It is a new year, I hope that 2010 treats the meetings and events industry a little better than 09....cause we all know that 09 was kinda rotten for many of our friends and colleagues.

The turning of the calendar brings change, and one of the changes is to Corporate Event Thoughts...this Blog.

Today is moving day, I am officially leaving this spot behind....heading to nicer digs if you will. Although there is nothing wrong with its current home, I got the idea to actually do more than this platform is capable of....
One of the best things about the new home is that it is a little more visually appealing and offers a couple of cool bells and whistles that are not possible here. It has not escaped me that this site was getting little ugly. You may not notice it for a few weeks, but the new home will actually have some design and thought behind it. Right now it is just OK, but like all moves, the first few weeks are loaded with empty boxes, packing paper and rearranging while you figure out where the sofa goes.

One of the hardest things about the this move is figuring out what to do with all of the posts that I have racked up over the past couple of years. I have given it a lot of thought and ran it by a number of people and have decided that I will be moving them over to the new site over the next couple of weeks, this will be a job in itself as I am taking the time to dump the bad ones and update the good ones while trying to create some new stuff that someone, besides me, may actually find interesting.

I hope that you will take the time to visit the new space and if you are so inclined, subscribe.......

Here is the new address for anyone who has got a couple of minutes to waste...

http://eventplanning.typepad.com/

        

Here is a look at a our latest Video Postcard Kiosk project from Thanksgiving time (this is how they look in action!).

Very cool way to send a marketing message, users send a video of themselves to friends or colleagues and attach pdf marketing materials. The postcard is also wrapped in branding with links!

        

I had a meeting and it changed a life. My life. I hope that it can change a few more lives as well.

Last week, the day before the Thanksgiving Holiday, I met with Calum Maclean, a true Irish Gentleman, and we had a talk about how we could change a few lives working together. In turn, this has made me a crusader, thus changing my life. One meeting, one life changed.

We talked about an organization that he is involved with (not his day job, this one is a true calling), Clean the World.

Cleaning the world is a big task, so they are starting with just a little piece of it, namely Haiti. One half of an island in the Caribbean that is in dire need of help. Help in many ways, economic, political, security…you name it, they need help with it. Clean the World cannot help all of these problems, so they aim to help in another way. They help people, namely children, get cleaned up.

Getting clean is fun, at least here in the States. I take 20 minutes out of my day when my little one needs a bath and it turns into a free-for-all of cars, trucks (yes, they sink), boats and buckets. Suds become mountains that stir the imagination and boats can fly.  In other parts of the world, getting clean is serious business.

How serious? Some of the major causes in death among neonates and children under five can be directly attributed to cleanliness. That is not play time, it is deadly.



How does Clean the World help?

They have a radical idea that is so simple it boggles the mind. They simply recycle the soap and shampoo that we leave behind when we check out of a hotel room. Ewww you say, wow I say (they do collect, batch and sterilize)…

Even simple ideas need funding and support.

Hotels that contribute pay for the shipping of the materials (about .09 cents per occupied room) to the center where the soap and shampoo are processed to be sent. The materials are then packed, loaded on shipping containers and sent off to Haiti where they actually make a difference in the lives of not only children, but the adults that care for them. Imagine, if you are a parent taking care of a sick child, you are unable to do the things that can change your life. Clean children can lead to healthy children, freeing the parents to work, contribute and help change their country.

How can meeting and event planners support Clean the World? That is the easy part; simply exercise your buying power. Make hotels understand that this is not only good for the world, it is good for business. By joining the fight and contributing, the hotels and resorts that participate have a better chance of earning your business.  A meeting or event changing a life (or one thousand lives).

Meeting and event planners also have the opportunity to share this information with their attendees, increasing the value of your meeting or event by simply holding your meeting or event. No cost, no fuss and no extra effort (on your part) required.

In addition, it adds one more piece to the sustainability puzzle of your event strategy. One more item that is not simply thrown into the trash to clog a landfill or pollute the ground water. It may end up there eventually, but at least the soap and shampoo lived a full life before being cast off.

Some of the hotels that participate are ones that you know well, from the Hard Rock in Chicago, the Lodge at Vail Colorado to the Interlaken Inn and Conference Center in Connecticut and even Crown Plaza Universal Florida. Hotels you know, hotels you use. (See, these hotels participate and they got a plug from me, exposure they were not expecting, but may pay off someday). For a full list of participating properties, click here.

So, the next time you are planning a meeting or event, ask. Ask the hotel if they participate, if not, ask them if they are willing to join the fight in order to earn your business. The nominal amount of money that is required on their part, pales in comparison to the amount of meeting spend you have on the table. Make it a contract requirement and follow up. If every meeting or event planner required this as a right to host your meeting, imagine the lives that would be changed. It staggers the mind and arm twisting in contract negotiations is actually fun.

Are we this bold? Do we care enough to even ask? Together, we can make the world a little better. If everyone, everywhere, did just a little, the gains would be enormous.

To learn more, visit www.cleantheworld.org.

Just a thought.

Keith

        

What happens the morning of the event:

 

 
Pictures only tell a part of the story, putting the finishing touches on an event that has the potential to change the world.

        

What happens at 10 pm the night before your event??

  

 

 

 

        

I thought it was time to plug one of my favorite causes and one of the best events in the industry:

The 2010 Sustainable Meetings Conference


Make it a point to attend, it is easy to get to, affordable (includes a year membership) and will forever change the way that you and your company view meetings and events.

Keith

        

I am a member of LinkedIn, who isn't.....awesome tool it is indeed.

I belong to many groups in my industry and comment to posts that interest me or where I feel my expertise may lend some help to someone. I do this when I have time, I do not spend much time doing this lately, we are swamped, which is a good thing.

A piece of news (real news) crossed my desk the other day, posted by Serenity to PlannerWire. It was one of the most important things to make waves in the meetings and events biz in a long time and it made me stop and think of the ramifications of "its" mention.

The news is: IMEX is coming to America, (read the full release here) and this has wide reaching effects on our industry given the support that they are getting from major industry players like MPI.

Good or bad, they are going to make a go of it.

I like IMEX, love it in fact. I went earlier this year to Frankfurt and it was one of the best shows I have ever attended. But their entry into North America will have repercussions such as: "can the U.S. support two similar shows" (the motivation show in Chicago) and "what does it mean for the city that loses" or "will exhibitors at one bolt for the other" and the very important "will the two shows dilute each other, bringing down two industry icons"...... All valid questions, but I stray from my topic.

I posted this news to various groups in LinkedIn that I belong to and where appropriate (I did not post it to the marketing groups I belong to because it is not a fit, I did however, post it to other groups like I&MI, MPI, and to "Event Planning & Management - the 1st Group for Event Planners". My shock when I received this note in my inbox:

Just a reminder

You and Anne Thornley-Brown share a network or group.

        

Check out Serenity's article on tradeshow exhibiting:

You Want Me to Pay What?! Part I

A first-time exhibitor recently arrived onsite at a major meetings industry trade show with company check in hand and instructions from her boss in mind: rent a few furniture items for the booth. No problem, right?

Upon speaking with show services providers, the exhibitor was floored to learn that she would have to pay $500+ for a simple pedestal and $200+ for a simple high boy table. No way! During the show, she couldn't quite comprehend the $1,000+ charges for Internet service—especially since her laptop picked up a full wireless signal from the onsite Internet cafe the whole time, at no charge. Really? After the show, the exhibitor was flabbergasted to learn that her boss had received an invoice for almost $500 in additional labor charges... on top of the several hundred dollars' worth of charges for services that had already been paid onsite. After all, no one in show services had mentioned those additional charges.

Click Here to read the rest on PlannerWire

        

CHICAGO - The 2010Sustainable Meetings Conference has opened registration with a new theme, adynamic keynote, a wide-ranging program, and the ambitious goal of drawing 500participants onsite in Denver, CO from February 9-11, 2010.

The conference theme, Scalingit Up, underscores the growing importance of sustainability in meetings andevents, as well as surging interest in GMIC’s premier annual event (formerlythe Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference).

“This conference is the opportunity for meeting organizersand hosts to address the sustainability issues that are redefining the industry,”said GMIC President Amy Spatrisano, CMP. “GMIC selected Denver primarily forits ability to draw a network of committed leaders with demonstrated experiencehosting sustainable meetings and events, like the Democratic NationalConvention.”

Denver is also home to GMIC’s second official chapter, whichhas seen its membership grow 50% in the past year. The chapter will serve ashost committee for the conference and lead the charge for GMIC’s annualcommunity service project.

Building on the trash action challenge that participantsadopted at GMIC’s 2009 conference, this year’s keynote speaker will be AnnieLeonard, author and host of the online film, The Story of Stuff.  The rest of the program is devoted to a seriesof interactive learning sessions centered on the APEX/ASTM green meetingstandards, as well as the process learning methodology modeled in internationalevent standards like the UK’s BS 8901.

GMIC will use feedback from conference participants todevelop a green meeting professional training series and certificate program inthe coming year. “We plan to involve conference participants in applying thechecklists, standards, and reduction targets to their own organizations,” saidGMIC Executive Director Tamara Kennedy-Hill. ”We want to balance targeted reductiongoals within a consistent sustainability framework that encourages continuousimprovement.” Spatrisano adds, "Each event that incorporates theseintegrated practices can help make a global difference.”

The call for presenters is live, along with conferenceregistration and full conference details, at www.sustainablemeetingsconference.com.

About the GMIC: The Green Meeting Industry Council(GMIC) is the premier global community solely dedicated to sustainability, notonly through education, but also by spearheading research, policy and standardsfor the meetings and event industry. The GMIC is an active member of theConvention Industry Council. Information: www.greenmeetings.info

CONTACT:Tamara Kennedy-Hill

1-888-450-2098

tamara@greenmeetings.info

        

A quick FYI for everyone, Registration is now open for the 2010 Sustainable Meetings Conference. This year, it is in the great city of Denver!

www.sustainablemeetingsconference.com!

Anyone who is involved with the meetings and events industry should be there, no excuses!

Keith