The Extraordinary Social Media Event Marketing Guide Infographic January 17, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Having a social media plan for your next event is critical to your success. It shouldn’t be an afterthought or something only your attendees use. Here’s an infographic from Marketo that will help you create a Social Media Event Marketing Plan. It’s taken directly from Marketo’s free Definitive Guide to Event Marketing (in case you … [Read more…] Filed Under: Social Media Tagged With: , conference marketing, event marketing, social media for associations, social media for events
Avoid The Conference Zombie Zone January 13, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Do your conference’s education efforts result in the living dead or do they create life-transforming moments? Meeting professionals who understand Evidence Based Education (EBE)—the science and evidence on learning –and those who apply EBE strategies derived from the research, will find their conference education efforts becoming more effective and exciting. Here is the slide deck … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , brain science education, brain-friendly conferences, brain-friendly meetings, conference, conference best practices, education best practices
How To Use Shatterpoints as Early Conference Warning Signs January 9, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Have you ever hit a shatterpoint with your conference? You’ll know if you have because it made your entire conference unravel, freeze or die. Conference Shatterpoints What’s a shatterpoint, you ask? A shatterpoint is like a fault line, crack or an area of weakness in a path of action. In Star Wars, shatterpoints are a … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference indicators, conference performance indicators, KPI, KPIs, shatterpoints
Stop Trying To Offer Conference Content To Everyone January 8, 2014 by Jeff Hurt As a conference organizer, you want everyone to become a registrant, right? Male, female, young, old and everyone in between. So you try to attract as many people as possible with your programming. And you try to reach as many people as possible with your marketing. You are willing to take money from anyone willing … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult education, Attendee Acquisition, conference education, conferences, event marketing, target market
Why Your Conference Needs To Focus On Building A Loyal Proprietary Audience January 7, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Quick: What is the most important asset of your conference today? Sponsors? Exhibitors? Your brand? Your events team? Your history? The venue? Your vendors? The content? Your speakers? Your technology? Yeah, all of these are likely responses. However, there’s one asset that most conference organizers and hosts constantly miss when responding to this question: audiences. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing, Business Model Tagged With: , attendee loyalty, audience expectations, loyalty, target market
It Is Time To Hold Conference Speakers More Accountable January 6, 2014 by Jeff Hurt It’s time to hold speakers accountable for attendee learning, not just completed evaluation smile sheets! It’s time to encourage conference speakers to consciously improve. And if we want our conference speakers to improve, we need to provide them with information that shows where they need to improve and how to improve. What Product Does A … [Read more…] Filed Under: Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , adult education, brain science education, education best practices, presentation best practices, speaker tips
Just Because You Speak Does Not Mean Your Audience Learns: Eight Presenter Principles To Master January 3, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Most speakers are really good at talking! But talking to your audience does not mean that your audience is learning. Our Brains Have Limits As speakers, we have assumed that talking to an audience results in their learning. We think that their minds are like sponges absorbing what we are saying. But just hearing information … [Read more…] Filed Under: Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , adult education, brain science education, education best practices, presentation best practices, speaker tips
20+ Tradeshow Trends For 2014 And Beyond December 20, 2013 by Jeff Hurt The events, exhibitions and meetings industry continues to evolve as it faces global changes and disruptive innovation. Here are 20+ tradeshow trends for exhibitors and show managers. 20+ Tradeshow Trends For 2014 & Beyond from Jeff Hurt View this the 20+ Tradeshow Trends for 2014 & Beyond in your own broswer . What trends would … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference, exhibitions, exhibitor, meeting industry trends, trade show, tradeshow, tradeshow best practices, trends
Attendee Satisfaction Or Delight Does Not Lead To Conference Loyalty December 17, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Organizations tend to overestimate the loyalty they get from exceeding customer expectations and customer satisfaction says new research from CEB. So what does this mean to conferences? Satisfaction of a conference experience is not a predictor of loyalty to the conference or organization. “…We found no statistical relationship between how a customer rates a company … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , attendee loyalty, loyalty, satisfaction
Your Conference Is Not As Unique As You Think December 11, 2013 by Jeff Hurt I’ve got news for conference organizers and hosts. Your conference is not as unique as you think. For the past three years, the team at Velvet Chainsaw Consulting has been reviewing, evaluating and analyzing annual meetings and conferences. Almost every one of our 30+ clients has started our review process with the following statement, “Our … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference's common benefits, conference's unique benefits, meeting planning, meeting professional, status quo, unforgettable events
