Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 21, 2016

When Conference Plans Land On Chutes. So many conference leaders, organizers and planning teams are obsessed with details, logistics and planning. Their plans actually obscure their conference’s vision. Their attention to detail and efficiency eclipses the conference purpose.

Conference Planning

GEVME

JUNE 13, 2018

The unique story of any conference should begin with the goal and then a detailed plan on how to reach this goal. If you understand your target audience, it’s not a challenge to build such a conference vision. If you understand your target audience, it’s not a challenge to build such a conference vision.

Conference Planning

Velvet Chainsaw

SEPTEMBER 17, 2018

Most conference and meeting professionals want the coolest, hippest, latest ideas and trends for their events. We are on the hunt for the next meeting, seating, session format, technology, and food and beverage fad. We want to know what unique things other conferences are doing so we can borrow their ideas. What are they?

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

SEPTEMBER 18, 2018

To paraphrase Hoffer, you can never get enough of conference fads, gimmicks and trends. Unless your a conference participant and we often have had enough!). They also want access to your conference budget. Evergreen conference practices that have promising results are often obscured by our obsession with fads and trends.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

MAY 20, 2021

As it becomes more apparent that face-to-face events will return in some form this year, conference organizers have an opportunity to make changes that would have been more difficult to sell up the ladder in the past. It’s a good time for planners to challenge their organizations to make the meeting experience more valuable than ever.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 17, 2019

I have been struck by the disparity in how an association’s organizational culture translates (or doesn’t translate) to the on-site implementation or planning of its live events. But when it gets to “go time,” does that culture manifest at your conferences and meetings? Conference staff are not able to do everything!

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

SEPTEMBER 16, 2016

Are 50%-80% of your conference attendees in your programming at any given time? One thing is certain, if your conference attendees are not fully engaged in the experience you provide, there is little, if any, chance that they will leave your event with any real ROI. Four Factors That Affect Your Conference Attendees’ Engagement.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

MARCH 6, 2017

Your real conference competition is not that event held six months after yours. Today’s technology driven, hyper-connected, instant gratification, real-time world puts you as a conference organizer in a difficult position. Too often our current conference planning processes focus on the greatest common denominator.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 25, 2017

Our conference learning spaces affect our audience. Then we can focus on changing our conference participants’ learning spaces with the right goal in mind—nurturing their learning. Are You Putting Lipstick On Outdated Conference Education Models And Calling It A Success? Think About These As You Plan And Design.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

MAY 3, 2017

Most conferences are stuck in a rut! So how do you create a conference experience that is not like all the others? Start by considering one or more of these conference big ideas. They are the conference planning road less traveled that harvests success! Big Conference Ideas On The Road Less Traveled Part 1.

Travel

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 4, 2018

As conference organizers, why can’t we also have a fun, fulfilling, and collaborative experience planning and designing the conference? And our planning team members should too. Here are six ways to focus on designing your team’s experience during your next conference planning process. (I confess: I have!).

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 27, 2018

Who wants to attend a common, ordinary, ho-hum, everyday , I’m-just-like-all-the-others traditional conference? And who wants to plan or sell one? Your conference growth and revenue depends upon repeat paying attendees year after year. And your customer loyalty is built upon making your common conference uncommon.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

MAY 4, 2017

This list of conference big ideas just doesn’t belong to the traditional, average conference planning process. Nor are they for the meeting professional looking for the next trendy trend to implement. Big Conference Ideas On The Road Less Traveled Part 2. Forming Teams Of Conference Culture Mavens.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

FEBRUARY 2, 2017

Are you making some changes to your annual conference? If you are, you need a conference intrapreneur! More than just one intrapreneur, you need a conference planning culture of intrapreneurship. Ultimately, you’ll want to develop a conference team of intrapreneurs. And a culture of conference intrapreneurship too.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JANUARY 25, 2018

Too often conference and meeting professionals assume that their role is best suited to planning and executing the conference. I get that from the education section or the conference technical teams.”. They own designing the conference customers experience journey. From Touchpoints To Customer Journeys.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 14, 2017

The mass-personalization wave that is dramatically changing what and how we buy as consumers has application to conferences. I’ve been doing a lot of research and have learned that personalization can be achieved in a number of ways: Individualized — The customer gets exactly what meets their preferences or needs.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 29, 2018

Conference organizers and their planning teams should understand, identify and quash organizational debt. Refactor is a technology concept that meeting professionals can use as a metaphor. Refactoring As A Metaphor For Conference Improvement. Thus we refactor to improve the conference experience for our customers.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 31, 2017

As a conference organizer, how purpose-driven are you? Successful conference organizers are purpose-driven! They design conference experiences that become meaning-making opportunities for their participants. And they make their planning teams’ work important. Purpose-Driven Conference Organizers’ Mindset.

Conference

Eventmobi

MAY 23, 2024

A well-planned and executed conference will do wonders for your organization. A conference can help you achieve these things—if you host it correctly. To ensure your conference is a smashing success, invest in conference management. Keep reading this comprehensive guide to learn: What is a Conference?

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JANUARY 10, 2019

It’s hard for conference organizers to stick to planning the essential elements of their events. As a conference professional, it is your mission each day to keep your focus on the essential elements of your event for your customers’ sake. Some of essentialism’s guiding ideas apply well to business and conferences.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

SEPTEMBER 27, 2018

Is your annual meeting more like a time capsule or a time machine? Conferences that are like time capsules promote and preserve nostalgia and the past. Conferences that are like time machines teleport people to the future so they can discover what’s next. Meeting Planning Evolves. Today, our jobs are evolving.

Meetings

Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 10, 2017

In order to design relevant education and networking experiences at our conferences, we need to be focused to the point of obsession with our target audience. Over the past 18 months, we’ve carefully scrubbed and analyzed the attendance of 20 major conferences. Who has the professional development budget to attend every year?

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 13, 2018

Now imagine someone asking your conference participants that question. Then they would launch into a passionate description of your event’s annual Party with a Purpose, its pre-conference feel-good community service projects and its ongoing student scholarship fundraisers. Your Conference Purpose. How would they respond?

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

FEBRUARY 6, 2018

As a conference organizer, you can seed your annual meeting with experiences that nurture authentic conversations, deep connections and community. You can design, structure and facilitate conference experiences that foster and reclaim meaningful dialogue in an age of digital disruptions. Groups matter!

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 23, 2016

Savvy 21st Century conference organizers can effectively demonstrate strategic learning alignment of their conference networking and education programming. Smart conference professionals are skilled at articulating the value of their event’s networking and learning opportunities. We all know our conferences need more innovation!

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

FEBRUARY 20, 2017

Most annual meetings have used the same template agenda for decades. If you want to breathe new life into your conference, and increase relevance for next-generation attendees, start with this kill/change list. Annual Business Meeting. Annual Meeting Brand. They just replace the filling each year.

Meetings

Velvet Chainsaw

APRIL 6, 2017

What’s the role of the 21st Century meeting and conference professional? Perform very straight forward, transactional, functional tasks related to the logistics of conferences, meetings and events. Conference Customers Demand More. First, conference customers are demanding more from an event’s experience.

Meetings

Velvet Chainsaw

MARCH 28, 2017

However, your love affair with control can also stunt your conference growth! You’re a conference organizer. A meeting professional. Your conference growth will be restricted. When you hit that ceiling, the size of your conference shrinks back to the size of your personal span of care. Super (Control) Freak.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JANUARY 11, 2019

So is this the right strategy for your association and conference? It’s not uncommon to see student pricing that is $200–$300 below the per-person direct meeting costs. When looking at the annual meeting repeat attendance of students into the early years of their career, we usually see conversion rates below 20 percent.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 20, 2016

And the conference and events you plan can be unique too. As a one-of-a-kind meeting professional, you are called to create one-of-a-kind conferences. But too many meeting professionals are copycats! Still they just copy what everyone else is doing with their conference. Caged Conference Visions.

Conference

Smart Meetings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2023

It can also be effectively used by meeting and event teams of all sized to deliver better end products. It should connect all the phases of conference planning, prevent unforeseen obstacles and set a solid foundation for the conference’s success. Procurement isn’t just about finding the cheapest option.

Conference

InitLive

MARCH 4, 2021

Conferences are an important part of professional development and business networking for all industries. A successful conference can come in all shapes and sizes, from 200 people over a weekend to 15,000 for a week. InitLive has had the privilege of working with many conferences, some of which are the largest in their industry.

Conference Planning

Eventmobi

NOVEMBER 2, 2023

With so many moving parts to juggle, planning a conference can seem like a daunting task. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through how to plan a conference from A to Z. What Does It Take to Plan a Conference? But how long does it take to plan a conference?

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 3, 2016

Just like regular preventive maintenance for your car, your conference needs regular preventive maintenance. The first place to start with a conference check-up is collecting the right data. Are you guilty of touting feel-good conference vanity metrics? We repeatedly confuse our conference activity for healthy vital signs.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JANUARY 24, 2018

Who owns the overall experience that customers have at your conference? Who oversees and manages the conference customers’ journey? Or perhaps no one is considering the holistic experience of your conference customer? Do you know what your conference target market customer wants? Owning The Conference Customer Experience.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JULY 27, 2017

Most conferences offer some type of learning opportunities for their participants. Traditionally, the goal of conference education is to deliver as much information as possible as fast as possible to as many people as possible. We failed at creating authentic deep learning opportunities at conferences. Challenging Mental Models.

Conference

Velvet Chainsaw

JUNE 26, 2018

Within the conference arena, innovation is the process through which new value is created and delivered to customers. Our conferences need innovation in processes, systems and design more than it needs new inventions in technology. Innovation within the conference and meetings space is going to be about the way we do conferences.

Conference