News
Feb 10, 2022
Membership renewal is mission-critical to healthy and sustainable growth for associations. But the pandemic and its impact have created new challenges for associations of all sizes.
According to the 2021 Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report, 47% of associations reported declines in total membership, while 50% have reported that members are most likely not to renew because of a lack of engagement. Enabling meaningful engagement in an increasingly virtual and distraction-laden world is quite a challenge!
Here are some actionable tips to ensure a member-centric engagement plan for 2022… more
Nov 26, 2021
The 2022 Global Meetings and Events Forecast by American Express found that the majority of meeting professionals surveyed believe in-person meeting levels will return to pre-pandemic levels in one to two years.
According to the 11th annual report, produced by American Express Meetings and Events, a division of American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), in-person meetings and events are projected to grow in 2022, with 81% of events expected to have an in-person element. In another indicator of industry growth, 64% of global meeting and event professionals surveyed cited increased budgets… more
Jun 28, 2021
There was a time when the most clearly attributable data to track ROI from an event was the revenue from ticket sales and sponsorships. With the advent of virtual events hosted with the help of cutting edge virtual event platforms[1] [2] , measuring the levels of engagement and impact has become easier than ever. But deriving insights from the data still remains a tough challenge. Here are 5 strategic ways to get actionable reporting from your next virtual event:
Focus on insights: Understanding of data and analytics needs time. If you haven’t already, help your team upskill by enabling… more
Jun 15, 2021
Ask event teams about their high-priority KPIs and good audience engagement is sure to feature in the list. But keeping the audiences engaged in a virtual setup can be hard. Great event teams do a few common things to up their audience engagement game. Here are five of those tips for your next virtual event.
Create an engagement-first agenda: You get the audience engagement you plan for. So, start with creating an agenda that is conducive to driving audience participation. Plan for activities that need audiences to get involved during the event, and not just sit back and listen. Schedule… more
Jun 14, 2021
Previously, personalization meant just addressing customers by their first names (We all have written those emails with Hi {First Name}, :) haven’t we?). Cut to today, times have changed. So has consumer sentiment. Now personalization requires marketers and event professionals to be prepared with as much context on customers’ experiences as possible.
The rapid adoption of Virtual Events has opened the door to new ways of understanding the context and preferences of audiences. Here are 5 lesser-known ways in which you can personalize your next virtual event experience.
Personalize your… more
Jun 09, 2021
Event professionals worldwide have been learning quickly and transforming in-person to virtual events, over the last year and the industry is evolving fast. One of the key challenges event professionals face now though is releasing profits from virtual events - overcoming the challenge requires a new playbook.
A recent report by EventMB suggests that 40% of event professionals have not been able to generate a profit from virtual events. If you are among the 40% or if maximizing virtual event ROI has been a long-standing goal, here are 3 key pillars to take care of at your next event:
1.… more
Nov 25, 2020
Destinations International (DI) has released two studies that look at key issues facing the travel industry. The first focuses on the role destination organizations play in advancing equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI), while the second — conducted with Longwoods International — examines the perception of the travel industry by U.S. residents.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
A follow up to the baseline data compiled in 2019, DI’s 2020 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Study on Destination Organizations found a need and desire for destination organizations to drive growth in diverse… more
Sep 15, 2017
New York Life, the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States, recently showed how an
event cancellation could be turned into an opportunity to do good.
New York Life’s 2017 Executive Council Meeting was scheduled to be held at the Austin Convention
Center at the end of August. With the approach of hurricane Harvey, the corporation opted to cancel
the event for the sake of safety.
Typically, late cancellations mean that money contractually obligated for meeting space, food and
beverage, and hotel rooms is lost, and often space goes unused.
Rather than letting the space… more
Sep 04, 2017
Out with the old? Not so fast … While digital and data may be getting all the buzz these days, a few, let’s call them “experienced” tactics, are quietly getting the job done for many event marketers.
So before throwing out your old marketing plan, consider keeping some old-school workhorses that these event planners swear by.
Handwritten Notes
Although her company incorporates the latest technology and trends into its events, from virtual reality to artificial intelligence and interactive engagements, there are some traditional touches for reaching attendees that still work, according to… more
Sep 04, 2017
As a trade show organizer, you know the kind of attendee you want at your event: an influencer with buying power who actively participates and advocates for your show, an industry expert who comes every year and brings their friends, and an enthusiastic participant who possesses a robust digital presence and plays a key role in contributing positively to your show’s content and evolution.
Just by their presence, such an attendee has the power to not only attract more exhibitors but also increase the brand value of your show, which in turn can result in drawing more attendees to your event.… 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