“I think that events are actually one of the main driving forces of engagement.” In our latest podcast, we sit down with Scott Gould and take a deep dive into the concept of engagement. Whether it’s event or community engagement ideas, this discussion will open your eyes to a world of possibilities.
“I think that events are actually one of the main driving forces of engagement.” In our latest podcast, we sit down with Scott Gould and take a deep dive into the concept of engagement. Whether it’s event or community engagement ideas, this discussion will open your eyes to a world of possibilities.
“The world is changing and the impossible is happening” In our latest podcast, Shawna McKinley and Guy Bigwood share their expertise on sustainability and the future of events. It’s a timely discussion you don’t want to miss.
With decades of experience managing and mitigating risk at both hybrid and in-person events, Paul Cook of the Hybrid Event Centre joins Swapcard’s Bob Chain and Mia Masson to discuss all things risk management in a post-pandemic events world.
Drawing from experience, the discussion includes the pros and cons of community, how the events world can approach community building, tips on monetizing communities, and more. Kyle reminds us that a community platform simply serves as “a new tool for your organization to funnel their engagements throughout the year".
Carina tells it like it is. She’s not afraid to take risks and push the boundaries of creativity to immerse attendees in the experiences her team is creating. In this episode, she dishes on the hopes for Novembers’ IMEX show in Vegas and goes into some detail about their upcoming digital activations.
Hayley joined the Swapcard team to talk about opening up safely and her tips and advice didn’t disappoint. She detailed the challenges and requirements for Informa’s upcoming 30,000-person physical event and discusses how marketing tactics have changed since pre-COVID times. Hayley also mentions how Informa is using data and analytics to plan for the future and what safety measures they’re putting in place, including having a so-called “COVID manager”!
In this episode of Inside Events, your host, Bob Chain, interviews Lori H. Schwartz & Thom Singer about the potential and challenges of hybrid events. Lori and Thom deliver concrete tips on training speakers to engage both audiences, attendee experience, delivering value for sponsors and more at hybrid events.
The Global Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC)'s Executive Director Patty Olinger joins Swapcard's in-house podcast, Inside Events for a special live recording with the Evolve 2.0 Audience. Bob and Patty will be discussing how we can be best prepared for when things go "back to normal" - even if it's a new normal.
2020 taught us that with the adoption of digital-first experiences, our reach as organizers can be greater than ever. This can pose endless opportunities for traditionally regionalized events to expand and reach new markets, increasing their community and network of buyers/sellers. This incredible opportunity also opens the door to potential challenges such as connecting across multiple cultures and staying true to your organization's brand identity.
While there’s no question 2020 has been tremendously challenging for tradeshow and exhibitions, this portion of the meetings and events industry seems to be uniquely positioned to get back to business faster than business meetings based on the safety guidelines and protocols that have been established. Additionally, with the ability to schedule appointments and spread out the events in large ballrooms and convention halls--it’s a matter of spacing it properly based on occupancy. David gives us great insight into how this portion of the industry is positioned.
While there have been some industry events in person this fall, moving events online continues to be a necessity around the world at this time. Bottom line with having people in person again, there is a “duty of care” that event organizers must adhere to so everyone feels safe.
Our guests in this episode don’t do anything “normally” in our industry and it works. They were inspired to inspire with the Age of Conversation Summit, which was planned by ten event professionals (who were paid), and pulled off by about 100 volunteers. ALL IN SIX WEEKS TIME. Providing a forum like this for event profs to get their “virtual event chops” when they haven’t had the chance before was a gift for them and for the participants.
There are creative ways to monetize online events, and even make them profitable. Collecting money and being profitable are also NOT the same thing, and this episode of Inside Events explores the possibilities. There’s actually no reason for you to be giving these events away, and our guests Liz King Caruso and Scott Oser have both worked with clients to do just that! We recorded this show live during the Age of Conversation Summit, with about 40 participants on-hand.
Our 3-day online Evolve Conference in May was such a hit, we decided to give the Community what they asked for - more of this great content! This is a bonus episode from Evolve Community Series. In this lively discussion a few things emerged as themes: do not underestimate the power of community and creating year-round engagement, remember the human side to our events, which can also come through strongly online, and it IS possible to bring a big event online and monetize it.
On the heels of the Covid-19 pandemic, the civil revolution that has emerged in the United States has sparked an initiative to amplify Black voices. This isn’t something only needed in the U.S., but throughout the world, and in the meetings & events and tourism industries. Host Megan Powers and Swapcard consider themselves allies. They wanted to start Season 2 with a conversation about how our industry can - and should - do better by our Black colleagues.
Having never planned an event before, the Swapcard team decided they were going to hold an online conference experience for the meetings and events industry. And so, the Evolve Conference was born! The need for GOOD online conferences is not going away. When done well, they are a very FULL and enriching experience, complete with education and networking.
In this bonus episode, which was recorded and filmed during Swapcard’s first virtual event: Evolve, Megan chats to Jan Alessie and Kimberly Hardcastle about the role of marketing and communication in the emerging and fast-developing world of virtual and hybrid events. The trio discusses the ultimate marketing methods to ensure a successful, valuable & unforgettable virtual event. They dive into how to pick the goals for your event and how to deliver specific value propositions to key groups within your audience. And it doesn’t stop there!
The industry has been talking so much about tools, tools, tools through this transition of taking our events online, but not much has been discussed about the strategy and creativity involved. Michelle and Dahlia give us the straight talk… This is a MUST-hear episode for our industry.
We recorded this episode on Global Meetings Industry Day (#GMID20), where poignant data emerged from more than 7,000 survey responses during the online meetings. Megan discusses this data with guests Kiki L’Italien of Association Chat and Godefroy de Francs of Swapcard. They also talk about the impact of the global health situation on the Association market and how technology can help the industry become more sustainable in the future.
We were blessed to have one of the industry’s TOP thought leaders in experience design with us! In this episode, we discuss “intentional event design” with Tahira, and what goes into designing a transformative experience. We also discuss the state of event technology and innovation.
In the first half of this show our host, Megan Powers, from Powers of Marketing, discussed meeting and event industry news with Vincent Kurta. With Stephan Forseilles, we discuss the many aspects of AI and how technology is being used to personalize events. We are at a sort of turning point with apps and there is a difference between B2B and B2C shows.
In the first half of this show our host Megan Powers, from Powers of Marketing, discussed news with millennial pager-wearing keynote speaker and tech evangelist Brian Fanzo of iSocialFanz. We discussed with Adam Parry the evolution of the Event Tech Awards and Event Tech Live… and how innovation in technology has slowed - what Megan refers to the “elephant in the room.”
In the first half, we discussed news with Elizabeth Glau. We also talked about an article from Skift in which the airline industry was called out for not being as eco-friendly as they purport. We then jumped to sustainability in the second half of the show with Ben Wielgus. He worked in sustainability for a dozen years before working in events.
In our first half, we discussed the news with event technology industry colleague Shannon DeSouza about how climate change is actually an opportunity for making money. We also discussed how “highjacking” our attendees' phones in the sessions is a way to get them more engaged
In our first half we discussed news with Christy Lamagna. In the second half we met our guest Annette Gregg, who has many years of experience designing events, and educating event professionals.
In our first half Baptiste and Megan discussed a couple of developments within the event industry with regard to exhibitor satisfaction and data theft. In the second half, our guest Simon Foster joined Megan and Baptiste in talking about marketing and sales, and the use of data in the industry.
In our first half our host Megan Powers, from Powers of Marketing, discussed news with Nick Borelli. He gave his opinions on the latest developments in the event industry. In our second half we brought in a star guest Julius Solaris. He joined talking about ongoing projects and the prospects of the industry.