January 2014
Cover Story/CMP Series
How Big Data Makes Meetings Smarter
Big data is the big buzzword. But what can it do for you? Help you figure out where your attendees are coming from and what they're interested in and better negotiate and track your expenditures.
Cover illustration by Eric Frommelt
Features
Doris Kearns Goodwin: Living With the Presidents
Pulitzer Prize-winning author, presidential historian, biographer, and political commentator Doris Kearns Goodwin has spent her writing career meticulously excavating stories that reveal the talents and foibles of the leaders who helped forge the United States.
How One Planner Performed Reconstructive Surgery on a Meeting
Planner Tina Squillante took a standard classroom-style medical meeting and, by applying lessons she learned at PCMA Convening Leaders, blew it out of the water. This is how she did it.
How Location-Based Technology Can Take Your Event to the Next Level
Seventy-four percent of smartphone users today enable location-based services, according to a recent Pew Research Center report.
PCMA's 20 in Their Twenties: The Future of the Meetings Industry
They're 29 or under. They work in meetings, conventions, and business events. And they're proven leaders. Presenting the winners of PCMA’s first-ever 20 in Their Twenties program.
Departments
How A Little Extra Planning Helped a Meeting Give Back
From yoga at an executive summit to a wellness program at a public high school, how a simple group activity is helping create a healthier community.
3 New Ways to Engage Webinar Attendees
We've trained webinar audiences to be passive bystanders, says an e-learning expert. That can change — if we change how we think about webinar design.
4 Ways to Prove Your Organization's Worth to Sponsors
Across nearly every industry, exhibit-booth footprints are shrinking. However, there is a silver lining: the opportunity to develop fruitful strategic partnerships. Just be ready to prove why a sponsor's dollars are well spent on your organization.
Supported Article Innovative Meetings
How One Journalist Created a Conference to Suit Her Needs
A successful journalist, frustrated with the lack of events targeted to her specific needs, decided to start her own technology and media conference. Here's how she built the first-ever KEEN Digital Summit.
Go Beyond the Blurb With Your Content Marketing Strategy
Conference planners have long relied on written descriptions to sell educational content to potential attendees. But meeting sessions aren't delivered in book format, so why would planners confine their descriptions to text?
The New Rules of Event Photography
Now that most attendees have the ability to snap and share photos instantly, the rules to event photography are changing. Here's what you need to know to protect attendees’ privacy, aggregate crowdsourced content, and secure the rights to your multimedia.
Plenary
Long Beach Transformed
The cold air was biting, but I could barely feel the sting through my thick, blue winter coat. Surrounding me, floor to ceiling, was glistening, solid ice — 10-feet-tall princesses, towering castles, and humongous lollipops.
Brewers Association's Annual Conference Comes to a Head
The Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America will be presented by the Brewers Association (BA) at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver on April 8-11.
Putting Patients First at ASTRO 2013
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) held its 2013 Annual Meeting at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta on Sept. 22-25.
Brad Gessner: A Master's Degree at Age 58
In the midst of a 35-year career in the meetings and hospitality industry, Brad Gessner was ready for a change.
'Don't Be Afraid To Share Your Ideas'
What's more challenging than running one huge international hosted-buyer show for the meetings and travel industry?
PopTech's Andrew Zolli: How To Remain Resilient In Times of Constant Disruption
To survive and thrive in the midst of constant disruption, a meeting professional needs to be resilient. For advice and insight into exactly how, we talked to Andrew Zolli, executive director and curator of the PopTech conference.
Also In This Issue
Do Your Educational Offerings Resonate With Your Audience?
There's a lot to be gained by looking at adult education in a new way.
Make Your Event Photos Even More 'Like'-able
In addition to using an event photographer, the Instagram photo app is a great way to share the story of your conference.
Where the Meetings Industry Needs to Catch Up
Every meeting generates tons of information. So when it comes to big data, why does the industry lag behind?