Everyone’s talking about the need to create customer experiences. (Yes, including us, the Velvet Chainsaw team.) It’s as if Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore’s Experience Economy is just now hitting its stride—for conferences at least. The word is out: we’ve got to create conference experiences, not just conferences that feel like a patchwork quilt of our great grandmother’s dresses. However, what we really need are transformative conference experiences! We need to create conference opportunities … [Read more...]
Attract With Content; Keep Them With The Experience
The internet has made world-class content front, center, mobile and affordable—often free. Anyone can hear the best experts for free (or nearly free) on almost any device they own. Anyone can get thought leadership at their fingertips. And your conference audience does. They have access to the same information you do. They can hear, watch and read the greatest speakers anytime. Technology Disrupts Traditional Content-Driven Conferences So why should someone pay a registration fee, book a … [Read more...]
Mediocrity Is Your Biggest Conference Competitor
Your real conference competition is not that event held six months after yours. Nor is your competitor time, money and resources. Your real competitor is mediocrity to paraphrase authors Karin Hurt and David Dye. You’re In A Difficult Position: Look Backwards Or Forwards For Programming? Today’s technology driven, hyper-connected, instant gratification, real-time world puts you as a conference organizer in a difficult position. You’re expected to deliver highly participatory, … [Read more...]
What Participants Expect From 21st Century Conference Experiences
Everything we take for granted about conferences, and planning them, faces disruption. Participants from all generations and cultures increasingly expect conferences to mirror their work and personal lives. They expect conferences that are authentic, connected, contextual, mobile, participatory, work-related and transparent. Savvy conference organizers meet these disruptions head-on. They know how to segment their target market with personalized messages that help them solve their … [Read more...]
Your Conference Needs To Focus On Providing 4D Experiences
Conferences need 4D experiences: deep learning, deep play, deep reflection and deep connections. You probably recall a time in your life when you viewed a 3D movie. You wore 3D glasses and the images looked like they popped out of the screen. Your conference needs more than the gimmick of 3D glasses. It needs authentic 4D experiences. It needs opportunities for participants to experience deep learning, deep play, deep reflection and deep connections. 21st Century 4D Experiences Too many … [Read more...]
Impotent Conferences Are Powerless To Influence Forward Movement
Imagine a radio station that played adult contemporary, classical, country, dance, electronic, golden oldies, heavy metal, news, pop, R&B, rock, southern gospel and talk alternating between each. What if this commercial radio station tried to appeal to everyone’s musical taste as well as news and talk radio? How successful would it be? It wouldn’t work, you say. We chuckle at that thought that this type of radio station would succeed. No one would even listen to this … [Read more...]
Misguided And Misinformed Conference Barometers
Many of us who plan conferences have become so busy at the logistics of the event that we lose sight of the goal. When planning an event, we immediately go into automatic overdrive. We do the same things we’ve always done because it’s efficient and familiar to us. The over arching goals of the conference—providing networking, education, business leads and making a profit for the host organization—become eclipsed by the expectations of the organizing team. Rarely do we take the time to step … [Read more...]
Human Centered Design Will Impact Your Conference Experience [Infographic]
Take a look at some of the research and predictions from Hyper Island on how Experience Design is more critical to businesses than price. Applying this research to the business of conferences, paid attendee experience will soon become the unique selling point of conference over price and product. Are you even thinking about designing a conference experience for the target market? Or are you still using 20th Century industrial models for development of the conference which leads to a … [Read more...]
