Is Your Event an Oreo or a Macaron?

Has your event become an Oreo - where your participants know exactly what to expect, from the level and tone of speaker and message, to the dinner in a ballroom with the same type of meal, entertainment and dress code? Where they enjoy and embrace the familiar, perhaps not knowing there could be more. More engagement, more thought-provoking discussions that lead to new innovations in their field, a feeling of being more connected created by program timing that allows for this to happen.

 

What if the next year's planning brought reinvigorated thinking? New committee members or a new conference chair was ready to push the boundaries a little... would you end up perhaps with a Vanilla Oreo - different yes, but not necessarily better, or a DoubleStuff Oreo, where more filling is crammed in, everyone thinking people want "more" - more breakouts, a bigger gala, more panels so more people can present, more awards presented at the gala... Sometimes when we think twice as much of something is the answer, we find out it is only the right thing for a small percentage of the people - just adding more isn't always the right answer.

 

What if next year you thought of your conference as a macaron, where you replace the flour with almonds, making a shift from the beginning in expectation. While the macaron has rules associated - they are always a similar size and shape, they have two sides and a filling, you can start to play with these cookies. You can change the colors, you can change the flavours and fillings, and create an unending amount of combinations, each offering an individual appeal. 

 

If this year you approached the conference plan as if it was for individuals and what they might want, what would you change within the framework of days, time, space that you have? Would you add more places for people to have hallway conversations? Follow your plenaries with small "meet the speaker" campfire style sessions? Serve fruit and cheese instead of pastries to extend the energy of your guests through the sessions, or offer espresso instead of the vats of coffee, keeping more people on site and talking to each other? How about encouraging new formats for your breakouts - interactive, participatory, with improv or a fishbowl - there are many options that can provide new perspectives and create shifts without a need to recreate the entire structure.

 

Is it time to dust off your conference format and bake up some new ideas?

10 Things I liked at IMEX

IMEX has taken the MICE market in the US by storm, as year two saw massive increases in the hosted buyer program over last year, and the education was even more jam packed goodness, with MPI Smart Monday, Association Focus, PCMA's Planner meetings, campfires and more. I loved hearing more about meeting architecture from Maarten Van Neste, and being inspired to enhance creativity and take care of our teams with Jonathan Bradsaw, and more about why to blog with Jenise Fryatt, among others.  IMEX America schedule 

 

Of course, that is only a small part of it. Here are some of my highlights of attending IMEX this year.

1. Gerrit Heijkoop's shoes. Really. We first noticed them in the elevator, and it turned out he had posted his choices on Facebook, and his friends voted. They chose well. Conveniently they also coordinated well with Mr. Holland's outfit. A star of the show - for the great suit, the awesome hair and the general fun this very excellent branding and likeable character have given the whole country.
2. People, oh the people.  We came, we saw, we hugged, we met, we talked, we connected and we grew. None of us stay in this industry for the long hours and airport wi-fi; we stay because of the people we get to partner with to create measurable, engaging, memorable magic.
3. Inspiring visitors to the Vancouver booth to jump on our RockTheBike and blend up a batch of smoothies or margaritas. (Side note - we guaranteed so well we had close to no beverages wasted - we shared and drank them all!)
4. The excellent interviews captured by Kiki L'Italien with some amazing people who are dedicated in a variety of ways to our evolving industry - Take the time to watch these - there are more but we talked to people ranging from QuickMobile to Meetology, DMCs to hotels, and platforms from Twoppy to SocialTables and many other experienced industry leaders - worth the time! We all enjoyed spending time with this smart and engaged lady who is always up for a challenge! 
5. The sustainability hub the Green Meetings Industry Council hosted - their ongoing rotation of out-of-the-box suppliers was exceptionally interesting - and darn it, that is a really nice group of people who truly care! 
6. Meeting @eventagist Stefania, @gheijkoop @djstomp @danberger ("Call me Don") among others IRL - it is always a blast to meet people you know through shared online conversation
7. Smart and creative ISES leaders - Brian, Lenny Talarico, Laura and more - people who continue to remind us that it is always about the stories we tell through live events
8. AVMan - the superhero representing AV For Planners - led my Mike McAllen and Jon Trask who have a plan to support planners in making decisions as they navigate the often confusing world of ever changing AV
9. Hugging friends and fans of our beautiful city and seeing all our booth partners doing the same thing - we really are the friendly, fun West Coast CANADIANS!
10. "Surprise!" and seeing the look on the face of our special friend celebrating a milestone - such a special idea to bring together friends from three continents to celebrate on the last evening!

I love the business conducted at IMEX, the learning, the connecting and the passion we all share for creating programs, conferences, events and meetings that matter.

 

It is fantastic seeing all the ideas we had to create a space that would engage visitors for three days, and I cannot wait to go back next year and do it again!

Creative Learning Disrupted

We want to work with you because we want our meeting (event) to be DIFFERENT. 

We want to push boundaries and make it memorable. What happens next though? The Committee. The Committee who is responsible to the stakeholders.  These are the people who will disrupt the learning (critical sharing of knowledge). Not because they mean to, or want to, but out of habit. The habit of meeting expectations by going to the known boundaries and not beyond.

How does this translate to your meeting?  What starts out as a general session featuring an interesting welcome, inspiring presenter(s) followed by 'white space' that allows time to move between sessions and have hallway conversations is disrupted by jamming everyone who is thought to need to be seen or heard (sponsors, executives, others) until you have now over-filled the original time slot.

Then it is time to move from general sessions to breakouts or similar smaller sessions, which hold nothing but potential from a content and learning perspective.  Then, learning disruption comes again as the over-packed general session runs over, the sessions are far enough away that many participants barely have time to get a coffee, let alone connect with any other guests, and it is into the session rooms they go. Rooms sometimes set up to enhance sharing and learning, often set in theatre, rows and rows facing front. 

These sessions can be interactive  and engaging workshops where you learn something, share in and maybe share your own knowledge and identify its relevance to you.  Perhaps the planning group has even built in space and time to absorb the learning before moving on to either more learning, social activities or even (gasp) reflection time.  These can be a highlight, that is when creativity, relevance and innovations can truly begin to spring, given some nurturing. 

 

Start with learning objectives and an interesting format, add in good leaders and you have nothing but opportunity to create repeat attendees.  Creative learning in free flow.

Without even continuing this discussion into social events - offering more opportunities to inspire discussion, or spiral into a morass of speeches, presentations and loud music, consider how we are working with our clients to bring out the most potential in their meeting and avoid the disruptions. How are you guiding your clients to maximizing potential?

What Events can Learn from So You Think You Can Dance

I have been an unadulterated fan of every iteration of So You Think You Can Dance since the beginning, for many reasons. I can share it with my family, it has reintroduced the magic of expression through dance to a (jaded) audience, it has given opportunity to so many young people, and then it just goes beyond...

Here are some of the things I think event producers can take away from this show

1. Emotional connections matter - between the performers, from performers to audience, from what is seen and heard to what is felt by the audience (yes we have the potential to create connections)
2. Production matters. They get the video, the settings, the lighting, the sets - they are always right.
3. Lighting designers - great, amazing lighting designers, are GOLD.
4. Music sets the tone. Background, live, feature performance - it is naturally so dependant on the ambience you want to create, but always, always consider the soundscaping.
5. Costumes - performers, staff, getting the attendees to participate in costuming (if you haven't seen it, there is magic in Diner en Blanc) - even adding a prop box - brings people into the spirit of the event. Consider it.
6. Surprise. I have just blogged on the potential effects of positve surprise and we want as guests to be surprised, delighted, amazed when we attend events.

While an argument was made on a recent #eventprofs Twitter chat that perhaps we do often seek the ordinary -  I would argue, and it was noted that perhaps it is more relevant for meetings and tradeshows than "special" events, and I would argue also for the incentive events you want to create delightful surprise.  Let's use the lessons above and continue to create the special.

Creating special does not always require large budgets, but it does require thoughtful design, and let's continue to embrace and practice this.

Vanilla Cupcakes and the Meaning of Life

After an amazing summer of events and life and serendipitous impact points, I had a day at home of doing nothing, which included, naturally some lying around and watching Food Network. Cupcake Wars began and my daughter had an overwhelming urge to make cupcakes. This of course meant I had to at least help her begin the process, and also had her brother (a huge fan of end products) intrigued. Now I had expected she would want to find some kind of fancy cupcake, but no, vanilla is what she sought. Now I am not the biggest fan of cupcakes for a number of reasons - too sweet, too much icing, too annoying I was not the first to have a cupcake empire - but I supported the initiative to try something new.

After finding the ingredients, cajoling her brother into carrying the cuisinart mixer upstairs, being stunned that cupcakes were really mostly butter, sugar and flour, and reading the recipe for full understanding, the mixing began. This was truly about the process of discovery, something that as adults we often forget to appreciate or take the time for.

After the cupcakes went into the paper cups (who knows how long they have been in the cupboard?) there began two things. One, the inevitable waiting. And the debate about icing flavours, one thinking mint, the other citrus. In the end they agreed to half of each, and the hunt for the perfect icing recipe began, one with the recipe book cupboard open, one on the iPad. Oh how technology continues to change how we approach the every day things we do.

At last they were ready, out of the oven, light and airy in appearance in their multi-colored cups. After some anxious waiting for them to cool, they were eventually iced and enjoyed very much by all of us. I brought some to work the next day (really a family of four should not eat 24 cupcakes!) and it was with delight and surprise they were enjoyed by my colleagues. I was reminded that we can take the time to bake, and that it is as much about enjoying the process of creation as it is about enjoying the cupcake.

The Effects of Positive Surprise

Human brains are wired to accept and embrace and be energized by positive surprise.

Meeting and event planners however are often equally hardwired to shun any opportunities for surprise of any kind. This may not apply to everyone reading this, but for many, we live in moderate fear of the many stakeholders who are part of the event and know that our jobs (internal or external) are only as secure as our last event is great, and we are always at the mercy of the whims of those responsible for choosing their next event partner - which may include an individual, a committee, or may roll to procurement. Procurement is particularly hardwired not to be excited by surprises.

So how can we balance creating positive surprises for guests and do this in a budget relevant manner? I think there are many ways of doing this, and much of it comes down to these things.

1. Thinking holistically about the guest experience from the beginning
2. Understanding the value relative to the objectives
3. Being able to articulate this to your key stakeholders for buy-in

What are some examples of positive surprise and the potential impacts? In my view as a starting point for discussion this may include:

1. Entrance or welcome entertainment that sets a tone and provides a delightful start; no matter how your guests arrived, if you can mentally transport them from the beginning you have already created an impact. Imagine arriving for a morning conference registration and a solo guitarist was playing - simple, inexpensive and sending a message today will not be ordinary
2. Thoughtful transitions as simple as allowing time for hallway conversations between sessions to as surprising as a performance that leads them into a dining space
3. Listening to what they have to say from a collaborative breakout session to a grafitti wall; a twitter stream that adds to rather than distracts from a session at hand - finding ways to listen and share messages is often a surprise to meeting participants still used to being talked at. A combination of great speakers and even greater facilitators has the opportunity to lead to even greater results.
4. Where did that come from? A dessert bar that lowers from the ceiling, performers that come from an unexpected place, a 150' harp that arcs over a ballroom and appears as decor until it is played, a video that begins a session and the live presenter who appears to finish it - keep them guessing, keep them engaged in the process
5.  Where do I sit?  Break out of classroom setups for meeting sessions and rounds for galas - mix it up and try something that has people talking. They came to the meeting to MEET, allow this to happen. Octagons and squares, lounge seating and balls, conversation clusters and pedestal tables - this year we have tried it all and each has had resounding success because we knew why we were choosing to mix it up - and the participants shared in the positive surprise and opened themselves up to the possibilities.
6. Feed me well. Break out of the white bread, white flour habits - replace breakfast items with mini protein shakes, yogurt shots and other energy providing foods, lose the chicken and pasta lunches opting for items like a delicious Nicoise salad and a cheesecake pop, and start to see the energy of your attendees shift as they enjoy delicious and nutritious options.
7. Seek out alternate venues. Mountaintops and riverbanks, gallery rooftops and forested parks, underwater viewing galleries and stunning train rides have all added up to amazing programs this summer - where are you taking your guests to get out of the norm?

There are many ways to initiate positive surprise - what have you tried? What was the impact?

Imagine if...

My family at The Canadian Mint Pavilion
carefully touching our Canadian Medals (2010)

I am a huge fan of the Olympic Games for many reasons. I have had the opportunity to work in Beijing and Vancouver (and while having a small envy for my friends in London, I also know how much you have to be able to put into it), on the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games and have made many friends and been impressed by so many things. As an Event Producer it is a long road as you prepare for and bring to life the vision for an Olympic Games - but we do this for the challenges! Ultimately it is about the spirit, the drive, and the global community!

Imagine if...

All wars between countries were fought on a sports field; where you lose proudly to a friend knowing you always gave it your best effort.

People from around the world, speaking dozens of languages, sat beside each other in office "cubes" all working towards the same common goal.  (hint: they do!)

An entire city / region / country embraces a positive spirit, and from morning until night people greet each other warmly, watching their countries compete on screens available everywhere.

The cultures of a region are brought together and celebrated through a continuum of music, dance, many mediums of art, cinema and film, in ways we have not seen or even necessarily contemplated before.

The pride in your country is celebrated through sport and culture. (the alternative of how we consider winning through wars is incredibly depressing)

We all faced every day like the athletes. They all have abilities and then combine it with the highest level of mental drive, physical ability, hours of practice, an ability to be coachable, and pure spirit. There is an amazing range of physicality through the Olympics and Paralympics and it truly showcases the very best we can be across this amazing range of sports.

The entire world watched as you celebrated your country! Everyone will have an opinion on the Opening Ceremonies, and I personally admire the focus on the history that was celebrated of a country that has had an amazing impact on most of the developed world.

The opportunity was for anyone to win. All of us have good days and better days and days we wish for a do-over. Whether you are the first woman to run from Saudi Arabia or a woman from Ethiopa who wins, the world truly is yours to celebrate with. My favorite personal memory from Beijing will always remain seeing the 800m of the Women's Heptathalon. At the end of that race, they knew who had won gold, silver and bronze in that event. EVERY SINGLE WOMAN in that event went together and ran a victory lap. That is the power of people who know that as much as we compete, being part of something bigger is what really matters.

Imagine if we approached every single event imagining that it will have an impact on every single person who touches the event. Imagine if we truly understood the power of what we create on a daily basis.

Imagine the possibilities.