Thriving in a Connected World: CSAE Roundtable Takeaways

#1 NEW ROLE: Professional Associations exist to draw communities together by generating learning, sharing content and engaging membership around knowledge. Our digital age opens ups more peer to peer pathways for people to cross pollinate ideas, processes and best practices (such as LinkedIn, blogs and twitter feeds) so associations need to proactively act to maintain this “centre of influence.” They have a new role to play; to be the CURATORS of AUTHORITATIVE CONTENT and be the key connectors for conversation and career development for their industry.

#2 CONTENT  IS KING: Content Marketing is the new way to advertise and promote association value. Corporate companies are now hiring full time content marketers to develop white papers, generate case studies and blog about products and services with the goal of creating content and resources that their clients will find valuable. An Associations journals, seminar material, publications, AGM and Conferences are a goldmine of content from industry leaders that can easily be RE-PURPOSED and RE-USED and sent out  in a multitude of different ways in order to engage attendees and energize non-attendees, to attract new members and even possibly generate non-due revenues and new sponsorship opportunities.

#3 MULTI FORMAT: Providing key content in a variety of formats and across many channels gives an association the best chance of reaching their audience in all 5 generational groups and ensuring that stakeholders are reached in the way they want and when. In addition, Associations have to be proactive in marketing and banding to continue to attract members and maintain engagement and relevancy. Once content is exposed to the internet, not only will it fulfill the original educational mission but can also be used to drive revenue, attract new membership and improve member satisfaction.

#4  ACCESSIBLE: Online content needs to be SEARCHABLE and RELEVANT and members/users must be able to find the specific answers they seek in as little time as possible so having a robust full-text search engine with “relevancy ranked results” is a necessary first step. Web attention spans are very short so it is important not to waste time. Users need to filter search results using key words to make online searching fast, powerful and intuitive. This data is called METADATA and includes such search options as: author name, subjects or track, document type, event, date, key words, and linked in related articles and resources.

#5 TOOLS: Social and Digital  media is one of the MOST powerful marketing opportunities ever invented and can serve to generate more interest in and visibility for organizations well beyond their member lists. “SHARING WIDGETS” for major social media networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and email should be built in to generated content formats make it easy for people to share content to their network of friends, colleagues and followers. This content is often more trusted coming from colleagues and friends and has a better chance of persuading or informing your target audience.  Managing social media from Hootsuite dashboard makes sending out and managing relevant broadcasts easy and programmable.

#6 MANAGING ACCESS:  WHO will have access, for HOW long, and in WHAT formats? There is no right answer because it will vary based on the type and specific objectives of the association and of the individual content. The first question needs to be asked is how you want to serve up the content, Text or video, through a portal or your website, will you provide access by subscription or via downloadable file, or both? How long will people have access to the content? Will you give some content away, while charging for other content?

#7 REVENUE GENERATION: The organization has access to and has already paid for the speakers, the professional development and programming so just by marketing and sharing it with the 70% or so of your membership, you can continue to make this content work for 365 days. A Virtual Pass to a hybrid meeting design is one possibility; Recent examples from WEC at $250 and GMIC $45 up to 40% of attendee cost.  An al la carte option might work on a “click for pay” option which can easily be imbedded into a portal/site to have a charge option for each download (video or summary text). The “pay here” button could either be linked to a third party firm or via Paypal for channeled directly to an online merchant account. It can be as simple as FREE for members and a nominal charge or FEE for non-members ($100). Full or partial segmented content with categories including Member/attendee, Member/non attendee, Non Member/all content and Non Member/Block Content. Other industries may be interested in some but not all  key content. A NESTED approach seems to work best with “appetizer” content for free that gives the potential members an opportunity to preview and be enticed.  When considering how to monetize content, don’t underestimate the value to your sponsors, exhibitors and partners! Many are likely be VERY interested in a longer lifecycle for their sponsorship dollars and will be pleased by the greater visibility and reach and will be willing to increase sponsorship levels for this privilege. Example Twin Cities 2010 – post conference content generated 69,000 page views in 3 months.

#8 EXTEND REACH AND INFLUENCE: By expanding the ways your members can interact, view, share, search and consume educational content and by integrating the learning with 365 days in the year, aligning formats with your messaging will serve to extending both reach and impact. The nature of how individuals get our news (actively rather than passively), how we are educated (distance learning & webinars), how we consume information (our new demanding expectations) and how we are connecting (FaceBook, Pinterest, go to meeting, LinkedIn and Google hangouts and Skype) is changing rapidly, and associations need to take notice. If they can initiate these conversations, while raising awareness and increasing value to members, advocates and partners -they will see that “content” is a key component to future growth and prosperity.

List of Some Resources:

Best Social Media Sites: LinkedIn (groups), Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, about.me, youtube

Other Cool Tools: Skype, Google hangouts, Basecamp, Highrise, Flickr

Analytics: Alexa rating (of website), Google+, Hootsuite, Klout

Digital Media Dashboard: Hootsuite, Tweetdeck

Twitter Hashtags: #eventtable #csaeog #CSAE #assnchat #executiveoasis

Mobile Event Apps: Crowd, Event Mobie, EventPilot, Top, twoppv

OnLine Communities: One Lobby

Synthesis Content Capture and Strategic Communications: The Conference Publishers

Webcasting: MediaSite, MaxDigital

Website and Registration Solutions:  DESystems, Cvent, CheckIn, streampoint

Event Management Software: Cvent, Task Rabbit,  DESystems

Presentation Management: Present Now, Preseria

Speakers: CAP

QRCodes: ShareSquare

1.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7cuatm_bqw&feature=share

2.    Map Out Your Content Strategy

3.    Fee or Free: Blog - http://tinyurl.com/7b3r5mf

4.    More on Content Strategy

Sustainable Meetings Conference delivers a Powerful Message

The Hilton Bonaventure Hotel vibrated with sustainable power when it hosted more than 200 international delegates at the Green Meeting Industry Council’s (GMIC) annual conference in Montréal on April 22-25, 2012. Significantly, the event began on Earth Day, a day dedicated to environmental initiatives and awareness.

This was my first GMIC Sustainable Meetings Conference, and it was invigourating! And it wasn’t just from a swim in the outdoor pool that was heated by a recently-installed energy recovery system that transfers waste heat from the building. Rather, it was from the highly energized and powerful program that combined case studies of successful sustainable meetings innovations with learning design tools and new techniques to help organizers get better results out of every meeting.

The inspiring opening keynote, cleantech and green building pioneer  John Picard, pointed to rapidly-emerging technologies that will help organizers empower themselves to clean the planet and save money at the same time. Chris Brophy, Vice President of Corporate Sustainability at MGM Resorts International, shared how nicely a 35% energy saving on a recent new development had reflected on the company’s balance sheet. The unmistakable message: Sustainability is about savings, not costs.

But reducing costs and consumption is not the only long-term benefit for planners who apply sustainable solutions from an innovative mindset. “These event organizers are experiencing increased stakeholder satisfaction,” says GMIC Executive Director, Tamara Kennedy-Hill. GMIC President Paul Salinger, Vice President of Marketing at Oracle Corporation, said “GMIC challenges us to think about how we plan and execute events differently to drive more value in a more responsible way.”

Regrettably, I learned that the meetings and events industry is one of the largest waste producers today, second only to construction; a fact that makes for easy political targeting and is fueling the efforts for change by GMIC and industry leaders. Meeting professionals can exercise considerable power by making responsible choices on destinations and venues, waste management, sustainable food sourcing, corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs, and also on meeting design and execution. Something that Picard said still stands out in my mind: “Don’t wake up and ask what is wrong with the world, look at what is right and reach for what is possible.” If we all start by making the right choices, right now, each of us can become an integral part the solution.

GMIC has members in over 20 countries so it was an international group of likeminded professionals in the industry.  Ottawa’s own Jennifer Holly, Travel Alberta , Sonya Higgins, intertask -JPdL, Sandra Wood, Canadian Medical Association,  Mitchell Beer, The Conference Publishers, Doreen Ashton Wagner, Greenfield Services were in attendance. Special congratulations go to Wood, who has accepted a position on the 2012-2013 international board.

There was celebration in the announced release of the new APEX/ASTM Sustainable Event Standards after more than four years of painstaking research, and policy development. This set of guidelines will be a great new resource and tool for the industry (along with ISO 20121, and GRI EOSS). Many real-life possibilities were on display in presentations and case studies from Microsoft, Maritz Travel, and the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, which recently received the coveted Platinum designation under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED^®) program. I now better understand the pride our city can take for the new Ottawa Convention Centre with its Silver LEED^® designation.

GMIC Foundation Chair Mitchell Beer, CMM, announced a brand new fundraising campaign, which will underwrite many of GMIC’s new training programs. The foundation hopes to raise roughly a half million dollars a year to sustain the programming.

Also announced at the conference was an update to the Sustainable Event Management Tool, created in partnership with the Evolution Platform, which enables planners and suppliers to measure and report the environmental impact of their events through automated measurement tools. It is free to members of Meeting Professionals International and GMIC, according to Roger Simons, manager, CSR and sustainable events, in MPI’s Luxembourg office, and will be free to suppliers for the next six months or so.

Delegates enjoyed many meeting design innovations. A mobile app allowed participants to collect badges and connect with each other from their mobile devices. They were also encouraged to tweet using the hashtag #GMIC. One innovative session was the series of short Bl!nk presentations organized by Judy Kucharuk of Footprint Management Systems, where six professionals showcased a particular passion or insight given in two to five minutes, with accompanying slides. Another interesting format, facilitated by Adrian Segar, was a “conference weavers” session where volunteers publicly shared their key takeaways to provide additional peer-to-peer learning. Of course, there was a virtual option too, with about a dozen participants forming a “pod” in Amsterdam and other virtual attendees viewing selected sessions from their desks. Finally, dozens of “crowdsourced” action ideas filled the screens in the closing general session when the GMIC Foundation hosted an Ideas Auction, where participants could bid on promising options to make their programs more responsible.

The morning after the conference, there was a real sense of empowerment that propelled the delegates forward. Next April in Chicago is marked on my calendar because GMIC’s community is converting its energy to power, its knowledge to standards, and it’s a sustainable force for good. 

Should content be free or offered for a fee?

There could be a lot of revenue and visibility riding on the answer.
As content capture specialists, we spend a lot of time talking to clients about the objectives behind their meetings and the specific format and level of detail that will help them achieve those ends. To do our job properly, we want to understand what will happen to that content and how it will be made available to different audiences. When it comes to selling content or providing it for free, association executives are split:

• The content for free argument suggests that access to online content should be a members-only benefit, to reinforce the value of joining the organization or renewing a membership.
• Content for fee advocates suggest selling access to content to open up a new revenue stream.

But it doesn’t have to be an either/or proposition. A hybrid content strategy can provide free content “teasers” to boost an organization’s messaging and attract potential members, then deliver additional detail or multiple formats for anyone who signs up. The other option is a staggered release schedule, so that immediate access to the latest knowledge becomes a special benefit of membership.

Knowledge: Your most precious asset
Whether you’re an association communicating with members or a business trying to connect with customers and prospects, it’s crucial to get this question of access to knowledge right. Your conference content is one of your most precious assets, and in an increasingly networked world of RSS feeds, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, the old models of business and education are breaking. The organizations that use their latest and best content as a catalyst for education, conversation, and collaboration are the ones that will deliver value, stay relevant, and continue to thrive into the future.
To choose between a free, for-fee, or hybrid content model, you have to consider the community you serve and how you can best support different audiences. But don’t take too long to decide. If your organization isn’t already having this conversation, the linkages may soon happen around you (much like a fixed rock in a stream). By tackling these questions and starting your content strategy now, you begin to chart your future course, adapting along the way and using experience and member feedback to guide you.

One solution: A nested approach to content
A hybrid strategy for conference content may be the best place to start. You can draw an initial audience by offering free content from past events, or shorter capsules of your latest premium content. The more detailed premium content can go to your members free, or at a discounted rate, and any attendees who aren’t already members should have access to that content for a set time period. By charging an access fee for non-members, you can generate direct revenue while encouraging non-members to sign up for next year’s conference, join the organization, or both.
There is no one right solution for every association, or even for every event. What role does content/knowledge/news play in your organization? Where do your members go for professional development? How can you make better use of your conference content in our newly connected world? Here are some additional resources, and let us know what you think.

Resources and further discussion
1. On the Brink Video 
2. Map Out Your Content Strategy
3. Most Content Should Be for Members Only
4. More on Content Strategy