News
Jul 26, 2018
The Corporate Event Marketing Association’s CEMA Summit 2018 was held July 22-24 at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.
Prior to the event, each CEMA board member was assigned as an “ambassador” for a group of first-time registrants, reaching out via email. A special first-timers reception onsite helped ensure that everyone felt welcomed. Despite the fact that I already knew quite a few of the attendees, as a first-time Summit-goer I very much appreciated that extra level of care.
Angie Smith, CEMA Chairwoman, opened the CEMA Summit educational program by talking about… more
Jul 25, 2018
Atlanta, Georgia’s Cobb Galleria Centre recently completed a major renovation of one of its event spaces, the Gallery.
The Cobb Galleria Centre is located in the 88-acre Galleria complex in northwest Atlanta. Cobb Galleria Centre is offers 320,000 square feet of event space, four exhibition halls, 20 meeting rooms, four executive boardrooms and a grand ballroom.
The 5,500 sq. ft. Gallery is located within the Galleria Specialty Shops near Cobb Galleria Centre’s exhibition hall, ballroom and meeting space. It can accommodate up to 450 guests for a reception or 270 people for a seated banquet… more
Jul 23, 2018
The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) has released the fourth and final report in its new How to Grow Attendance series for event attendee marketers.
By uncovering attendee marketer commitments to improve existing approaches and evolve with fast-changing marketing norms, Report Four: Plans on Where to Improve Approach in Near-term Future offers a look at the most popular marketing approaches and the characteristics that are tied to success in attendee growth.
“This is the last report in the series,” explained Nancy Drapeau, CEIR senior research director. “It provides marketers… more
Jul 19, 2018
Puerto Rico’s newly established destination marketing organization has been officially dubbed Discover Puerto Rico.
Established July 1, the new DMO will be responsible for all global marketing, sales and promotion of Puerto Rico as a premier destination for leisure and business travelers.
Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico, unveiled the new name during the Destinations International Annual Convention. The yearly gathering, which was most recently held July 10-13 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, attracts more than 1,600 destination marketing and management… more
Jul 18, 2018
Community Brands, a provider of cloud-based software solutions for associations, nonprofits, schools and faith-based groups, has entered into a partnership with Pathable, provider of mobile event apps, conference apps and websites for meetings, conferences and trade shows.
Following Community Brands’ recent acquisition of event technology company, Expo Logic, the new partnership with Pathable and its mobile event app technology is designed to further strengthen the Community Brands event management suite as an end-to-end solution while enabling organizations to improve the event attendee… more
Jul 17, 2018
On July 16, Caesars Entertainment Corporation broke ground on its newest development: the CAESARS FORUM Las Vegas conference center. Slated to open in 2020, the venue will feature 550,000 square feet of flexible meeting, event and convention space.
As the emcee for the ground breaking ceremony, Roger Dow, president and CEO of U.S. Travel Association and long-time meetings industry veteran, spoke about how when he was first starting in the industry, the meetings market was an afterthought for Las Vegas. Forty years later, the city is now the leading destination for meetings within the U.S… more
Jul 16, 2018
Registration is now open for SPINCon, the annual conference produced by SPIN: Senior Planners Industry Network. SPIN is the world’s largest association limited to senior-level planners with at least 10 years full-time planning experience.
SPINCon 2018 will be held Nov. 11-13, 2018 at The Don CeSar, a landmark hotel affectionately known as “The Pink Palace," in St. Petersburg, Florida.
“Each year SPINCon focuses on the whole person: brain, body, being and business," said SPIN’s executive director, Tracey Smith.
She added, “This year, we are excited that the content has been curated by… more
Jul 12, 2018
I attended Meeting Professionals International (MPI)’s 2018 World Education Congress (WEC) last month in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was my first time in both the state and the city, and I was favorably impressed by the location, the conference and the local destination management organization (DMO), Visit Indy.
While I was onsite, I spoke with Susie Townsend, Visit Indy’s senior vice president of visitor experience, about Visit Indy and how they partnered with MPI for WEC. Townsend has been with the organization for 29 years, so has a rich history and knowledge of the events industry and DMO… more
Jul 12, 2018
Effective today, etouches will be known as Aventri.
The name Aventri is a result of three ideas; avenue, events, and entry. The rebrand combines these three elements as part of the company’s continuing effort to transform the event experience through products, people and innovation.
Aventri’s new tagline “Connect Better” reflects the company’s mission to foster deeper relationships with event, meeting and strategic marketing professionals and enable them to create deeper and more meaningful relationships with their own networks.
“Our rebranding project was ignited by the desire to take our… more
Jul 10, 2018
Marriott International has purchased the 1,000-room Sheraton Grand Phoenix hotel for $255 million. The property is slated for a significant renovation designed to transform it into a model for the revamped Sheraton brand. Marriott acquired Sheraton as part of the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide purchase in Sept. 2016.
In early June, Marriott International revealed its comprehensive transformation strategy for the Sheraton brand, building a 4,200 square foot vignette at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference in New York.
The new brand strategy is focused on… 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