Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Events of the Future and Digital Fluidity


Is the above photo a trade show dream, where thousands swarm the floor, seeking information and not swag; seeking connections and not business cards; where organizations are cementing their brand presence and not merely taking up space?  It is hard to say what the individuals experienced, because we give so little energy in our typical planning cycle to thinking of the individuals.  We may create "buyer personas" and attendee profiles, generalizing to show our exhibitors the types of people they should expect to meet at our show, enticing them to purchase a booth and immerse themselves in the experience.  But how each person is able to build their own schedule, easily find their preferred exhibitors or those they seek to know more about, or find colleagues, friends, and potential collaborators who have similar interests - this is still missing for many.

I wrote recently for Corporate Meetings Network about the concept of Digital Fluidity and what this means to our event experiences and I believe we must become much more fluent in this new language, and the medium which lives in the pockets and purses of the individuals who attend.  They are busy, they are living with a certain amount of stress from work, life and the integration of the two in a continuously time - strapped world where 24/7 access is a reality for many. How can we use mobile and its inherent tools such as location via bluetooth or similar now built in to so many devices, or apply concepts such as flipped learning with augmented reality, and ease their journey through our event, allowing for deeper connections, more relevant learning to the time and space they are in now, and deliver events which are ultimately more meaningful, and create a thirst to return again?  It is these questions that keep me intrigued, that cause me to ask deeper questions of fellow planners and the smart people I work with and to continue to explore the many facets and components of mobile and how we can use it, quite simply, in a better way.   How are you using the new wave of technology to enhance your experiences?    

3 comments:

  1. Great blog!! Very informative. Well dear I am looking an event coordinator who can help me in organizing my company corporate events for whole staff. But I need coordinator who charge minimum as it’s an order from my Boss so I can’t avoid this. Can you suggest me?

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    1. Hello Eli. Like most things in life, there are degrees of need and cost and what may be a minimum charge to one is not to another. You need to first clearly be able to articulate your event - what, when, where and WHY it is happening and know your goals, objectives and core budget - total or per person, but certainly with an idea of the number of people, hours, days, travel involved etc. Once you have the core needs defined you can reach out to event planners which you can find through local CVB or associations such as MPI or iSES and with this information in hand make exploratory calls or emails to see if you can afford to hire a professional, or need to revise your budget or expectations. When you have something that has the potential to motivate and inspire and improve your business through the people who are making it up - I am not sure I agree this is the time to think about minimums - rather it is a time to be realistic about your organization and how you can create the most impact. I hope that helps.

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  2. Nice Article .....
    I can manage new company management event.Your article is helpful for me. Thanks for sharing .....

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