Why Your Conference Needs More Connexity: Community And Connections May 15, 2013 by Dave Lutz With information accessible 24/7 online, networking has become one of the primary reasons people choose to attend your conference. The opportunity to connect face-to-face is too critical to be happenstance. Creating Conference Connections That Matter Conference attendees want dedicated time that they can connect with individuals to share stories, insight and experiences. Speed networking is … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Networking, Experience Design Tagged With: , community, conference best practices, conferences, connect, connexity, meetings as connections, networking
Does Your Conference Promote The Wrong End Of A Telescope? May 10, 2013 by Jeff Hurt “How much are our attendees willing to pay?” It is a question that many conference hosts and organizers frequently ask when they begin planning their events. It’s like asking the question, “What topics do you want to hear at next year’s conference?” Instead of asking, “What’s keeping you up at night?” Challenge is that this … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , attendee, conference best practices, conference experience, conferences, experience economy, meeting experience
Does Your Conference Foster These Five Core Attendee Experience Principles? May 8, 2013 by Jeff Hurt The experience matters! It is one of the most (over?) used business phrases today. Most business professionals agree that the experience matters to consumers. As consumers, we even agree that our experiences with brands and organizations drive our future buying decisions. So why is it that most conference organizers do not focus on designing the … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference experience, conferences, experience economy, meeting experience
The Changing Role Of Conference Education May 1, 2013 by Jeff Hurt The abundance of information, resources and relationships that is easily accessible via the internet increasingly challenges the traditional conference education model. In a world where information is everywhere, do people really want to pay for registration, airfare, lodging and expenses to access more information at a conference, even if it’s information from their colleagues? Not … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning, conference best practices, conference education, conferences, meeting planning best practices, sense-making
Is Your Conference Churning Out Junk Information? April 30, 2013 by Jeff Hurt We live in world where overconsumption is the norm. We over consume things to keep up with the Jones and Smiths. We over consume food at all you can eat smorgasbord buffets and 24 hour drive thrus. We over consume information from a variety of sources. Today, we have factory farms that churn out junk … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, content, meeting best practices, meeting planning best practices
Fighting Cynicism As A Meeting Professional April 26, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Cynicism is contagious! So is hope! Which do you display the most? Cynicism or hope? And if you work with others that are true cynics, do NOT forward this post to them. It will just make matters worse. Cynicism Is A Luxury You Can’t Afford Cynicism is an ugly lavishness that you don’t need. It … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conferences, meeting planner, meeting planning best practices, meeting professional
The Truly Networked Conference April 25, 2013 by Jeff Hurt We’ve grown up believing that the way to get knowledge is to study hard and become an expert. We’ve spent time and money to earn degrees and specific credentials all towards gaining more knowledge. We write books, teach others, take classes and engage in ongoing research to grow our knowledge. We even attend conferences and … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Networking, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference education, conferences
Conference Bulk Learning Is An Oxymoron April 24, 2013 by Jeff Hurt It sounds so cliché: Conference bulk learning is an oxymoron. Yet, too many of us have bought into the idea that the more information we have, the more information that we consume, the more information that we try to stuff in our heads, the better we are. Ultimately, information has become a problem, not a … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning, conference best practices, conference education, conferences
Two Extremes Of Conference Content Capture: Bite Size Best April 18, 2013 by Dave Lutz Do you provide content capture of your conference sessions? If you do, are your conference recordings experiencing a decline in consumption, especially those synced to PowerPoint? If not, I predict it’s just a matter of time before your royalties evaporate. Learning Re-enforcement and Attraction Capturing content at your premier face-to-face conferences is a must! Capturing … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Technology, Experience Design, Hybrid & Virtual Tagged With: , conference recordings, conferences, content capture, hybrid meetings, virtual event
Networking For Learning And What’s Next April 11, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Every first quarter I receive a string of emails from my undergraduate school inviting me to annual Homecoming and reunion. A couple months later, I start receiving emails from my high school inviting me back for my annual reunion. I decided a long time ago that I really didn’t want to relive my high school … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Conference Networking Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, meeting best practices, networking