Q&A Will Not Satisfy Conference Audience Cravings For Participation September 9, 2013 by Donna Kastner Mary: Impressive presentation, John, but I’m a little concerned that there’s no audience participation. John: No problem, we’ll open the floor to Q&A at the end. Mary: Okay, but there’s still 45 minutes of one-way lecturing going on. John: Good point. Let’s add another Q&A segment midway through the presentation. We interrupt this blog post with an important … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design Tagged With: , active learning, adult learning, brain-friendly conferences, conference best practices, Education & Adult Learning
Secrets For Growing Conference Sponsorship Revenues August 8, 2013 by Donna Kastner Many conference and trade show organizers are focusing more attention on exhibit and sponsorship sales. Yet, the traditional revenue mix from exhibits and sponsorship is changing. More digital demonstration channels are being adopted and booth footprints are shrinking. The future opportunity is to shift reduced marketing spend from exhibitor booth square feet to more sponsorship. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , booth sales, exhibit sales, expo, sponsorship, trade show
How Tablet Friendly Is Your Conference? July 17, 2013 by Donna Kastner Pew Research released an interesting report: Tablet Ownership 2013. Findings are based on phone interviews conducted with 2,252 adults ages 18 and older in April and May 2013. Attendees are toting tablets at conferences and trade shows in record numbers. They’re downloading slide decks, taking notes, verifying facts, swapping content info, snapping photos, tweeting, posting and scanning attendee … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Technology, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, Education & Adult Learning, iPad, networking, smart device, tablet, trade show
Five Key Conference Design Elements Driving The C2-MTL Experience May 31, 2013 by Donna Kastner It’s not often that we get a chance to fully immerse ourselves in an extraordinary conference experience. Such was the case for me last week at C2-MTL. If you’re a “frequent flyer” here on the Velvet Chainsaw Midcourse Corrections blog, you may recall a post I filed last week as I was midway through C2-MTL. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , active participation, C2-MTL, conference best practices, engagement
C2-MTL: A Conference Dream Becomes A Reality May 23, 2013 by Donna Kastner In 2010, Daniel Lamarre (CEO, Cirque du Soleil) longed for a new kind of business conference. One where business leaders from all walks of life might come together to explore, discuss and design best options to inspire creativity and innovation within their own companies. Lamarre shared his dream with Sid Lee, a creative services firm based … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , C2-MTL, conference, engagement, Innovation
The Participant Value Game: Time to Go Deep & Wide March 6, 2012 by Donna Kastner It’s a whole new ballgame for associations and their conferences, particularly when it comes to building long-term loyalty. New realities are taking shape, disrupting previous value models and perceptions. Reality #1: Senior executives are more involved in attendance and membership decisions. They’re scrutinizing ROI more closely and pushing back on fuzzy estimates. Reality #2: While … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing, Business Model Tagged With: , association best practices, event revenues, Event ROI, event value
