Dec 30, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
The Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA), a recognized authority in the cold chain industry  where every product retains quality and safety, holds several conferences throughout the year for its members. Rather than having each presenter come up with their own PowerPoint that could be full of problems for attendees, they have become proactive and give their speakers a template to follow that is customized for every program.  They recently shared in PCMA's Convene the following ...

Dec 25, 2013 by Melissa Bailey
C h r i s t m a s w a v e s a m a g i c w a n d o v e r t h i s w o r l d , a n d b e h o l d , e v e r y t h i n g i s s o f t e r a n d m o r e b e a u t i f u l . & n b s p ; ~ N o r m a n V i n c e n t P e a l e & n b s p ; H a p p y H o l i d a y s f r o m o u r f a m i l y t o y o u r s

Dec 23, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
If you are like me, you dread the "Please step into my office" or "We need to talk" start to a conversation. Immediately, visions of criticism and negative comments jump into your mind. We all think of feedback, even constructive feedback, as a terrible thing and if we don't like it, how could our speakers, sponsors and exhibitors?  But what if we are wrong? That feedback is exactly what strong leaders crave and want - that it makes them a great leader in so m...

Dec 20, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
Traci Browne, a trade show consultant with Red Cedar Marketing, moderates a weekly Twitter session called #ExpoChat where meeting professionals around the world can chime in about the latest topics facing the expo and trade show business. Last month, Browne took up the topic of compensation for presenters -- should they be compensated or not and if so,what is the right amount. Below is a summation of the responses and how interactive technology tool rentals can help spread the speaker's messa...

Dec 18, 2013 by Melissa Bailey
Velvet Chainsaw, an association consulting firm, recently surveyed their 30+ clients in search of the answer to the above question. In a nutshell, here is what they found out - Your conference, whether you want to admit it or not, is just like all other conferences.   The thought of this makes me shutter as a meeting planner. But deep down inside, I know this to be true for most conferences. As Velvet Chainsaw so eloquently surmises it, "become relevant or die". They state ...

Dec 18, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
Velvet Chainsaw, an association consulting firm, recently surveyed their 30+ clients in search of the answer to the above question. In a nutshell, here is what they found out - Your conference, whether you want to admit it or not, is just like all other conferences.   The thought of this makes me shutter as a meeting planner. But deep down inside, I know this to be true for most conferences. As Velvet Chainsaw so eloquently surmises it, "become relevant or die". They state tha...

Dec 16, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
Meeting in a Box. Meeting Toolkit. Audio Visual included as part of the standard venue contract.  This is a meeting planner's dream, right? Easy-peasy. You will handle the AV by rolling in the PowerPoint presentation equipment, following directions or relying on the venue to handle it. One less thing to worry about, right? Wrong!  Audiovisual, computers and connectivity are vital to your meeting. Without presentation services equipment to give you the visuals and proper&nb...

Dec 16, 2013 by Melissa Bailey
    Meeting in a Box. Meeting Toolkit. Audio Visual included as part of the standard venue contract.  This is a meeting planner's dream, right? Easy-peasy. You will handle the AV by rolling in the PowerPoint presentation equipment, following directions or relying on the venue to handle it. One less thing to worry about, right? Wrong!  Audiovisual, computers and connectivity are vital to your meeting. Without presentation services equipment to give you the visual...

Dec 13, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
BizBash Magazine interviewed two experienced meeting professionals --- Melissa Kirby, Event Designer at Event Creative and Matt Stoelt, Creative Director at Stoelt Productions --- to get their take on working with a small stage. They identified six tips to make your organization's stage presence perfect, even in a difficult room setting.  Tip #1: Know Your Total Stage Requirements.  Even what seems like a small stage can take up a lot of room because of conference equ...

Dec 11, 2013 by DeDe Mulligan
Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO and Co-Founder of Vayner Media, recently released a book titled: Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook: How to Tell Your Story in a Noisy, Social World where he shares the many mistakes marketers make on social media every day.  In today's blog, let's highlight his talking points and provide tailored meeting industry solutions as you go about marketing your event and staying connected to attendees during and after the conference.  Mistake: You treat all S...