Inspiration Hub

Fear has been described by the acronym FEAR: False Expectations Appearing Real. We know that change is often accompanied by fear, as well as a sense of risk, uncertainty, and excitement. It’s also true that if we change the way we see things, the things we see change. 

Now that the warm weather is here, event planners are gearing up for a season of outdoor concerts, weddings, and retreats. And surely, no matter what type of events are on your calendar, using the outdoors to your advantage can create a refreshing experience for attendees. Assuming it’s done right.

 “We’re living in a period of unprecedented change and unprecedented opportunity,” said venture capitalist Mary Meeker, as she unveiled her annual Internet Trends report at the technology event 2018 Code Conference, held May 29–31 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. The scope of change was evident in the Code Conference’s expanded focus this year, which for the first time was not strictly for people who run tech companies, but also for those who run companies grappling with technological change — and tech companies grappling with government, according to the Code Conference website.

Did you know that 46,2% of event planners identify the need to increase delegate attendance as one of their bigger challenges? Getting people in a room is not difficult. The great challenge lies in getting the attendees that matter in that room. The right people are in most cases in high demand, hence competition skyrockets. Just when you thought sending out bulk invitations to as many people as possible was enough, in comes the simple – and yet never fully utilised – rule of delegate attendance: creating an irresistible RSVP strategy that will jostle competitors.

In the annual Convene Salary Survey, we asked readers a number of opened-ended questions, including “What do you like least about your job?” One is six responses included some aspect of working with others. But here’s a nice twist — when we asked what readers like best about their jobs, the most popular response, by far, was the people they work with and meet. Readers also liked the constant challenges that arise on the job and the perks of travel. Here’s what you said you like most about your job.

Skift editors noticed a handful of ideas that percolated during the day’s talks, workshops, and networking breaks, including the growing digital divide, best practices in personalization, the promise of voice-powered search, and speculation about Amazon or another big tech player moving into travel.

Many describe them as entitled or call them snowflakes. Toss those descriptions aside, Generation Y are better described as one of the most economically influential demographic groups today. You are probably asking yourself; ‘Okay but, why would I let them shape my event content, why fix what ain’t broke, and I reach my targets without even doing so already‘.

Curious about event gamification? It's been proven that gamifying your event helps increase attendee engagement. Here are some top tips to keep in mind!

Technology has taken center stage at many meetings. Smart badges, augmented and virtual reality and facial recognition are popping up at events regularly. Think about it—if you carry a smartphone in your pocket, you’re already a part of the tech world. But more innovations are on the way. In a recent Smart Meetings webinar titled The Internet of Things and Its Impact on Exhibitions and Events, Corbin Ball, CSP, CMP, DES and MS, spoke about IoT—”everyday objects featuring network connectivity that allow users to send and receive data.” Here are some of the takeaways.

Instagram is a powerful tool in any event professional’s marketing kit, whether you’re using it to drive ticket sales or to promote your brand and generate sales. Your Instagram photos can establish your abilities and services, showcase your style, and indicate how active you are…as long as users can find you and get key information they need from your profile.

The venue you choose and the decor you furnish it with have the power to bring your event or brand to life. Done right, beautiful event design can change the atmosphere of a venue and give your attendees something to talk about — or share on their social media. Without the elements of event design, however, attendees may feel uninspired — or worse, unsatisfied.

You just unpacked your suitcase full of swag from IMEX Frankfurt last month, and the world’s largest matching organization for event professionals is already teasing you with glimpses of the creative connections that will await you Oct. 16–18 at IMEX America in Las Vegas.

Along with the numbers that we crunch for the annual Convene Salary Survey, we ask a handful of open-ended questions. Including this one: What do you like least about your job? Although readers singled out problems including attrition and room blocks, cuts to hotel commissions, managing shrinking budgets, and dealing with inefficient work processes (“So. Many. Emails.,” was one response) the overwhelming majority of the answers to the question weren’t focused on logistical challenges. 

Everyone is hard on themselves at times, especially when it comes to our jobs. And those who plan and execute business events may encounter even greater-than-average opportunities to engage in self-criticism. After all, it’s impossible to make everyone at an event happy and clients, attendees, and colleagues usually aren’t shy about pointing out the things that they don’t like. “The industry and my specific department is full of perfectionists who have very little forgiveness,” was one answer when we asked readers to tell us what they liked least about their jobs in Convene‘s most recent Salary Survey. Another response: “The self-imposed stress of pleasing 100 percent of my meeting attendees.” 


As a meeting organizer or show manager, you want to attract young professionals to the events industry. Millennials love travel, flexible schedules, and maintaining their work-life balance, making the meeting and events industry very attractive to them, but they need to know what opportunities are out there. Here are three recommendations for recruiting them: 

What’s on the minds of business leaders across the globe? Rebecca Ray, Ph.D., co-author of the recently released C-Suite Challenge, has some insights about that. The report is the latest in a survey series first conducted in 1999 by The Conference Board, a global, independent business membership and research association that aims to provide leading global organizations with the practical knowledge to improve their performance while better serving society.

According to the results of this year’sConvene Salary Survey, respondents average a 46-hour workweek — and nearly one-quarter spend more than 50 hours a week on the job.

When PCMA CEO Sherrif Karamat announced on May 22 that more than 50 senior executives had signed his Ascent CEO Promise to create inclusive workplaces, he had his sights set on scaling even higher heights. “The industry can be a model for the larger world,” he said when discussing the reaction after a week of lobbying leaders globally to make the pledge. “When you consider how many women are in the sector and only 10 percent are in leadership roles, it is an opportunity to show the power of a transformed, more diverse workplace,” he says.

Meeting planners looking to get potential attendees excited about upcoming events often turn to traditional marketing and outreach methods such as trade advertising, online banners, and direct-email solutions. But do you know there are other affordable and easily implemented promotional vehicles that can help any association better capture audiences' attention?

Do you know all the key statistics that will affect the way you create events? Here is a comprehensive collection of 100 key statistics for the event industry in 2018. The event industry is living a second life. As more brands prefer live experiences as the best way to engage with audiences, here are some of the impressive and surprising statistics defining the industry in 2018.

“Should I get a master’s degree or a certification?” It’s a question I’ve been asked a lot over the years. And my answer is usually an ironic, “Yes.” Asking, “Should I get a master’s degree or a certification?” is like asking, “Should I have an apple or should I have turkey and dressing with giblet gravy?”

Email—a great invention, though it occasionally can feel like the bane of an event professional’s existence as we try to meet deadlines and separate the must-reads from the deletes. With regular sign-ups for white papers, subscriptions for nuggets of key information and personal messages all combined in one inbox, it can feel overwhelming to open your mail app to tens of emails throughout the day. But there are ways to combat this without sacrificing your sanity, and few barely take more than a few minutes.

Whether you’re a marketer planning how to take your investment in brand experiences to the next level, or an agency professional responsible for helping clients thrive, now is the time for self-examination and comparative analysis against these sweeping mega themes.  

Event planners are a special breed of hard-working, hyper-organized adrenaline junkies. Consistently named as one of the world’s most stressful jobs, the role of event organizer is uniquely challenging — yet equally rewarding for some. Think you were born to be an event planner? Check out these must-have event planning skills to see if you’ve got what it takes.