Conference Trends 2013

London New Years Eve Fireworks 2012

We can’t believe the first month of 2013 has gone already! This inspired us to think about the changing landscape of the events industry and changes and developments we foresee for conferences in the next 12 months. It will be interesting to review this post in early 2014 and see if our predictions were right!

Times are still tough in the UK economy and throughout the world and event budgets are tight or in some case virtually non existent! This is however encouraging some fantastic deals and rates throughout the industry from venues and suppliers for those in a position to take advantage. Good event organisers are rising to this challenge to become even more creative in making every penny go even further!  We also expect to see conferences and events held in more unusual venues and spaces in the future and sometimes shying away from the shiny purpose built venues we love so much.

We have already seen many events moving to a single day rather than a multi day programme and non fee paying events slashing maximum available attendee places is understandably a definite sign of the times. There has also been a push towards “no frills” packages e.g. providing a basic sandwich lunch and doing without the biscuits/fruit/pastries at refreshment breaks in order to make the books balance and also simply to not be seen as being frivolous in these times of austerity.  In our opinion content is always more important than the niceties and we are happy to advise our clients how and where they can save money on their conferences and events.

If you book to attend an event and cancel at the last minute do expect to incur a cancellation charge. No shows and late apologies cost the organiser money for the place that is wasted and cause frustration because it is then often too late to fill the place from someone on the waiting list. Attendees often don’t seem to comprehend that by booking a place and not turning up to an event you may be putting the future of the event happening again into serious jeopardy during these challenging times.

Social media will continue to have a massive impact in the event industry in terms of marketing, developing online communities, live tweeting, sharing photos and extending the life of the event well after the lights are turned off and everyone has gone home. No longer does attending a conference mean turning off your phone, instead delegates are often actively encouraged just turn to silent and to engage fully via social media. Virtually all of the events we work on now set a dedicated event hashtag early on in the planning process and we are happy to advise on a bespoke event social media marketing strategy. Tweets are often visible even to those without active accounts via Twitter walls and feeds via event apps.  Speakers at events are also expected to do more, be it by writing a guest blog post or simply telling their followers about the events they are involved in and tweeting live from the event.

Event App from Advanced Event Solutions Ltd

Reliable wifi is essential in any event venue nowadays, where each attendee is often using multiple devices to connect online. Venues with less than satisfactory wifi signal, complicated log in procedures and expensive charges (or indeed any charges full stop for wifi!) will soon find themselves out of favour with organisers.

Tablets are having an impact on events, not just in terms facilitating attendees to connect with social media on site but also in terms of some organisers favouring their tablet instead of their traditional clipboard to quickly access important information on the move!

A hybrid event is a tradeshow, conference, unconference, seminar, workshop or other meeting that combines a “live” face to face event with a “virtual” online component.  We are already seeing a rise in events which cater for both on site visitors and also engage with wider audiences unable to attend in person.  Hybrid Events are set to change the face of the events industry and will become more and more common over the next few years.

Now more than ever it is vital to measure the return on investment (ROI) for each event.  Instead of gaining feedback from attendees about how they rated the catering what we really need to measure is how much business was generated as a direct result of an event or how it has influenced and changed opinions of those attending.

We are seeing a movement by forward thinking organisations who want to be respected as experts in their field and are hosting workshops around the country.  These organisations are putting on a free half day seminar in their area of expertise and inviting a targeted list to take up free places.  The seminar gives an introduction into their services via a number of guest speakers and case studies.  Attendees can gain valuable insight into the subject area, ask questions and get free advice.  The seminars then generate leads and business over the medium term which more than compensates for their initial investment.  We are pleased to be working with a number of clients who see this formula as a vital component in their marketing strategy.

In 2012 we produced a number of events that invested in an event app to improve the attendee experience.  Sponsorship is sometimes elusive in the current economic climate with sponsors rightly demanding more and looking for a unique package in return.  A bespoke branded event app such as those provided by Advanced Event Solutions Ltd offers real tangible benefits to sponsors as well as adding value to delegates, speakers and exhibitors.  In this age of technology having information at your finger tips via a mobile phone or tablet is expected and demanded more and more.

Event Registration Management

The face of event registration is changing.  For bigger and slicker events gone are the pre printed badges laid out in alphabetical order on the registration desks.  Instead we are seeing a much faster and less wasteful way to check in delegates via barcoded registration technology.  The attendees barcoded ticket is scanned at the desk triggering their badge to be printed within a matter of seconds.  We developed this registration management system ourselves in 2010 and it continues to grow from strength to strength.  It can also be integrated with the event app mentioned previously.

Over many years the favourite staple presentation tool has been PowerPoint.  Many speakers are however now favouring Prezi.  Prezi is a slick way to visualise and share ideas and information via zooming technology.  It certainly looks beautiful and is easy to understand why it is attracting over a million new users a month!

We believe that we will continue to see those that have cut budgets and stopped running events start to return to funding face to face opportunities to learn and connect. We have already seen examples of this throughout 2012 as clients realise it is actually often the most effective and cost effective way to achieve their objectives and alternative methods are simple not able to provide comparable results.

Online event registration sites have come a long way over the past few years and hopefully we will continue to see further improvements.  There are some great sites out there but not one provider is perfect yet in our opinion – every platform has some annoying imperfections, oversights or are simply overpriced and there is still work to be done.  We have a good working knowledge of event registration sites and are able to advise our clients which of the providers are most suitable for their event and which are the most competitive in terms of commission fees charged on each booking and card payments.

Following on from the success of the Olympic Games 2012 we hope that the UK will continue to benefit from increased tourism and hospitality spend as one of the premier destinations for conferences and events.

2013 is set to be an exciting year for Events Northern Ltd. We already have a great list of events confirmed, including our first European Conference.  This blog post has looked at just some of the ways we expect to see changes over the course of 2013.  We would love to hear your thoughts on this blog post and to hear your predictions and trends for the 12 months ahead!

Business Speed Networking

Networking is important for business

As an SME I certainly recognise the need and importance of networking, however often I feel frustrated with some of the networking events I attend.  This isn’t always the fault of the organiser; more often than not it just isn’t physically possible to talk to everyone in the room.  Time spent away from the business is particularly precious so in these situations when I have only met perhaps a handful of new contacts or spoken to only 5% of the room I sometimes leave feeling a little deflated that I didn’t achieve more.

I appreciate that it works for some people but my schedule varies wildly from week to week depending on the events we are planning and I would not get value and simply cannot commit the time to network on a weekly basis to a regular group of people.  I frankly do not agree that you need to have breakfast with the same people once a week to remind them to call on you if they need your services.  Personally I also prefer to mix it up a bit!  

These sentiments and other frustrations were shared by Martin Adams of Money Best Deal who approached me about starting a different type of networking event and wanted my help.  Martin is a very active networker but over the course of a year he had recorded the things he liked about networking events and the areas were he thought there was room for improvement.  He had also had many frank conversations with others about their likes and dislikes about networking events.  People often disliked having to address the whole room and found it awkward sometimes to infiltrate groups if everyone seemed already deep in conversation when they entered the room.  Top of the pet hates though included expensive annual fees and contracts and expensive fees to attend events, often with little or no return from over the course of a year.

Martin wanted to do something about it and we agreed to set up a series of business speed-networking events across the North West to try to overcome some of the issues and dislikes identified and to strive to create efficient, good value networking events for business men and women.  It was important to us both to have no upfront fees, contract or tie in to enable people to simply choose to attend the events most suitable for their schedule and to dip in and out as they wished.  Likewise although we need to cover the costs of running the events we wanted to keep the ticket price as low as possible to give good value and accordingly the ticket price is £12.50.  Attendance at the events is limited to two per organisation, to ensure variety and we recommend different specialisms/areas of interest if two people do come along.

Most importantly we wanted to ensure that the events are time efficient and guarantee that everyone has the opportunity to talk to every single other person in attendance on a one to one basis.  We also vowed to bring in different experts to give presentations and opportunities for questions and answers at the start of each event, focusing on topics of interest to small businesses.

So what is Speed-Networking?

Speed-networking is a structured, fast-paced, effective and fun way to meet other businesses in mini one to one meetings.

Speed-networkers want to broaden their connections by increasing their exposure to other like-minded people.

During a set time period you are able to get a brief understanding about what your new contact does, whether there is the possibility of a future business relationship and whether it would be worthwhile speaking or meeting in further detail.

What is the format of Speed-Networking-Works Events?

Attendees are invited to register on site from 3 pm and refreshments and cake are available as well as some open networking time.

After a welcome from the host at 3.30 pm the expert speaker will then present on a specific topic and have time to answer questions from attendees.  The host then explains speed-networking for those not familiar with the format of the event and how it works.

For the speed-networking attendees are seated facing each other across a table and have a timed period to introduce themselves and hear from the other person.  At the bell/buzzer those seated on one side of the table stand up and move along one place.  This process is repeated until everyone has spoken to all the other people in the room with a comfort break half way through.

Further open networking time is then available at the end of the event to pick up on any of the exciting conversations you started during the face to face speed-networking meetings.

When are these events taking place and how can I attend?

Registrations are open for the next event:

Business Speed Networking Works Darwen
Thursday 20 September 2012
The Learning Academy, Crown Paints, Hollins Road, Darwen, BB3 0BG
Further information and bookings at:
http://speednetworkingworks2.eventbrite.co.uk/

We hope to see you there!

For more information please call Becki on 01772 336639 or Martin on 01254 233035.

Please follow us on Twitter @speednetworknw

TechFest 2012

On Monday 18th June Becki Cross from Events Northern Ltd attended TechFest 2012  at the Mermaid Conference Centre, London.  Read more about the event in this blog post….

TechFest (http://tech-fest.co.uk/) is an event aimed purely at event organisers and focused on Event Technology.

I have to admit that it was lovely to be attending an event as a delegate for a change rather than to be ensuring everything runs smoothly behind the scenes for others!  I started the day armed with a brand new notebook – not sure if that is allowed at an event focused on event technology but as a stationary geek it made me happy at least (simple pleasures)!

We were greeted and welcome to the event by Oscar the Robot.  It was good to see Oscar live in action as I am desperate to use him for my own future events but haven’t yet had the opportunity!  Oscar was at his most charming, commenting that he “liked my red bag” as I went past.  As anticipated Oscar proved a great hit throughout the event talking to delegates, smiling for photos and generally attracting attention to himself – an excellent engagement tool which is proven to be particularly valuable in terms of attracting footfall to exhibition stands and other promotional activities.

The event had tried to do things differently, rather than by traditional means; for example attendees were invited from the “Making Good Organisers Great” LinkedIn Group and there were no delegate packs at the event.  We did find however that by our very nature event planners are generally very meticulous and so many of us attending the event had printed out our own event programme and brought it with us to refer to!

At the registration desk we had to choose a badge based on our knowledge of event technology.  Gemma thrust a Pink Badge onto me – signifying that I was knowledgeable about event technology!  Other colours signified those that had some or little expertise in this area and the badges were designed as an ice breaker and conversation starter.

The event was expertly Chaired by Alan Stevens (@mediacoach).  He highlighted that technology can be a great thing if used appropriately but also gave wise words of warning that all speakers should be prepared to manage with or out technology when presenting “just in case.”  He also outlined a true story of an event which had the event Twitter feeds prominent on the stage behind the speaker but in full view of the audience.  The audience used Twitter to complain how bad the speaker was and then collectively decided to do a countdown to leave the room, at which point three quarters of the audience departed.  The remaining audience then had to point out the Twitter messages to the bewildered speaker to explain the reason for the mass departure.

Jamie Vaughan, Sales Director at So Visit gave some interesting facts during his presentation:

80% of leads from an event are never followed up.

As an event organiser this is both baffling and disappointing as this is a massive lost opportunity.  Proving the Return on Investment of attending or exhibiting at an event is vital to ensure the business opportunities and revenue is maximized and ensure future approval.

94.9% of attendees welcome ongoing communications post show.

To highlight once again the lost opportunity represented by the previous fact – leads from an exhibition are generally “warm” and receptive to communication.  This should be seized and definitely not wasted under any circumstances!

Hellen Beveridge, Trainer and Consultant at PureRocketScience gave a commons sense presentation on social media campaigns.  She stressed the importance of knowing your audience, seeing your event from the audience perspective and setting the goals you want to achieve from the campaign.

After hearing from Quick Mobile about the many benefits of using a mobile app for events William was asked why he hadn’t had an event app for the event.  This started comments about how mobile apps can be time consuming in terms of adding the event information.  Many of the audience disagreed with this, telling others they were using the wrong apps if it required hours or days of work!  (By the way – if you are looking for a competitively priced mobile event app we recommend that you should investigate www.advancedeventsolutions.com).

In the afternoon we joined tables for World Cafe Discussion Groups.  The groups highlighted the difference in experience and knowledge between some of the attendees (e.g. some still use paper registration forms) but the groups I joined sparked some interesting conversations and discussions.

The day was frankly over too soon with cars waiting to whisk us over to HAC for champagne and show rounds.

I got a lot out of the day in terms of the networking opportunities and some of the presentations.  I met some fantastic people and it was great to finally meet in person some contacts I only knew previously through email or social media.

All credit to William from Gallus Events for putting on this free conference for event organisers – probably the most critical audience he could have targeted!  Well done and thanks also to Gemma Pears for looking after everyone so well.

I will definitely look forward to TechFest 2013!

Did you attend TechFest 2012?  What did you get out of the day?  What would you like to see from TechFest 2013?  I would love to hear your thoughts below. 

International Confex 2012

This week Events Northern Ltd had a whirlwind trip down to London for International Confex 2012.  Confex is an essential day out for anyone who organises events and this year took place between the 6th and 8th March, at ExCel, London.  We visited the show on Wednesday and had a very productive visit.  Although we stayed for the full day the exhibition passed by only too quickly for our liking – too many people to speak to in too little time!

As always it was useful to meet up with current clients, venues and suppliers.  It was great to catch up on recent and future planned developments at the Barbican.  We were also really pleased to see Visit Manchester and Liverpool Convention Bureau out in force with some of our favourite Northern venues represented.

In some cases I matched faces to contacts I had only ever spoken to previously via phone or email so it was great to say “hello” in person!  In particular it was great to finally meet Banks from the Active Network and Adam from Hospitality and Events North.

It is really important to us to be up to date with new developments, products and innovations in the event industry.  We feel that these are exciting times for this fast moving sector and we need to ensure we can advise our clients on the best value and most exciting technologies to suit their requirements.  Confex is always a great way to get up to speed with the latest products and to have live demonstrations and question companies about their newest offerings.  The use of social media, touch screen technology, ipads and mobile phones apps were all very apparent at the show to reflect the way conferences and events have developed even over the last few years.  We particularly enjoyed all of the interactive touch products on show from Smart AV which included single-touch to multi-touch, screens, walls, tables, PC’s and tablets.

Another product we loved was the newly launched Rollerwall.  This product can be used to create a marketing space or backdrop wherever you need it.  Unlike a traditional pop up exhibition stand it is ready to use instantly and will bend and adapt to fit the space available.  It can be used as a room divider or can be retracted and hidden away in one solid pillar.  The graphics zip-in and are easily changeable.  Visuals can be different on each side of the rollerwall giving two stands in one.  Alternatively one side can be kept free of graphics completely so that it can be used as a projection screen.

One of our forthcoming conferences requires translation services so it was great to discuss different options such as whisper translation systems and translation booths with the AV Department Ltd.

Sadly many of the exhibitors commented to me that the show was a lot quieter than in previous years, which could be a relection on the tough economic climate.  It will be very interesting therefore to find out the final total attendance figures over the three days of the exhibition.  For Events Northern Ltd though the trip to Confex was very worthwhile and productive.

Related articles

• Barbican returns to International Confex

• Manchester aims to poach London conferences during the Olympic crush (guardian.co.uk)

• Rollerwalls launch at Confex 2012

Business Etiquette Tips for Event Managers

The Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for Event Management at the University of Central Lancashire recently asked for my top ten hints and tips on professional business etiquette for budding Event Managers.  I started thinking about my personal experience and the standards that are important to me and this provided inspiration for this blog post.

As an Event Manager it is vital to act professionally and ethically and to present a positive business image at all times.  We work in a people-orientated industry.  People buy from people and they want to work with those that they respect and have faith in.  You are an ambassador for the company you work for and your conduct adds to your “brand.”  Of course this post isn’t exclusive to the event industry – it will be useful to a broad spectrum of professions.

To be distinguished as a professional event manager and outclass the competition these are my personal top tips.

Timekeeping

Good timekeeping is essential.  Always be on time for meetings.  It is unprofessional to be late and you do not want to keep people waiting.  Should circumstances be beyond your control do of course have the courtesy to phone ahead and apologise.

Always arrive early on live event days – it is completely unacceptable to be even a minute late on the day of the event.  Leave plenty of extra time in case of unexpected eventualities.

Presentation

Good presentation and personal grooming is important.  Your dress must be practical and comfortable as well as smart.

Make sure that you give a proper handshake.

Stay calm and unruffled under pressure – keep your head.

Time Management

Good time management is an essential skill for every Event Manager.

It goes without saying that you must meet all deadlines – events will not wait!  Work backwards from the event date and effectively map the key milestones and deadlines leading up to the date and stick to them.

The nature of running an event does mean that a lot can happen just before the event day – last minutes bookings, substitutions, last minute requests from speakers, etc.  Be prepared for this.  Expect to work late as necessary to get things done thoroughly.

Attitude

Treat others with the respect you expect to be treated with yourself.

Have a positive, professional outlook.

Event Managers should be friendly and approachable and most importantly SMILE!  This is a people business and you should be warm and welcoming.

Correspondence

Develop a professional way of answering the phone.

Know how to write professional letters, faxes and emails.

Respond to emails and voice messages promptly.  However busy I am it is important to me to respond as quickly as possible to emails and any calls I have missed.  I definitely aim to respond within 24 hours but generally reply much more speedily.

Manners

Always ensure introductions are made between speakers, performers, clients and staff.  Be sure to use correct titles where appropriate (Dr, Professor, Sir) and full names.  Try to give job titles, organisations and a hook to enable a conversation to begin naturally.  This might be a shared interest, fact or point of view or some background information which will put them at ease with each other.

Don’t forget your manners.  Common courtesy seems to be a dying art but costs nothing.

Always thank speakers, sponsors, staff and clients – anyone that has contributed to making the project a success or paid for your services.

Business Etiquette

Get everything in writing.  This is particularly important when it comes to contracts, roles and responsibilities, deadlines, health and safety information, venue operations sheets and basically anything important!

Ask for constructive feedback.  Everyone likes positive feedback and affirmation but negative feedback can be extremely valuable if you listen, understand and improve as a result of it.

The customer is always right.  Unfortunately this may not always be true however if you receive a complaint of any description you must deal with it graciously.  Don’t interrupt (even with a solution) before they tell their story.  Then handle the complaint in a calm, rational way.

Act discreetly and confidentially.  Behind the scenes at an event you may find out some top secret information – perhaps that world class “superstar” is actually extremely dislikeable or perhaps you witness someone doing something they shouldn’t.  This is however your secret – it is not your place to sell the story to the media or gossip on social media channels! (or at least not if you want to continue to work in the events industry)

Approach

Find solutions for your clients, even if one isn’t obvious straight away.  Your clients pay you to make things work and “where there is a will there is a way!”

Offer your professional advice to ensure a successful event will be executed.  Clients often presume how things will be done but frankly this isn’t always the best way to do things.  It is your job to explain your vision and why your way is better, quicker, more efficient and will get results.  You have learnt from experience so let your clients benefit from your learning and expertise too – that is what they are paying you for after all.

Professionalism

Don’t complain.  You may have back ache/leg ache/head ache/be worn out from getting up at 4 am to be on site however your client does not need to know that!

Don’t bad mouth competitors.  Although the behaviour and way of working of your competitors can repeatedly baffle you it is not professional or acceptable to point this out publically.  If you cannot say something nice it is best just to say nothing at all in my opinion.

Be careful how you present yourself/your organisation on social media channels – never swear, bad mouth, don’t blatantly self-promote, consider that current or future clients/employers/employees could be reading your updates.  If necessary separate your business and personal profiles.

Separate business and pleasure.  As a perk of the job you will no doubt receive invitations to many glittering social occasions with free alcohol flowing.  Have a good time (naturally) but do draw a respectful line if you wish to receive other invitations in the future!

Business Ethos

Always give your best.  If you are a half-hearted event manager you will never succeed.

Learn from every project, client and event.  Strive to do things better.

Be understanding.  Speakers and clients are busy people and they cannot always meet the deadlines we impose, however much notice we give them.  Be prepared, adapt and be understanding even if it does cause you last minute work and stress.  And then smile, be understanding and don’t complain!

Applying standards of etiquette and protocol should become hallmarks of you and your company and an integral part of your brand.  As a professional Event Manager these are some of my ways of working.  What are your personal hints and tips for business etiquette?

Is your event management company saving you money?

Image via Wikipedia

There are countless benefits to using an event management company and in these difficult economic times it is crucial that every penny counts.  So what should you expect from your event management company when it comes to saving you money?  How can you be sure that you are getting best value?  This blog post will focus specifically on some of the cost saving benefits every event management company worth their weight in gold should be demonstrating to their clients.

Knowledge

Event Managers are an encyclopedia of knowledge.  We often know venues, suppliers and contacts that you may never even have heard of.  These little gems may not have the marketing budget to get them to the first page of Google to compete with the big boys but you can rest assured that they can offer you knock out rates as a result.

Special Offers

We like to be in the know and venues and suppliers ensure they regularly communicate special rates, offers and discounts to us.  Often the savings and offers are only open to past customers and/or event management companies/agencies on their database and we like nothing better than matching up the deals with our clients needs.

Preferential Rates

We have great relationships with many venues and suppliers which encourages them to give us excellent rates.  Venues and suppliers like working with professionals because we understand the process, we are organised, meet all deadlines and save a lot of leg work and time for the venue/supplier as a result.

We really value our suppliers and our suppliers value us.  In recognition of the value of work we place with our trusted suppliers throughout the course of a year we are often lucky enough to get discounts, meaning that our clients benefit from the economies of scale of our total annual spend.  For example our preferred and fantastic audio visual supplier is Active AV.  They automatically offer us 20% discount off all equipment hire.  This saving is then passed on directly to our customers.

We cultivate good relationships with our suppliers which often pays off for our clients in terms of added extras chucked in.

Negotiation

We will always negotiate to ensure our clients get the best possible price.  And then we make comparisions between the offers made.  And then we negotiate some more!

Research

Good research skills are an essential part of every event managers CV.  How can you be sure you are getting the best rates unless you shop around and triple check?

The Bigger Picture

We know the questions to ask.  Unfortunately some organisations and venues prefer to hide the true costs and land customers with unexpected expenditure items after contracts have been signed, rather than being transparent.  We like to ask questions from the start so you are not going to get charged £50 for use of a plug socket (I kid you not!).

We also know where money should be spent and where it can be scrimped without compromising on quality – for instance two pull up banners for £99 – yes please, versus £300 for one (of comparable quality I hasten to add).

Often we can suggest viable alternatives.  Often things can be done differently to make the event slicker and save money.

On event days we are never without our “event managers box” – a box of essential equipment and items close to hand which often prove to be invaluable.

Beg, Borrow or Steal

Recently a client needed an expensive piece of equipment and had no budget to pay for it.  I was the first person they contacted to help.  It is always good to pick up the phone and hear “I didn’t know where to start but I thought that if anyone will know you will know!”  And it paid off for them too!

Don’t Pay for Things You Don’t Need

We help our clients to work out what they need so they don’t have to pay for things they don’t need.  We always have a clients best interests at heart – for example is a DDR (day delegate rate) really best for your needs or would it be cheaper to pay for room hire, catering and audio visual separately on this occasion?

In terms of catering have you taken into account the speakers that cannot stay for lunch, the late arrivals and the likely number of no-shows?  We can advise on these headaches so you don’t have to worry or waste your valuable budget.

Budget

Many of our clients want us to create and control an event budget so they can make pricing decisions early on in the project and have regular updates in terms of income and expenditure and surpassing the break even point.

We care about the event as much as you do and we will be watching every penny to ensure you maximise your budget throughout the life of the project.

Technology

We like to be up to date with the newest technologies.  We can advise what will have the wow factor and maximise the event experience without necessarily costing the earth.  Text to screen systems, barcoded registration systems, event apps, twitter walls are just a few items that can be low cost but really transform the event.

Do you need a registration site but are you baffled by the different rates and commission charges?  We can look at what you need your registration page to do and the payments involved to give a clear idea of which sites can work best for you.

Work in Your Best Interests at All Times

Sometimes the unexpected can happen and you may need to change to a larger or smaller venue, change dates or even cancel your event completely.  The terms and conditions of the contract can be baffling but should this happen we will work with the venue and suppliers to minimise the penalties and negotiate the best deal for you.

This post has focused on some of the direct monetary savings an event management company will make for you.  Of course one of the huge advantages of contracting an event manager is the time savings you make, leaving you to focus on the job you are paid to do and earning money for your organisation, whilst you leave the planning and organisation to the experts.

This blog has given just a few examples of how Events Northern Ltd add value, save money for our clients and maximize their budget.  Are you getting excellent value from your event management company?  Are they saving you money?  If not, or if you are not so sure, then contact us – we would love to hear from you!

Top Tips for a Successful Career in Event Management

The recent A-Level and GCSE results got me thinking about what advice I would give to anyone interested in Event Management.  You may be considering studying an Event Management degree and/or want to embark on a career as an Event Manager?

I was 17 when I set my mind on my future career path and I have enjoyed writing this blog post and looking back at the information and learning that I would give today to anyone just starting out on this journey.

Be warned and be prepared though; this is a very competitive marketplace with hundreds of people applying for every university place and job.  To succeed you will need to stand out from the crowd and be the cream of the crop!  Here are some of my top tips to give you the best chance of a long, exciting and rewarding career in the events industry.

Read all you can

Read as much as you can about the events industry, including event management books, industry magazines, press releases, blogs, websites, etc.  This is a fast-moving industry and it is important to keep up to date.  Not all of this information has to be purchased – there is a wealth of free information out there which will help to give you the bigger picture and teach you some of the basic principles about event management.

If you are looking to study for an Event Management degree authors such as Goldblatt, Getz, Bowdin, Watt and Tarlow (to name just a few) will help to introduce you to the subject area.

Don’t just limit your reading to purely event management based articles either, reading around marketing, customer service, presentation skills, health and safety, social media, creativity, project management, business planning, management, negotiation, finance/budgeting and so forth will all help in any future event management role.

Don’t specialise too early

Even if you are adamant that you wish to work in a particular area of the events industry I would urge you not to specialise too early, to ensure that you gain a broad range of skills and experience.  Although organising a music festival is a very different area of expertise to organising a conference or exhibition the basic principles of event planning are the same and experience of managing a live event in any shape or form will help to make you a better and stronger Event Manager.  When I started studying for my event management degree at Leeds Metropolitan University I was certain that I wanted to specialise in the music industry, organising festivals and gigs.  Throughout my career I have been lucky enough to work on every type of event imaginable; from fashion shows to awards ceremonies, exhibitions to weddings, music festivals to conferences, sporting competitions to open air movies and everything in between.  Today though, although I still really enjoy working on every single event management project, I get the most satisfaction from organising conferences and this has become my personal niche and speciality.

Organise anything you can

If you are considering working in the events industry you are probably already seen as the natural organiser within your friendship group – the one that makes things happen and generally looks after the arrangements and finer details.  Although organising friends birthday parties, holidays and nights out may be on a much smaller scale compared to organising public events it is still a little more practice for your future role and every little helps!

You can make other opportunities for yourself too.  Could you organise an event for a local charity for example?  If you are willing and able to take the initiative and help with fundraising on any scale I guarantee that they will be very appreciative.  And what about getting involved with your local amateur dramatics or other performance group?  That would be a great opportunity to shadow a sound and lighting engineer and to learn a little bit more about how it works behind the scenes.

During your career you will often be working with a tight or very small budget and so being imaginative, negotiating, making every penny count and generally making magic on very few resources is something that you should be working on at every opportunity (and your friends/local charity/theatre group will thank you for it too).

Get to grips with Social Media

You are no doubt already really comfortable with the internet and social media such as Twitter, Facebook, Blogging and Google+.  Incorporating social media and marketing into events is common practice nowadays so ensure that it is a routine part of your day/week too and think about how you could use it in a professional rather than a personal capacity to help promote your own future events.

Start to follow #eventprofs on Twitter and learn from the thoughts, knowledge and discussions they inspire and share.

Ensure you have a good computing skills

A lot of administration is required when planning an event and as an Event Manager you will need to be well versed in using a range of different software and tools.  Get as much working knowledge as you can of Microsoft Office (particularly Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher) and also learn basic accounting, project management, web design, video editing, design, writing and marketing skills if you possibly can.

Being familiar with the keyboard and typing quickly will be essential!  Likewise experience of writing professional correspondence in the form of emails, letters, reports and budgets will be a regular requirement.

As an Event Manager you will need to be technically proficient in many areas so seize absolutely every opportunity to learn.

Get a driving license

Event Managers often work unsociable hours and venues are not always accessible by public transport, particularly at 5 am!  Likewise you will often have a lot of equipment to transport so having a driving license and ideally your own vehicle is essential in my opinion.

Volunteer and get work experience

Volunteering and paid or unpaid work experience are absolutely vital and this cannot be stressed enough.  This shows a future employer that you are serious and committed to your chosen career and hungry to gain experience whenever you can.  Find out about local events and event management companies and ask them if they have any opportunities for you to get involved.  Don’t just think this should relate to the live event period either – the hard work is done in the office during the planning stages in the weeks/months/year leading up to the event.

Often it is possible to volunteer for events such as music festivals and aswell as gaining essential work experience and knowledge of a live event you often get a free ticket and “time off” to enjoy the festival in return for a set amount of working hours per day.  Regardless of whether you have chance to work on large-scale events such as the Olympics, Glastonbury, V Festival, etc, or events on a more local level, nothing should be discounted.

Although it may be difficult juggling your paid work commitments with your eagerness to volunteer you must do it to set you apart from the masses.  This has to be done as a long-term investment as without proof of experience working on actual events you are unlikely to even get to the interview stage.  Show willingness to volunteer and prove yourself to an Event Manager and this may of course then lead to paid work in the future.  Without getting your feet on the first rung of the ladder though you are never going to progress and develop your skills.

Of course if you can gain paid experience in the events industry that is even better.  Be open-minded about how you can gain experience too, for example could you work as an event steward?  This is a good grounding in terms of managing crowds across a venue or event site, dealing with different health and safety issues and ensuring the smooth running and safety of all attendees.

Go to events

At every possibility go to a broad variety of events and observe how things are done as a spectator.  What has worked well, what could be improved?  Why do you think things have been set up that way?  How has it been marketed?  How is everything managed?  What did you learn?  Consider jotting down notes, questions and observations that you can refer back to in the future.

I hope this post has inspired you to begin your exciting career in event management.  I love my role as Managing Director of Events Northern Ltd and find it extremely satisfying and rewarding working on events both large and small.

We wish you the best of luck to fulfill your dreams too!

Getting the Most Out of Networking

Recently there seems to have been an explosion of business networking events.  Organisations seem to have a renewed hunger for getting “out there” and meeting as many people as they can, desperate to shake off the recession and to “do business.”  However many people say that they do not enjoy networking events and try to shy away or avoid it completely.  As an event management company it often surprises us how some people prefer to arrive at an event late and leave early, perhaps to avoid any valuable networking time and then also seemingly aim to avoid all interaction with other attendees during break times by focusing solely on their phone, never even looking up and blanking everyone else around them.  Others embrace it, making useful new contacts and sparking ideas and collaborations for the future.

Love it or loathe it though networking effectively is an important part of business.  We hope this blog on networking will help minimise any uncomfortable situations and enable you to get the most out of any forthcoming networking opportunity.

Be Prepared

Never go to any business function, conference or networking event without business cards – and lots of them!  For a small investment you can ensure anyone you connect with has a way to contact you in the future.  Even if there is no immediate business opportunity you never know what may change or who that person will talk to down the line.  You want to ensure they have a card from you so they can hopefully dig out your business card when needed.  Think carefully about your business cards – do they stand out for the right reasons and represent your company, do they explain succinctly what you do, do they have all of the communication channels listed for you and the business?  Nowadays many people are adding their Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn details on their business cards or even QR codes.

When you exchange business cards take a moment to look at the card and the person and try to memorize the two.  Whilst the contact is still fresh in your mind it may also be worth noting on the business card where you connected (we often note date, event and venue to jog my memory) and any particular business opportunities between you, for instance have they requested a brochure is sent out to them or would it be worthwhile to set up a meeting?

Explaining your Business

Can you succinctly introduce and explain what your business does?  The ultimate crime of networking is not explaining properly what your organisation actually does, presuming that it will be obvious from the business name or that the other person will know your industry like you do.  People will quickly lose interest if they do not understand properly from your brief introduction.  And under no circumstances should you use technical jargon as this will often switch people off.  Why are you different from your competitors?  What is your niche?

You should practise a brief clear introduction for the company and your role within it.  If you are looking to network and specifically find a business contact or requirement don’t be afraid to state this too – the person you have connected with may be able to introduce you to someone they would recommend or offer some advice even if they do not have an immediate direct need for your product or service.

Getting Started

Don’t forget that if you are feeling nervous others will be too.  When you first arrive look for other people that are not deep in conversation or ask to join onto a friendly looking group.  I always just simply say “Do you mind if I join you?” and so far I haven’t come across a group that hasn’t been accommodating.  Conversations can often be struck up easily at the refreshment table too.  Being confident to strike up a conversation does become easier with practice if it isn’t something that comes naturally to you at first.  Smile!

Don’t judge a book by its cover – you cannot tell by looking at someone what industry they work in or their seniority within the company.  I set up Events Northern Ltd at the age of 23.  I would hate to think that people may have passed over speaking to me thinking I was perhaps too young or not senior enough to make purchasing decisions.  Instead they would have connected with the top decision maker!  Talk to anyone and everyone.

Ensure the flow of conversation is fair – ask questions as well as giving information back.

Be positive!  People do not want to know about your personal problems, they are there to talk business.

Always give your full attention to the person you are talking to but don’t be afraid to move on when both parties have introduced themselves and cards have been exchanged.

Likewise do not be tempted just to talk to those you know and not to approach anyone new.

Seize every opportunity – after all if you don’t talk to people during this networking opportunity your paths may never cross again.  You want to be sure that you have made the most of it.

Follow up

After the event follow up on any warm leads and actions as soon as you can so it isn’t forgotten about.  Did you promise to send over a brochure or price list?  Would it be worthwhile to connect on Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/Google+?  Should you set up a meeting?  Under no circumstances should you be contacting or meeting with everyone you talked to – only those where there is a strong potential for future business.

Don’t forget to facilitate worthwhile connections between parties when you can.  In the world of business we strongly believe that “what goes around comes around” and you never know in the future when someone might return the favour.

With any event we organise we are always keen to allow time for networking as part of the schedule.  We ourselves are also embracing the influx and variety of networking events currently being scheduled and we are enjoying attending as many networking events as our diaries allow.

We hope our paths may cross at a future networking opportunity and if so make sure you say “hello!”

Forthcoming Networking Events

We have listened to lots of comments recently from people who are frustrated with the networking events they attend and the opportunities they get back and so we have decided to do something about it!  Join us for our forthcoming networking events with a difference!

We have two events planned that will maximise your networking opportunities in a structured and friendly way.  Please follow the links for more information or to book your place!

Business Speed Networking Works Accrington
Wednesday, 18 July 2012
http://speednetworkingworks.eventbrite.co.uk/

Business Speed Networking Works Preston
Wednesday, 22 August 2012
http://speednetworkingworks1.eventbrite.co.uk/

We are busy planning events for other areas of the North West.

To stay in touch please follow us on Twitter @speednetworknw