Eight Characteristics of a Successful COVID-era Event
As event organizers, we’ve had nearly two years of experience dealing with COVID. We’ve dealt with the postponements, cancellations, and (with mixed results) the re-opening of face-to-face events. This hard-earned experience can be applied to our upcoming COVID-era events. I have been asked to develop a list of the essential qualities needed to overcome the current […]
Can Your Event Marketing Team Avert COVID-Driven Attendance Disasters?
For most event marketers, the answer is no. Having been trained ’by the book,’ they tend to struggle with responding to negative results in a timely, proper way. Too often, they persist with plans that are not working or, as the event looms ever closer, they become paralyzed with fear. Then what happens? Senior […]
Are “Bad” Events a Necessary Evil, Given the Times We’re In?
Hotels and convention centers are getting smarter. During 2020 and 2021, the terms of pre-COVID agreements governed most event operations, allowing organizers to cancel events with few repercussions. The event venues had little recourse to recover their financial losses, given the force majeure provisions that were part of most agreements. But having been burnt by those […]
How To Exceed Attendee Projections During COVID: A Case Study
Since September, I have been touting an event that has managed to do the impossible in these times of COVID: exceed attendee number projections. The event, focused on small magazine publishers, is Super Niche. In existence for more than 15 years, Super Niche was purchased a few years ago by a friend of mine, Ryan Dohrn. A […]
There’s Only Opportunity
I recently had a call with a long-lost friend. This was someone with whom I had not spoken in more than 15 years. He is someone whose career ran parallel with mine in the trade show space until the sameness of the experience prompted him to ‘step off the bus’ and pursue more creative digital […]
Do Winners Always Win? Thinking This Through Might Be A Necessary Wake Up Call
At a recent industry event a colleague suggested that I shouldn’t worry about the event business, claiming that it would come back as strong as it was before the pandemic. He further stated that the companies that had done well before would do well again, given that “winners always win.” I believe that the winners of the […]
Find Your Future Stars Amongst Today’s Up and Coming Exhibitors – And Turbo Boost Your Revenue
At many of your events you’ll find a number of new companies that are trying to make a significant impact. They have the energy, the interest, and the money to drive that effort. How can you harness their excitement (and their funds) to create an experience that is profitable, both for them and for your […]
Eliminating Distraction: Keeping Your Eye on the Ball When the Chips are Down
One of the things that really has helped me in life is keeping calm when all around is going wrong. This is especially helpful at events where I must solve problems in real time and it’s not always evident that there’s a solution readily available. I have seen a real difference between those times when […]
Safety and Certainty- Conveying The Right Message so Your Customers Will Return to Your Events
In the last four weeks, I have traveled to two events. Some non-event people thought I was crazy to do so, given the ‘risks’. Notwithstanding the caution that I’ve expressed in some past newsletters, my recent actions reflect how much I want face-to-face events to return – and to do so as soon as possible. Being […]
What’s the best kind events company to have?
Over the years I‘ve had the opportunity to work with many event companies and that vantage point has allowed me to how companies are organized, what drives their decision making and clues as to why some companies are more successful than others. There are four types of companies: Sales Driven – Motivated by revenues, the sales staff […]