Outside looking in

The Dutch have interesting habits and ideas… I’m sure many are all too familiar.

But did you know that we often leave our curtains open in the evenings? When you walk on the streets at night, you can have a peek at families eating dinner, sitting in front of TV’s and other screens, celebrating birthdays, and so on.

 It all stems from a Calvinistic past, when the citizens felt a need to show that they were leading honest, sober lives.  But even in 2014 we do it. We’re on display, you can see what we are up to. Apparently we still  want to show the outside world that we are happy, responsible people living good lives in nice homes. And we have big windows, too.

I was thinking about this in relation to hybrid events and streams. In a way organizers are inviting us all to have a look,  using a screen as the window, and showing passers-by their content and products. 

In my experience – it is by far the best way to let a wide audience experience who you  are, and might result in a future face-to-face visit. 

Inspired by the window you show. No need to keep the curtains closed!

Anyway, I am looking forward to PCMA Convening Leaders, FRESH Conference and other events that are kind enough to invite me to have a look in their homes…and even join in the conversation with the people that are there. In that respect, hybrid events are even more inviting than an open window – they are opening their doors.

Just imagine…

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Just imagine …there are no conferences, tradeshows, exhibitions and corporate events. A blank page.

I know, it’s hard, but you can do it.

Then imagine you are sitting at home, thinking about your work, the subjects you really care about, the friends you have made over the years, the people you met in other countries, during your education, school, neighbors, family… What would it be like to invite all or some of them to meet, mingle and work towards a common goal?

How would you combine the experience, knowledge and ideas they share or have hidden in the back of their minds? How would you make sure that they would all have a great time AND learn and grow? What could they come up with?

Just imagine. At first chaos, and then some sort of order? Or the other way around? Groups and smaller groups evolve naturally, or a need of leaders to step up? Will you group people as you have met them, or mix business contacts with childhood friends? Or your older relatives with the neighbors children? Maybe just see what they come up with themselves?

Will they meet face to face, or online? In a building or on the beach? Will they show and tell, or just talking and discovering shared hobbies and experiences? Maybe playing a game….

How will you all get the most of it?  

And THEN realize there ARE conferences, tradeshows, exhibitions and corporate events. Are they different from your imagination? Somehow I have a feeling, that you will have thought of something out of the ordinary, something that you haven’t tried before. A new mix of people and settings.

Then it is time to start a change.Turn a page. And now’s time to do it. A new year, new ideas and lots of imagination.

Happy innovating!

Shared experiences

Remember that session when the speaker turned a tech failure into a tech success?  Or the ICCA network event when we tasted Dutch herring? Or the great fun we had in an Amsterdam pod connected to EventCamp Twin Cities?  

Well you probably do not – unless you were there.  But you have other memories  of events and tradeshows much like mine.  And more of them , I know most #eventprofs  get out a bit more than I do :-) . But that is not my point here.. it is about the power of events.

We share the same experience of venue, program, tradeshow, booths, sessions. The event provides a common ground, a framework and a shared interest even before we say Hello.

We are all out of our comfort zone, in a different setting, out of our day-to-day routine. That makes us more eager to connect and reach out to others.  And if we  already know people from previous events, even better. Than we can add another chapter  to our joint story.

That is why events, conferences and tradeshows  are so effective and irreplaceable. You do not just remember  the content and innovations, you also include the people you meet . They become a part of the story, and often turn into long term, valuable relations.

And  we keep running into each other. Through face to face meetings  maybe, but also online. We connect and re-connect in the events LinkedIn groups, on its Facebook pages, websites or via  hashtags. Giving us another umbrella to build relationships.

In fact the phrase ” long term relationships through a shared experience” was one of the tweets I sent  during an online event, the weekly #expochat that  @tracibrowne invented .  Another  way of building relationships…and a great way to share experiences!

Probably this topic was  inspired by the festive season, peace on earth, bringing people together and all that, but nevertheless it’s true.  

So any resolutions for next year? Adding to the story, I guess. Happy 2014!

Evolutionairy Road

These days it seems almost impossible to take things slow. We are following trends and new ideas like greyhounds, hoping to be the first to catch on to the latest app, the breaking news, the next big thing. Always on the go.

I must be getting old, but I have the feeling we do not allow ourselves the time to focus anymore. To slow down. To see clearly where we are going, and still look at the scenery along the way. Allowing for distractions, even. Because these might just add new thoughts and meaning to whatever goal we have in mind. Allowing a little bit of trial and error.

Hah! That reminds me of our road trip to Italy this summer. Our car broke down three (!) times on our way from Amsterdam to Ancona, but we had the best view of the Adriatic see. And some quality time to reflect :-)

Well , I am planning to stop and use my breaks a little more from now on.  Smell the flowers, see the sky, so to speak. How?

Using event  research in a more relaxed manner. Sure I know my goals and the objectives, and I will still deliver on time. But hey, if I spend a few extra  hours to look at reports more closely, add new angles or combinations, I might stumble upon an idea that is worth investigating. Small and slow. The dirt road just might  be the connection we were looking for.

Using social media in a better way. Planning time during the weekend to really read those blogs. Think about their content, see who can benefit from them, and pass them on. Not just retweet, but making it personal. Adding thoughts, asking feedback. More with less.  

Using event technology more based on personal need. To use as a reference after the event, for instance. Allowing myself to follow sessions as I see fit, ignoring networking tools once in a while and just enjoying the conversation. Or the white space. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love event tech, but not when it dictates the way I should connect. And, especially, the pace I should do it in. Even at events, it is worth to take it slow now and then. One great conversation might teach me more than a quick scan of the entire room...

So there you have it. Relax! And allow yourself a few mistakes. With the speed that we are going now, there is plenty of time to  adjust. Happy travels!

Let's keep in touch!

(workblog) 

The other week I was going through some old files, just looking if there were any data or details that I needed to get into the main database. And it struck me, that these pieces of paper really showed the big changes we have had in communication and connecting. In a way, a history just like the rings on a tree.  Busy years with a lot of letters and brochures , and slow years with almost no communication at all.

The best files are the oldest ones. You can see a change in pace, vocabulary and technology instantly.

We used to send letters in a very formal tone of voice and keep the carbon copies of them. So the file of association X starts in the ‘70’s, with these formal  letters and replies. If there were urgent issues, a telex was sent.  In the 80’s things were getting less formal, but we still kept in touch via letters. The occasional fax message appears in the files. Funny thing,  we had to put in a request  to send a fax and needed to get approvals  signed by  a manager before we were entitled to send it….imagine.  Then in the 90’s, communication via internet kicks in. The latest entries in file X are printouts of important e-mails, a signed contract (yey!)  and a message to check the database. Hah. I feel like an archaeologist.

Interesting to see how we connected with our customers and stakeholders over the decades.. . next to face to face, obviously. 

Did we do a good job? Probably…but it’s a new world now. We are connected all the time. We talk via mail and social media, via whatsapp and other tools, wherever we are - mobile and  free. We are updated  on a real-time basis, and are used to getting  answers to our questions even before we send them..

In 2013, “let’s stay in touch” means keeping the conversation going all the time. It means being in touch with machines, objects and  services, as well as talking to friends, delegates, companies and clients.  Whoa. Talk about connecting…

What does this mean for the events industry? How do we merge all these connections into our face to face meetings? We are talking with delegates, exhibitors and other stakeholders on a day to day basis. How do we do that?  Are we truly connected all the time?

I often see events with “see you next year” banners at the exit . Pretty old skool, don’t you think? I hope to see  “see you tomorrow” pretty soon…

(inspiration for this blogpost came from our  new Connected Society report.  Made me feel both nostalgic AND anxious for the future J . If you like, have a look and let me know what you think: http://www.rai.nl/en/amsterdam-rai/News-Press/nieuws/Pages/Connected-Society.aspx

X-ray your event

My cat broke his toe.

Strange, in the past  13 years he never had any problems. He came to our household as a kitten with his sister. She turned out  a petite, sleek and shiny black number, slightly nervous, whereas he grew into a big (OK, maybe too big), relaxed, laid back, no-nonsense, black-and-white rock.  

He had been walking with a strange limp for a while and when we saw no improvement we took him to the vet. There was nothing to be seen with the naked eye, but an X-ray showed a fracture. So now he is walking around with a bright blue cast, trying to make sense of it all and coming to terms with 6 weeks of indoor entertainment. Oh dear.

Why am I getting into such detail about my cat?

Well, imagine that it is not my cat, but your event that is the main topic of this blogpost. It sort of gives you the same story. I am sure you’ve heard it many times before: “the event model is broken, it needs to be fixed”. So many big events are like rocks. How do you find out which (if any) parts are broken? And how would you fix them?

Be aware of change – Is your event still going smoothly? Really? Look at all aspects, all delegates movements, all sessions, all communications, all surveys. Small changes can have a big impact if you leave them unattended. One not-so-good session this year might affect attendance at your whole programme in the next event. Are all aspects of your meeting still flawlessly joined together?

Get a second opinion – Sure you are the one that has the only day-to-day knowledge of your event. But when it comes to fixing problems you might need a fresh pair of eyes form a specialist. Marketeers, technicians, researchers, business analysts, IT specialists – all have special skills that can help you see your event in an new light – and inspire innovation.

X-Ray your event – Do not take things at face value. Use surveys, focus meetings, qualitative research and ROI measurements to see what issues might be hidden below the surface. That smile on your delegate’s face might not tell the full story. Dig deep. Do you provide a  perfect customer journey from beginning to end? Being successful for years is no guarantee, after all. One crack in the road can make you trip…

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I guess that my cat Kareltje (Dutch for Charlie) could not care less about events and analogies.  His focus lies mainly in eating and being outdoors. Well, maybe he would like another post about the brilliant flexibility that cats have and events need…..as long as he gets to be in the centre of attention J

For your next event: break a leg!

Exhibitions say more than a thousand words

First of all: I am really proud of the research we (my company and partners) just concluded. It is a study under Gen X and Y visitors of trade shows and exhibitions. We wanted to know what makes them tick. What do exhibitions and trade fairs mean to them?

I have to say, even though we all belong to one generation or another and can predict  some of the answers, the results  were pretty amazing. We matched the answers with overall generational trends and studies, and this gave some interesting points of view. If you want to check out the research, you can do so here: Gen X & Y research

So what is my point in this post? 

Well…as I was reading through the results of the study, one thing really struck me.

A thing that I wasn’t aware of or did not think about before. A simple thing, really.  Just the word: exhibition. What does it say? What does it mean to you? What image or feeling, which sentiment comes to mind?

An exhibition or an event? Searching on images gives an idea.

As it turned out:

Gen Y sees a possibly  outdated product. Just in the label “ exhibition” or “trade fair”.

Hm. Do they have a point?  Truth is, no matter how much we engage in renewing and reinventing the product, the overall word has stayed the same. We added hybrid components, apps, interactive features, show-and-tells, talks, peer-to-peer sessions, experiences, surprises, communities, a whole new live look, feel and world……but still call it an exhibition. Or a trade fair. 

The content might have changed, the label did not. 

As a result our potential Gen Y visitors have an old idea about a new product. Wow, that IS something to think about.

So I am wondering…should we include the terminology in our reinvention package? Add a new vocabulary to reflect the new meeting architecture and exhibition design?

Anyway, food for thought . Should we  give "trade fairs" and "exhibitions" a new image, a new interpretation? Or do we need to come up with new brands to make sure that generations to come will find excitement and learning in events that we used  to call trade fairs? 

What are the words that sum up an exhibition?

I bet we can come up with more than a thousand!