tradeshow technology
Donna Kastner Joins The Velvet Chainsaw Team January 6, 2012 by Dave Lutz From Velvet Chainsaw’s Managing Director, Dave Lutz. I’m excited to announce that Donna Kastner is joining the Velvet Chainsaw team starting January 8, 2012 as Director, Education & Engagement! I had the privilege to work with Donna for several years when we were both with Experient. She’s someone that I know well and trust immensely! … [Read more…] Filed Under: Ramblings Tagged With: , Donna Kastner
We Need a Little Community, Right This Very Minute! December 20, 2011 by Dave Lutz Your organization is no longer the only game in town. Unless your business has golden handcuffs like certification, you’re probably having a challenge with retention and attracting new members. Your business needs an effective strategy to increase value and grow loyalty. The most urgent and critical opportunity for membership organizations to increase value and grow … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing Tagged With: , community, community management, loyalty, online ecommunity
Bite-Sized Conference Sessions: Do They Work? November 8, 2011 by Dave Lutz Shorter education sessions are not the secret sauce for making boring or ineffective conferences appetizing. They may be more innovative and less predictable. They are even more entertaining. Unfortunately, rapid-fire five-to-18-minute presentations don’t improve learning. Unless you intentionally add time for context and meaning making. Shorter Conference Session Trends There is a growing trend for … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference education, conferences, Ignite, meeting planning best practices, Pecha Kucha
Co-Locating Your Conference Can Be Risky And Rewarding September 13, 2011 by Dave Lutz Co-locating your conference can be a high-risk, high-reward proposition. Before you decide to co-locate your conference with another conference, you need to view the decision through a strategic long-term lens. Defining Co-Location At the basic level, co-locating a conference is placing two or more conferences at the same location, at the same time. Some organizers … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model Tagged With: , co-location, conference best practices, conferences, meeting planning, meeting planning best practices, tradeshow, tradeshow best practices
