EXPERTS & OPINIONS

Aug 10, 2022
In the past two years, there’s been a significant shift in the way consumers approach life. They’re more invested in physical and mental health, more focused on the planet’s future and more aware of how they manage their time due to working from home, among other things. As a result, consumers are reprioritizing what they buy, where they go and what they do. This reprioritization has affected how consumers view brands. Why? At the core of it all is community. Enforced separation and digital isolation made people realize how important it is to stay connected to each other and their… more
Aug 03, 2022
Long, long ago (2006) in an industry far, far away, Clive Humby, a British mathematician and data science entrepreneur, stated “Data is the new oil. It’s valuable, but if unrefined, it cannot really be used. It has to be changed into gas, plastic, chemicals, etc., to create a valuable entity that drives profitable activity; so data must be broken down, analyzed for it to have value.” In today’s event-tech-centric world, it’s relatively easy to generate new data, but in my opinion, much harder to refine it into profitable assets that fuel your business. This is not dissimilar to oil itself.… more
Jul 27, 2022
Today we’re talking about upcycled art, and why you should include it in your next event. Upcycled displays are fun, eco-conscious activations that add buzz to your event while also diverting waste from the landfill. Events can be extremely wasteful, generating more waste per participant than the average person’s daily discards. On the other hand, art displays add beauty and meaning to your event while sparking conversation and giving you some good marketing. Here are five reasons why upcycled art adds value to your event. 1. Create buzz: Upcycled art is unique and photogenic marketing. … more
Jul 20, 2022
If you’re like me, you are probably tired of and confused by reading and listening to different opinions about the metaverse these days. From Facebook changing their name to Meta to Disney’s CEO saying that Disney+ will be their own metaverse as well as Microsoft paying 70 billion dollars for Activision as part of their metaverse strategy, the list of big tech and media companies investing billions of dollars in the "metaverse category" continues to grow exponentially.  So what is the metaverse? Today, it is a series of different concepts but still hard to explain. Broadly speaking, the… more
Jul 13, 2022
The following adage holds true: Everything old becomes new again—now including silent films. According to Hootsuite, about 85% of all Facebook videos are seen and not heard. It’s not hard to imagine why. Many times, it’s not doable (or socially acceptable) to turn up the volume on a phone or laptop to listen to the audio on video content. Viewers often settle for watching video content on mute and relying on silent cues ranging from context to captions. For marketers who create video content that only makes sense with the sound on, this presents a problem and a need for change. One way to… more
Jul 06, 2022
The event tech marketplace is a unique animal, reflecting the industry it serves. There are a handful of event technology providers that offer a broad swath of functionality. They’ve built integrated enterprise systems offering services like registration, housing, speaker management, exhibitor services, floorplan management, virtual events, mobile apps and more, all within one system, database and brand. Of course, there are many more vendors that offer a more singular functional set that, in some cases, are considered “best-in-class” offerings. These products often provide a deeper set of… more
Jun 28, 2022
It’s hard to take high-level event marketing strategies and turn them into real actions. So, let’s break things down! We’re going to take a deep dive into exactly how you should be marketing your virtual events. But rather than talk from 10,000 feet, we’re keeping our feet on the ground with 10 tactics you can actually use and how to incorporate them into your strategy.  1. Optimize your event website. Optimize is the buzzword of the week. It means to take something and improve it to its maximum efficiency. To optimize a website, first figure out what you want the event website to do.… more
Jun 21, 2022
Over the past two years, event experience leaders showed agility in the face of constant change as they pivoted to virtual and hybrid formats, offering experiences that engaged attendees while safeguarding against the spread of COVID-19. Today, as restrictions loosen and people begin to feel more comfortable meeting, the demand for in-person events has returned. In-person and hybrid events held on Bizzabo’s Event Experience OS increased 255% between Q4 2021 and Q2 2022, while the volume of virtual events remained steady, according to analysis of aggregated data. These events will occur in a… more
Jun 15, 2022
They’re becoming more and more ubiquitous at business meetings and events these days: professional headshot studios. Corporate event planners have learned that most event attendees no longer care about wasteful tchotchkes, giveaways or gratuitous swag bags—they want something lasting and valuable that they can really use. While there are many ways to spruce up your event and take it beyond just a run-of-the-mill sales meeting or company gathering, there’s nothing like having a professional, on-site headshot studio to make it even more memorable via a valuable takeaway.  Here are a few great… more
Jun 08, 2022
Event marketing is on the rebound following a nearly complete shutdown during the pandemic and its aftermath of staffing shortages, resource gaps and budget cuts. The question for event marketing and operations leads is how to recover and grow revenue and attendee numbers with less. District Marketing and Bear Analytics recently hosted a webinar to discuss strategy and tactics for attendee acquisition gains. Here are some of our key tips and takeaways. Read the Tea Leaves Assessing the needs of the marketplace right now is both challenging and exciting. For the most part, the tenor and… more
Partner Voices
MGM Resorts is committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse culture, not just among employees and guests but also within its supply chain. The company prioritizes procuring goods and services from businesses owned by minorities, women, veterans, people with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals and those facing economic disadvantages. This commitment is integral to MGM Resorts' global procurement strategy.    Through its voluntary supplier diversity program, MGM Resorts actively identifies and connects certified diverse-owned suppliers to opportunities within its supply chain. The company is more