Inspiration Hub

Mobile devices are making us feel lonelier–at least according to one-third (33%) of Americans who reported feeling that way in a recent survey of 2,020 U.S. adults (conducted by the Harris Poll* on behalf of Eventbrite). Even major tech companies are aware of the negative side effects of constant screen time and are building features to help recalibrate user behavior. But beyond yearning for social connection, most of us also count on our phones for productivity, entertainment, or just a surefire way to zone out – and it’s starting to take a toll.

The key to a great marketing strategy is understanding the needs of your target audience. When it comes to B2C vs B2B marketing, businesses are aiming to capture the attention of two very different audiences: consumers vs other businesses, and therefore need to adopt different approaches to succeed. In this post, we’ll discuss the main differences and similarities between B2C and B2B marketing, as well as our top tips for successfully engaging with your customers at events.

Corporate and association meetings often leave a positive impact across a destination that goes beyond simple financial benefit. But while most organizations do understand the impact of their events’ social-responsibility initiatives, there is another legacy component that’s often overlooked: event content.

54% of event planners cited surveys as a tool they use to gauge attendee satisfaction and overall event success, but how do you know what questions to ask and when? Achieving a good response rate and obtaining useful survey data is a matter of asking the right questions at the right times. The first struggle with event survey questions is knowing what to ask to get the most actionable insights. The second is getting attendees to engage with the surveys so you have a good enough response rate to accurately reflect the thoughts and feelings of your audience.

Hope for the best but plan for the worst. We hope that everything goes to plan at all your events but sometimes it doesn’t. A glitchy AV system or a sick keynote speaker may seem like disasters on event day, but are you ready if a real emergency hits? At the end of the day, the safety of attendees (and planners) is of utmost importance at any event, so while you have those emergency chargers for your laptop and emergency power bars for when you can’t find time for lunch, do you have an emergency plan to protect the most important thing—your guests? 

The second annual Incentive Travel Industry Index survey is underway, and the three organizations partnering on this effort to better understand trends in the incentive travel market want your help.

We’re all in the meetings business. We understand how effectively meetings can increase collaboration and communication among teams and help organizations reach their business goals. But, in our efforts to plan a successful meeting, sometimes we lose sight of the “why.” Why are your attendees being asked to gather in the first place? What do they hope to get out of the event? When they return home, will they reflect positively on their time away? Can we get them to put their phones away?

According to Incentive Research Foundation’s 2019 Wellness in Meetings and Incentive Travel Study, 64 percent of planners consider meetings and events as only “somewhat healthy,” while less than 10 percent say meetings are “very healthy.” Most respondents report that while they and their companies agree on the importance of wellness in the industry, they disagree when it comes to implementation. And although planners were vocal about budgets being an issue, 39 percent agreed that increasing the budget will only make meetings somewhat healthier. Here are some of the most effective wellness practices for meetings, according to respondents.

Throughout your career you’ll build professional relationships with a LOT of different personality types, and some of those personalities will be very different from yours. And that’s ok! Different perspectives allow for more creative problem-solving, thoughtfulness, and innovation...but, that doesn’t mean you won’t clash with someone from time to time.

Take care of yourself and achieve work-life balance with these 6 tips from Jeff Davidson. 

If you’re planning a modern meeting or event, there’s an increasing likelihood that some of your attendees are going to be vegan. While this may seem like a nuisance at first, it is not that difficult to accommodate them. By doing so, you’re sure to earn their appreciation and good graces. Follow these simple tips and guidelines and we promise the process will be easy.

Frequently, meeting professionals have challenges linking with leadership to get their sponsorship for new programs, such as strategic meetings management. It is important to connect with them to get their buy-in for an initiative’s governance, value drivers, and outcomes.

You’ve just wrapped a major event. You’re exhausted, you’re happy — and you’re curious. What did your attendees think about your event? How about sponsors? Are they likely to support your event next year? Surveys tell you exactly what attendees, sponsors, and stakeholders loved about your event and what you can do to make it even better next time. So how do you ensure that they’re worthwhile for the respondents too?

Are you in the middle of your organization’s busy season? Conference season, perhaps? If so, you’re not alone. But even if you aren’t, chances are, that time is coming...soon!

So when that happens, how you can you stay productive and get done what you need to get done without wanting to pull your hair out? It’s all about working smarter, not harder. 

Raise your hand if you get (what seems like) a million emails per day? Yup, we can ALL relate.  And your members are in the same boat. So when they’re receiving email after email after email, how can you make sure yours stand out? 

Leaders go through unique situations that only they have to navigate. It is only logical to conclude that leaders need to be able to relieve stress just as much as the people they lead do. The problem is, many times leaders are working so much without much downtime. So what are some ways that leaders can relieve their stress all while keeping up with the pace of what they do? Well here are 10 stress relief tips that can help.

Despite all the wonderful elements of our profession, there is one unfortunate aspect to exhibiting that can be hard to ignore: it can often be extremely wasteful. From shrink wrap to marketing collateral to packing material to obsolete booth components, we exhibitors are constantly discarding our excess. Add to that the fossil fuels burned when traveling to conventions or shipping our materials, and exhibition suddenly starts to look like one of the least “green” sectors of the business world.

The American Hotel & Lodging Association has launched a new campaign to try to unite the hospitality industry in an effort to fight human trafficking. The campaign, No Room for Trafficking, suggests four ways for the industry to focus on eradicating human trafficking and exploitation:

Event planning never seems to go away — even on your days off. You might shut off your work email, but somehow you always get roped into planning in your free time. The school bake sale, your friend’s baby shower, or the community walk-a-thon — you name it, you’ve (begrudgingly) planned it.  

At Meeting Professionals International’s World Education Conference in June, speaker Joanne Dennison, CMP, of The Ordinary Success Project, offered an hour of advice on how to make “bad” business more valuable to host venues. The packed house of planners and suppliers heard these eight tips.

Today’s associations are at an inflection point. For many, event attendance is flat or declining, and there is no clear path to turn that around. The hard truth is that the world moves faster than the pace of most association events. With the introduction of so many new technologies and consumer experiences, attendee expectations rise every year. Our audience is thinking: If we can have these things in our daily lives, why can’t we have them at our events?

If there’s one thing to take away from data research, it’s that nothing is ever as black and white as it appears. Causes may vary, adding layers upon layers of meaning to its effects. Sifting through it all and finding something meaningful can be time-consuming and requires loads of brain power. That’s where Eric Tyree comes in. Smart Meetings sat down with Eric, vice president and chief technical officer of data & analytics, chief data scientist at CWT, to talk about business travel, millennials, seeking hotels for function or for experience, and overtourism. What a ride.

To really influence attendees, event professionals need to be intentional about the experiences they design. But how do you know what innovations will work? At PCMA EduCon 2019 this week at JW Marriott Downtown L.A. Live, PCMA Foundation and Steelcase Event Experiences released an in-depth study of the behavior of attendees from PCMA Convening Leaders 2019 at David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. The report, “5,000 People, 5,000 Personal Journeys,” is a collection of reactions—positive and negative—to everything from multi-track sessions to creative networking ideas.