Repeat events provide a great opportunity to step up your game and add more value.
But, there can be a downside to repeat events if you aren’t careful: it can be easy to make assumptions.
When working on a repeat event, it’s all too easy to rely on history and make decisions based on your previous experience because you really want to be focusing on some new wow factors and not reviewing AV specs for the 187th time.
A client shared the recent article "15 Predictions About Future Conferences And Shifting Attendance Part 1" with me, and a few of these predictions really stood out from the rest:
“In the 21st Century, Wi-Fi represents an essential on-ramp to the Internet. Personal Wi-Fi networks, or “hot spots,” are an important way that consumers connect to the Internet. Willful or malicious interference with Wi-Fi hot spots is illegal. Wi-Fi blocking violates Section 333 of the Communications Act, as amended.1 The Enforcement Bureau has seen a disturbing trend in which hotels and other commercial establishments block wireless consumers from using their own personal Wi-Fi hot spots on the commercial establishment’s premises.
It was right around this time last year when we blogged about not saving planning details until the last minute because you never know what can happen at that last minute.
We’re back to say that we were right.
Planning a repeat event?
No brainer, right?
We’ve done it before so there are no surprises, no unknowns. Just rinse and repeat. Right?
Sure. If you don’t want to keep that client, or your job, for much longer.
On the surface, it may appear that repeat events are the easiest to plan, but that’s not exactly the case.
Repeat events do give us history, but that’s all it is … history.
We recently shared some over-the-top amenities that hotel are using to lure guests, and it's fun to take a break and think about how wonderful any of these would be to enjoy.
But let's be realistic ... when do business travelers like us have time for royal carriage rides, impromptu picnics, a sleep concierge, or a sunshine butler?
Never, right?
We have been spending a lot of time on sourcing properties for upcoming events and so we’ve been talking to a lot of people about sourcing and site selection. The conversations typically boil down to two factors: price and location.
January doesn't usually see a lot of love: it’s cold, it’s a reality check after the downtime we get with holidays in November and December, it’s cold, it’s a month we set (and usually break) resolutions, it’s cold, you get the idea. But, there is something that January offers that we look forward to all year: spending some time checking out what the latest events trends are for the year and deciding which we are going to follow and build into the events we are planning!
Hard to believe that we are only a few short weeks into winter with all of the plan shuffling that the weather has been causing. If the last several weeks are any indication of the amount of contingency planning that will be required this winter, we will be kept extraordinarily busy! The Philadelphia area looks to be spared this week, but our neighbors to the south are being slammed with what is being called a "once-in-a-generation" snow and ice storm starting today.
