Learn more about merger

The Millennial Generation, or commonly referred to as "Gen Y" consists of individuals born between 1980 - 1995 (ages 18 to 33 years old). This is the group of individuals most business organizations are focused on because they will be running our corporations, government entities and meetings in a few years. 

PwC, in conjunction with the University of Southern California and London Business School, conducted a global generational study of 1,000 Millennials from 18 global territories. Because 66% of PwC's workforce consists of Millennials, it was important for them to find out if the stereotypes were accurate. 

In corporations and government agencies across the country, it is pretty much mainstay for employees to be issued on their first day of work the following items: 

1. A uniform cell phone with a homogeneous talk/text/data plan; 
2. A desktop with an operating system and apps the IT department supports and;
3. A laptop for those individuals who travel or are part of the C-Suite. 

Usually the employee's monthly cell bill is paid for by the organization and when the employee departs, they have to turn in both the phone and the laptop. Life is easy for purchasing and IT personnel alike. But the future is looking a lot murkier as employees become more tech savvy and the price of said technology continues to decrease. 

According to Gartner, Inc., an information technology research and advisory company, in the not-so-distant-future Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is going to be prevalent in the workplace. Their research states the following will occur: 

• 50% of all employees will be using their own mobile devices at work by 2017
• 38% of organizations will stop providing mobile devices to their employees by 2016
• 22% of Chief Information Officers (CIOs) say they have already made a strong case for this option. 

"If you are offering BYOD, take advantage of the opportunity to show the rest of the organization the benefits it will bring to them and to the business," stated David Willis, Chief of Research, Mobility and Communications at Gartner. 

So, how will BYOD inadvertently affect meetings and events? Here are three things to consider as you look to the future: 

APPLICATION COMPATIBILITY

With a plethora of mobile devices in the marketplace and even more to be announced in the next three years, it is important to recognize that not all mobile devices are alike. In fact with different screen sizes and pixel definitions, it will become increasingly difficult to find apps that run across multiple platforms. 

The Solution: Rent iPads which have thousands of apps ready to load onto the system. In addition, if you have one mobile platform versus several, hardware and software support become much easier to achieve.   

BANDWIDTH OVERLOAD

Many meeting venues have limited IP addresses, access points and bandwidth. Mobile devices have weaker antennas than laptops and require shorter interval access points. In addition, with the average attendee carrying three devices with them to a meeting, it is quite possible if you are not prepared adequately, your bandwidth can come to a crawl or even crash. 

The Solution: For many meeting planners, understanding your Internet needs is like trying to understand the workings of a computer. You know you need the computer to do your job, but you don't know (or for that matter want to know) the internal workings. The same goes for your Wi-Fi needs. When renting audio visual equipment, it is in your best interest to find a partner who understand IT and can determine whether or not you need a Wi-Fi network array rental in order to meet your bandwidth needs. 

SECURITY

Security is the top concern among CIOs when it comes to BYOD as it should be with any event organizer. 

The Solution: Having dedicated bandwidth at the venue, as well as, augmenting it with a Wi-Fi network array rental unit will help keep your data secure. 

AV Event Solutions is your meeting partner that provides interactive technology tool rentals for meetings, events and trade shows on a national level. 

Photo courtesy of Jamais Cascio

Even though the technology landscape has changed much since the introduction of the PC in 1981, have you ever considered the rapidity of this change and how it might evolve in the meetings industry?

Here's a quick look at the last 30 years of technology used at meetings and events:

1983. Most presentations were carried out in a dark room with an overhead projector and transparencies which were typed or handwritten. To change out the slide, someone (usually the speaker) had to take the current transparency down and put a new one up. Attendees took notes on the presentation and submitted a typewritten report back to management. When attendees arrived at the meeting, they were given large unwieldy conference binders. Email was being used a little for communications but event planners relied mainly on direct mail and telephone calls to confirm and register attendees. Face-to-face meetings were well-attended and often three or more days in length. 

1993. PowerPoint presentation equipment replaced the overhead projector and transparencies. Laptop PCs were becoming more available. Emails and websites were used for communication, but direct mail and telephone calls were still the mainstay for communicating with attendees. Face-to-Face meetings were growing and as more airline brands were being introduced due to deregulation, air transportation could be justified for national meetings. 

2003. PowerPoint was the most used method for presentations by far with Laptop, LCD Projector and Screen Rental as the typical AV bundle. Websites and Blogs were mainstay with most organizations. Email had taken over as the more preferred method of communication versus direct mail. Online registration was prevalent. Cell phones were becoming more of the norm, but they were just being used for telephone calls and limited texting. Face-to-face meetings were doing well, but with the introduction of reasonably priced video conferencing, smaller meetings were considering this as an alternative for travel. 

2013. While presentation services audio visual equipment is still being used, laptops are replaced with tablets, old LCD Projectors with newer ones, and screen rentals are being replaced with Plasma HDTV and Video Wall Rentals. Event organizers rent iPads so attendees have all the data in one location including speaker presentations, sponsor information and note taking capability. Social channels, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are the more prevalent way to communicate with attendees. Email campaigns are still in use, but direct mail and telephone follow-up are pretty much dead. Smartphones contain data plans so texting and social posting is part of the norm. No more dark rooms...attendees want to see and interact with one another and drive the conference takeaways. Face-to-face meetings are still important for driving interactivity of attendees and subject matter depth but are competing with hybrid options and webinars. 

The conclusion with all this? Technology is evolving at a rapid pace but you do not have to worry about keeping up with its use in the meetings industry when you partner with AV Event Solutions, a Total Technology Solutions Provider! They are constantly evaluating and purchasing new equipment, thus giving you the best rental choices for your budget! 

When was the last time you inquired about "the why" of your event or trade show? Sure, sure there are the basic responses such as education and networking. But with more virtual opportunities available to meet, your stakeholders are going to focus on bottom-line revenue and quantifiable opportunities associated with your face-to-face meeting. 

Here are 7 sequential steps that will help keep your team engaged, attendees happy and sponsorship dollars flowing:

Super Step #1: Identify the WHY

Put together an air-tight case as to why attendees need to come to your meeting versus getting the information via a conference call, video broadcast or email campaign. Keep drilling down until you have excellent reasons and can articulate those reasons to everyone involved in the meeting. 

Super Step #2: Identify the HOW

This is where you spend most of your time. Figuring out the logistics of the event from the meeting space to renting audio visual equipment. This is your "sweet spot" and often times, it is where you shine. But your team needs to move beyond this point in order to be successful by addressing the five remaining items. 

Super Step #3: Develop specific GOALS

Now that you have the why and how out of the way, your team needs to identify concrete objectives that are tied to  the meeting. Without goals, your meeting is like a ship without a rudder. Yes, you have the boat (attendees) in the water (meeting). But you have no destination, so you will not know whether or not your meeting is a success. 

Super Step #4: Measure PERFORMANCE

Here are three examples of measurable goals: 

GOAL: 90% of your attendees evaluate your meeting while they are at the meeting. By asking questions displayed on the PowerPoint presentation equipment, you can easily capture their responses with Audience Response System rentals. 

GOAL: Eliminate 85% of the paper at your meeting and to be viewed as a green company. Rent iPads for your attendees and load program materials, speaker bios and sponsorship information onto them. 

GOAL: Have 75% of your attendees to register for the conference on-line. Put together a plan to promote this concept. You will know whether or not your met your target by conference start. 

Super Step #5: Improve EFFICIENCIES

By setting goals and measuring your success/failure of those objectives, you set your team up to evaluate what is working and what is not. If something is working very well, you don't have to expend your energy in that area. Conversely, by knowing where your meeting came up short, you can brainstorm about ways to make the next conference better. 

Super Step #6: Meet the DEMANDS of Attendees, Sponsors and Exhibitors

All of the above tips lead to knowing your audience very well. What is important to them and what is not. Now, your team is primed to know how to deliver a knock-out meeting to your stakeholders and you have the data to support the changes to management. 

Super Step #7: Get RESULTS

At the end of the day, everyone connected to your meeting wants more of something. More attendees. More leads. More business. With the logistical approach of these steps, you should be able to get the results that your team desires. But this is not a one-time process. You need to complete this process for each and every meeting you plan. 

AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rentals family, is focused on making your next meeting, event or trade show a super success. Start the process today by filling out their Express Quote form and an experienced Account Executive will get back to you within four business hours! 

Millard “Mickey” Drexler brought a debt-drowning J. Crew back to profitability last year. He did so by implementing the following:

• Took the company off the stock market in 2011 via a $3 billion private equity buyout
• Cleaned house in the C-suite and 
• Retooled the brand’s merchandise by moving it upscale.

The results? In the second quarter of 2012, J. Crew reported net income topping $22 million compared with a $10.5 million loss in the same quarter of the year before.

Last week, he shared with Fast Company his 10 Creativity Tips and how they were instrumental in turning J. Crew around. Below are six of those tips and how they can be applied to the meetings and events industry. 

Drexler Quote #1: "Every business could be creative. In my own experience, whatever was a good idea was a bad idea to most people."

Meetings Industry Translation: Are you trying new things? Taking risks? Listening to your attendees? Creativity only occurs with change and change only occurs with conflict. Having a diverse team will help move along this change. 

Drexler Quote #2: "Most companies should have a rule about how big they get."

Meetings Industry Translation: Every planner wants large conventions because they represent more revenue for the organization and more recognition for them. However, a large unwieldy conference that doesn't allow for personal attention of the attendee, can make your event suffer in the long haul. Keep focused on getting your attendees to come back year-after-year. Incremental meeting growth is a solid strategy rather than trying to grow attendance exponentially. 

Drexler Quote #3: "You have to keep moving forward. What has (your) company done in the past five years that somebody's noticed?"

Meeting Industry Translation: How are you keeping up with attendee, exhibitor and sponsor demands? Are you showing innovation through mobile technology, and fast and secure Wi-Fi network arrays at your meeting? Are you using apps effectively? Is your conference different than most and in what ways?

Drexler Quote #4: "I'm a very proud micro manager. We need to speak the language of customers."

Meeting Industry Translation: Are you checking every last detail about your event, including what is displayed on your digital signage? Are your volunteers and staff smiling and warmly greeting your attendees as they arrive at the conference? Are you talking and listening "attendee speak"? An easy way to do to keep the conversation flowing, is to rent iPads and pre-load social channels such as Twitter onto them. Another way is through polling devices such as Audience Response rentals. 

Drexler Quote #5: "You can drown in data. You learn and then edit, edit, edit because there's a lot of junk mail in your head." 

Meeting Industry Translation: While Big Data is important, you can get caught up in the so many irrelevant details. Focus first on your attendees and exhibitors because they make your event go around. Then look at your sponsors and speakers. Determine trends in your industry, gleam the highlights and then just move forward.  

Drexler Quote #6: "Simplicity is very difficult to achieve."

Meeting Industry Translation: Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest ones, but something or someone gets in your way. How can you make your event easier for your attendees? 

AV Event Solutions is a creative, high quality California meeting equipment provider based in Los Angeles. Give them a call at 888.249.4903 to understand how they can help you! 

Technology options are growing at the fastest rate in history and it appears there will not be a slow down anytime soon. While hardware platforms may stabilize -- apps, social channels and online communities--  are going to continue to change and evolve. So, how does a meeting planner keep up with all these changes? 

Jackie Mulligan the Director of Enterprise and Principal Lecturer at the International Centre for Research, Reinhold Behringer a Professor of Creative Technology, and Samantha Dixon recently came us with a flow chart about the 7 questions you should ask when exploring technology options. Below is a more in depth review of two of the questions.  

• "Wow" Factor. Touch screen technology whether it be wall-mounted or you rent iPads, provides attendees with hi-resolution videos, photos and graphics that can bring your message to life. 
   
• Efficient and Saves Money. Loading your conference binder onto a tablet will not only be more efficient, but it will save your organization money in the areas of writing, printing, shipping and storing printed material. If last minute changes or typos are found, no problem! They can be changed digitally within minutes. 
   
• Reduces Carbon Footprint. Technology is becoming more efficient all the time and mobile devices, such as tablets and smartphones, take a fraction of the energy of a laptop. In addition, the process of loading information onto the cloud reduces the processing of paper, printing and the potential waste into a landfill. 
   
• Enhances Communication. The ability to livestream speaker video onto the trade show floor via a video wall rental unit and mobile devices allows attendees to feel connected no matter where they are. Attendees can network digitally as well as obtain instantaneous messages about the conference from their mobile devices. 
   
• Increases Flexibility. Need to move a meeting location, change hours or extend a networking event? No problem with technology! This can be displayed on digital signage or sent via an alert to attendees' smartphones. 
   
• Meet Attendee Requirements. Most meeting participants are demanding fast and secure Wi-Fi access because they will need to remain connected to the office at times throughout the conference. In addition, they expect the Wi-Fi to be available regardless of application bandwidth demands on the network.  

Should you Rent or Buy Technology? Here are the questions to ascertain: 

• What is the Total Cost of Ownership? In other words, determine how often throughout the year are you going to use the same technology for your meetings or events. If your meetings are national in nature, you also need to determine the shipping, drayage and maintenance cost of such equipment versus renting what you need when you need it. 
   
• Will you be able to keep up-to-date? Most organizations need to depreciate their equipment over a 3-5 year time period. Is your organization in a position to buy new technology every 3-5 years or even sooner if your meetings demand it? 
   
• Does your organization need or want the depreciation and tax benefits? Ownership does lend itself to tax benefits to an organization, however once you set up the depreciation schedule, you need to stay with it. Obviously, with renting you don't need to worry about any of this. 
   
• Does your organization have a place to secure, maintain and service your equipment? If you purchase the equipment, your organization needs a storage space that can be adequately secured. In addition, you will need someone on staff to maintain your equipment. 

Make your life a whole lot easier by renting audio visual equipment from AV Event Solutions! Check out their express quote page to get the process started! 

If you are like me, you have had a few brushes with the term "Big Data" over the last few months.  And even though I come from a technical background, I have never really understood this concept -- until now. Today's blog will explain what it is, how it works and why event planners need to pay attention to it at every meeting they hold. 

WHAT IS BIG DATA? 

Big Data is defined in the following way, as paraphrased from Wikipedia: 

Big data is a collection of data so large and complex that it is difficult to process using traditional data processing tools. The challenges include capture, curation, storage,search, sharing, transfer, and analysis of this data which allows individuals to spot business trends, determine quality of research, and determine real-time conditions. 

HOW DOES IT WORK? 

The majority of the data that exists in the world today has been created over the last few years. Everything that is connected to the Internet -- such as your smartphone, social networks and even your car --- is constantly producing data and transporting it to the cloud in the sky. 

The sheer amount of data could cause most meeting and event planners to simply ignore it because it is too big to tackle. But according to Brian Solis, Principal at Altimeter Group and author of What's the Future of Business: Changing the Way Businesses Create Experiences says that planners need to use Big Data to understand how attendees move through and are talking about their event.  

WHY PLANNERS NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO IT

According to Solis, technology is going to continue to evolve faster than our ability to adapt. That is why apps and hardware platforms come and go. However, three things are certain -- attendees are going to be...

• More connected
• More empowered and
• More informed 

...as technology continues to improve and social channels and online communities become more mainstream. Planners will need to pay attention to what  is happening in the digital stratosphere if they wish to stay on top of what attendees want and need.  

WHAT CAN PLANNERS DO TO ENABLE ATTENDEES TO BE MORE CONNECTED, EMPOWERED AND INFORMED?  

• Rent iPads and pre-load social platforms onto them such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Foursquare. Encourage attendees to connect with each other at the conference and post information about what they are experience on their social platforms to their connections. 
   
• Crowdsource all or part of your agenda through an online community where attendees can suggest potential speakers and topics. Allow them to vote on their preferences. Once attendees are at the conference, encourage them to post regularly on their social channels and have speakers, sponsor, exhibitors and staff monitor the social channels regularly to respond to questions, concerns and complaints. 
   
• Continue to push data about your meeting or event out to social channels before, during and after the meeting so conference goers can feel they have the information they need to be better leaders within their organization. 

AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rentals family, is your national Total Technology Solution Provider! Give them a call at 888.249.4903 to get the process started! 

Until about five years ago, sponsorship of your meeting, event or trade show was as simple as taking candy from a baby. You had to do a brief pitch to the hotel, CVB or partner, give them a membership list and 5-minute commercial at the start of your meeting. However, over the last few years, sponsorship dollars have become harder and take more time to secure. This doesn't mean it is impossible, it just means your approach needs to change. 

In a recent edition of BizBash Magazine, they identified the things sponsors want right now. Below are four of the ways to work with potential sponsors and get them committed to your event every time. 

COMPELLING CONTENT WORKS

Do not approach sponsors until you have your agenda fully developed -- complete with speakers and key takeaways. When sponsors can get excited about your content and are jazzed to participate in your event, you know you have sold them. 

CONTENT WITH LEGS

The ability to promote your sponsors in the digital space is very important. How will you use social backchannels to promote your content and sponsors at the same time? Rent iPads for your attendees and encourage them to use Twitter as a way to stay connected to their followers. In addition, hosting a "Tweetup" where Twitter followers can meet one another face-to-face can energize attendees and encourage them to follow more individuals. Facebook, LinkedIn and blogs can also weave in sponsor messaging. The more buzz about the conference in the digital arena, the more likely sponsors are going to want to sign up for your session. 

FAST & RELIABLE WI-FI

Attendees, exhibitors, speakers and sponsors want robust Internet access when and where they need it. The ability for sponsors to respond to inquiries, hold contests or survey attendees on a real-time basis is what they expect. If there is any delay or inability to gain access the Wi-Fi, your ability to retain that sponsor is very low. 

"You can design and activate all the compelling online social media activations you could possibly imagine, but if your guests or patrons cannot access the information in a timely fashion -- or the sponsor cannot deliver all of the information that is created --- the content can be devalued from a performance and impression standpoint," stated Mark Yumkas, President at Angel City Designs. 

Wi-Fi network array rentals can help boost the bandwidth at the venue and serve as a sponsorship opportunity on your sign-in splash page. 

INTERACTIVE PROGRAMS

Attendees don't just want to look at meeting materials, they want to interact with the products or services. Sponsors want attendees to experience their brand because they know a great experience will help with retention when participants are ready to buy. 

"Experiential marketing has been a consistent and significant part of our arsenal. It's an element that is a cornerstone of our activations," said Adam Paige, Department Manager Brand Public Relations, Mercedes-Benz USA. 

Attendees can experience a sponsor's brand through photos, videos, games and simulations that can run on large touch screen displays, touch panel kiosks or iPads. 

Are you event planning in California? AV Event Solutions has iPads, computer kiosks, touch screen displays and Wi-Fi network arrays to make your sponsors shine! 

Believe it or not, Twitter is 7 years old, has more than 500 million registered users who send out 340 million tweets on a daily basis. However, it still seems to be the most misunderstood and misused social channel out there. When I engage in social media training, the two questions I always receive are:

"How do I use Twitter?"

"Why should I use it?"

Adam Barrell, Founder of Tweet Perth and Anna Francis from Blue Claws Search recently wrote two blog posts on tips and techniques to make the most of Twitter. Below is a summation of their posts with my "Twitter-Dee" inputs as they relate to the meeting industry. 

To celebrate America's 5 new national #monuments, we created our 1st #Vine. Enjoy! vine.co/v/bDYPzY13gj3

— US Dept of Interior (@Interior) March 25, 2013

Twitter-Dee Tip #5: No more Re-Tweet (RT) 

If you want to search for a speaker, exhibitor, partner or attendee without the noise of RTs, just go up to the search box and put in quotes what you are looking for. Here is an example: 

"AVEventSolutions"

Twitter-Dee Tip #6: Back Up Your Tweets 

You don't have to worry about Twitter being hacked and all your wonderful tweets going away. Just log into your Twitter account, go to the rotary wheel at the top right-hand side of your page, click on Settings and scroll down to the bottom and Request your Archive. A link will be sent to you that downloads your tweets to zip file on your computer. 

@AVEventSolutions now part of @SmartSource Rentals is your national Total Technology Provider with 21 locations!

Have you ever driven home and not remembered the trip? Been in a meeting and not remembered the presenter's name or topic? Or worse, come back from a three-day conference chalked full of education, only to remember a few tidbits? Why can't we remember the details when asked to recall them?  

According to Gregory Berns' blog post titled "Neuroscience Sheds New Light on Creativity", the brain is lazy and ultimately our past experiences have a dramatic affect on our current ones. Here is an example -- because we attended a couple of meetings in a large ballroom set in theater-style with low lighting that were boring -- we think that all meetings set in this type of environment are...well...boring.  

Dr. Kathie F. Nunley, an educational psychologist, cites that we need to attend to the physical needs of the attendee first, then create novelty at the meeting and third, allow for self-made choices. Here are some of her insights as well as a few of my own. 

PHYSICAL NEED

The attendee has to have their basic needs met at the meeting. Is the room set at the right temperature? Are the seats comfortable and is there plenty of personal space available for the attendee to put their personal belongings? Are you providing enough and the right type of food and beverage? Can the attendee see and hear the presentation? 

NOVELTY

Nunley stated in her blog post, "The mind seems to gravitate toward novelty. Not only does a novel experience seem to capture our attention, it appears to be an essential need of the mind." Capture the interest of the attendee and make your meeting unpredictable. 

Put the keynote speaker in the middle of the conference agenda. Rent iPads instead of producing conference binders. Start with the Q and A and finish with the presentation. Stage the meeting room in a large circle instead of theater or classroom setting. Decorate the room like a party instead of a training session. Change the city, venue or time of day you meet. Have a meeting where everyone stands. Do anything and everything to "shake it up" so attendees do not say, "been there, done that". 

SELF-MADE CHOICES

Nunley believes attendee-centered meetings in an open learning environment allow participants to set their own pace, learn as they wish, when they wish and move on when a concept is mastered.

So how will this functionality transfer to a large meeting with thousands of attendees? Creating a Twitter hashtag for each meeting and asking attendees to submit questions and comments will help the event organizer and speaker to make changes on a real-time basis. Encourage presenters to go where the audience is, not what they want to present. Livestream the presentation so it can be viewed on an attendee's mobile device and a video wall display rental unit if the participant is called out of the room. 

If you are event planning in California, check out AV Event Solutions as a state-of-the-art provider in Total Technology Solutions! With offices throughout California, they are only minutes away to service your event with additional inventory, technical support and staff. 

It used to be that the term "On-Demand" applied only to movie and TV shows. It is a great concept -- individuals viewing the shows they want, when and where they want to. All they need is a computer or TV and credit card. But now, on-demand is transferring to other elements of our lives including meetings and events. 

Due to technological advances, we are becoming a "no wait" society. According to the New York Times, Google engineers have discovered that, if we have to wait for longer than a blink of an eye for a page to open, it is considered too long. 

Jackie Mulligan, Director of Enterprise and Principal Lecturer from the International Centre at Leeds University, shared in a recent MPI publication, that society's "on-demand" mentality is catching many event organizers flat-footed and they need to manage or exceed the expectations of their attendees. 

So how can planners prepare to deliver "on-demand" at their meetings? Mulligan suggests the following: 

1. Make sure your Wi-Fi is lightning fast. 
   
   The truth of the matter is many venues are not prepared to handle the Wi-Fi load hundreds, if not thousands, of attendees bring to bear.  And when more devices are on the bandwidth than expected, it can slow down or even crash the Internet. Check out the Wi-Fi access in advance and make the proper preparations. One option may be a Wi-Fi network array rental. There is no question that slow Wi-Fi will affect the perceived value of your event. 
    
2. Provide charging stations. 
   
   Having charging stations at your meeting and trade show allow attendees to stay connected to your meeting and the outside world all day long. They no longer need to worry about the battery life impact of their mobile device if they download videos or intensive apps. 
    
3. Remember: Attendees may have up to three devices at your event.
   
   Even if you rent iPads for your attendees, they may still bring their laptop and smartphone AND try to gain access of the Wi-Fi on all three devices at the same time. Try to survey your attendees beforehand to understand what they may be bringing to the conference and what type of apps they will be running. Millennials are more likely to have multiple devices and use on-demand functionality -- more than any other demographic segment. 

According to Mulligan, on-demand means providing multiple formats, platforms and experiences of the same meeting at one time. It could mean attendees viewing the keynote speaker from their hotel room via their mobile device, taking a call outside the meeting room and viewing the session on a video wall rental unit or watching the session at 2 am from the comfort of their home. 

Mulligan also cites that attendees will have meetings when they have the urge to do so. Whether it be in the hotel bar or an alcove within the conference center, attendees will generate on-demand meetings and call together who they need to be there at that moment, whether it be F2F or remotely. 

AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rental family, is your Total Technology Solutions provider! With 22 locations across the country, they can provide you with Wi-Fi network arrays, charging stations, iPads and much more! 

Royal DSM, a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials, launched a worldwide rebranding effort to all their employees over a two-day period in February 2010. Because of DSM's strategic and successful use of meetings and events to promote the new brand identity -- Bright Science. Brighter Living™ --  they received the 2012 Recognizing Industry Success and Excellence (RISE) Award for Organizational Achievement from MPI.

In the latest edition of MPI's One+ magazine, Alise Long, CMM who is the Manager of Corporate Events & Meetings at DSM was interviewed about the steps they took to make this happen. Here are three steps every meeting planner can use in launching a new product, service or brand initiative. 

Step #1: Realize every employee is important. 

Royal DSM set forth an event that had two primary goals: 1) Allow employees to socialize and get to know one another better and 2) Present the information on a local level with a global message in mind. They realized that a rebranding initiative delivered from the top and disseminated through the management chain could get lost in translation and take too long. Delivering important branding information to everyone in a relatively short duration validated the importance of each employee to the organizational structure. 

A red carpet movie premiere event, where everyone was treated like a star, was planned. Over two days, DSM held 134 face-to-face events with about 170 persons at each meeting -- thus creating a more intimate setting versus having one event for 23,000 employees of which most of the message would have had to be handled virtually. 

Step #2: Develop a theme and team to deliver the message. 

DSM had the local, regional, corporate and global staff involved in delivering the theme "Bright Launch". This team worked for five months on the creative and logistical messaging for the meetings. They determined the number of meetings, locations and content necessary to disseminate the message.

Step #3: Measure message effectiveness. 

96% of the employees thought the meeting was effective and employees were able to explain the vision and direction of the company and its new brand. 

What are the key takeaways for meeting planners? 

• Whatever the purpose of the product launching event, treat all employees, customers and prospects as a vital component to the success of the launch. Rent iPads for attendees to take notes during the session, post on social backchannels and communicate with other attendees about the announcement.
   
• Create a diverse team to help with creative approaches to your messaging. 
   
• Measure meeting effectiveness by polling attendees with wireless Audience Response Systems (ARS), computer kiosks or through the attendees' mobile devices. Understanding if they got the message and can explain it, is important to calculating overall launch effectiveness. 

Are you event planning in California? AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rentals family, can provide you with many effective technology tools to aid you in a terrific launch! Do not get lost in translation, let them help you pull off a high quality product launch this year! 

Ah trade shows...they have been debated, depleted, virtualized, and finally revitalized. But why such debate over their value and how valuable are they really? Well that all depends on your point of view...whether you are the organizer, attendee or exhibitor. 

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) published a report called "The Role and Value of Face-to-Face Interaction" in 2012. It highlighted the following facts: 

• 71% of attendees placed a high importance on face-to-face interactions to build long term relationships with vendors
• 67% of attendees ranked interactions between themselves and exhibitors important in investigating, evaluating and narrowing down their buying choices
• 48% said face-to-face interactions at exhibitions, conventions and annual meetings are more important now than they were in 2010 and
• 43% expect that the trade show setting will be more valuable in 2014

While all of this information is good, what about ROI and the decision whether or not to participate in the show? CEIR recently came out with a ROI toolkit  for exhibitors that is free (however you do need to sign-in  to access it) that provides a pre- and post-event ROI calculator. 

The Pre-Event Calculator answers the following questions: 

• Should your organization exhibit at the trade show given the total number of attendees and percentage in your target market
• How many staff will you need to engage with attendees and
• How much space is required to accommodate your audience, including open space

The Post-Event Calculator helps measure the tradeshow's ROI through your input of the following information: 

• Total number of inquiries and leads you obtained
• Total number of staff on duty 
• Direct exhibitor costs, including staff travel and entertainment expenses
• Average conversion percentage of leads to sales
• Average revenue generated per order
• Your organization's gross margin

How can technology assist you with the ROI effort? Below are a few of the interactive technology tool rentals that both AV Event Solutions and SmartSource Rentals can assist with in getting more individuals to your booth and keeping them there.

• Rent iPads to replace all your marketing collateral. Not only is this a green solution, but you can save your organization money on writing, editing, printing, shipping and storing your printed materials. 
   
• Touch Panel Kiosks are a great solution to keep attendees interested in learning more about your products and services while they are waiting to speak to a sales person. With an intuitive navigation system, an attendee can view videos, photos and testimonials about your organization and email back to the home office your product information. 
   
• Lead Retrieval Systems can help you automate and disseminate leads while you are still on the trade show floor! By scanning the attendee's badge or a magnetic strip you can gather vital, accurate information about the attendee in a few seconds. 
   
• Charging stations are a great way to get attendees to your booth and keep them there for at least 10 minutes while their phone or tablet is charging. This is the perfect opportunity for exhibitors to gather the lead and qualify the attendee. 

AV Event Solutions, now part of SmartSource Rentals, is the largest Total Technology rental company in the United States with 22 full-service locations. They offer a complete range of cost-effective solutions from Lead Retrieval Systems, Audio Visual, Digital Document Libraries, Charging Stations, iPad solutions, Video Walls, and much, much more! All of this with 24/7 technical support. Let them help you make your next trade show fantastic! 

Most meetings revolve around the discussion of ideas. The meeting's objective might be to:

• Solve a problem
• Overcome a challenge
• Identify new business opportunities or
• Discuss ways to conduct a product launching event

However with individuals pressed for time, travel budgets still being tight and technology solutions improving all the time, the question really is:

"What is a better meeting option: face-to-face or virtual?"

In the quest to answer this, the Meetology Group, in association with the IMEX Group, Dubai Convention Bureau, Barbican and the PCMA Education Foundation, conducted a research project with 104 participants to determine the best environment to generate ideas. 

The participants were divided into three categories 1) Face-to-Face 2) Videoconferencing or 3) Telephone conferencing. They were provided three problems and given three minutes on each problem to come up with as many possible implications, new uses and improvements as they could. The researchers measured the number, quality and variety of ideas. 

The outcome was that face-to-face meetings generate better quality, a wider variety, and more ideas than either of the other two methods. In fact, on average face-to-face partners generated 30% more ideas than video or telephone conferencing. In addition, the ideas were more original and creative than the other two methods. 

"These results appear to suggest that if you are a company or organization that needs to generate a high quality of fresh, new ideas then getting a group of staff or other people -- perhaps stakeholders or customers -- together in the same room will produce measurably more (results) than other methods," stated Carina Bauer, CEO of IMEX Group. 

How can interactive technology tool rentals help with idea generation?

Here are some easy and productive ways technology can help:

• Rent iPads with a mind mapping app on each of them and allow free flowing discussion between the group by engaging in "what if" scenarios. 
   
• Poll attendees with wireless Audience Response Systems by having a series of questions posted on the PowerPoint presentation equipment. The answers -- which are immediately generated and anonymous --- can help spur additional discussion and creation of ideas. 
   
• Post questions on a video wall rental or large Plasma LCD and ask attendees to answer the questions on their smartphone or tablet. 

Looking for a California meeting equipment supplier to help with your next event? Look no further than AV Event Solutions to provide you with a total technology solution from iPads to Plasma LCDs and beyond! Contact them today for more information! 

In the age of business objectives and meeting metrics, is anyone really taking a hard look at what attendees' need and want from your conference? After all, without them would you even have a meeting?

As an event organizer myself, I know I have been prone to get caught up in the logistics and flow of the meeting; only attending to the participant's needs when they ask for help. But there has to be a better way! And low and behold, there is.

Here is a hierarchical way to maximize attendee satisfaction with your event. 

First, examine what your attendees' NEED. 

Perhaps they are human resource managers that must know the ins and outs of new procedures and policies, or physicians that are looking for education to keep their credentials current. Maybe it is a sales force preparing for a product launching event. Whatever the reason, the participant is there because they need something from your event.  

How can you determine if they got out of the session what they needed? Have them complete a pre- and post-test via Audience Response rentals. Rent iPads and ask them to send feedback to you via social media or email. Ask them at the end of the training seminar or session if their needs were met. 

Bottom Line: If you do not give attendees what they need, you can't move onto the next level. Spend some time here. 

Second, make them WANT to come to your seminar. 

Let's say a potential attendee needs certification credit in their field of study. They found your meeting and an online version that they can take via a webinar on demand. The price point is about the same. How can you entice them to come to your face-to-face meeting? 

Your content and speakers need to be more compelling than the online offering. The ability to meet peer professional attendees and great presenters is a great draw. You can engage the attendees before, during and after the conference by constantly asking them what they want and then delivering on those desires. An online webinar can't and will not do this. 

Bottom Line: Giving attendees what they need and want, are the first two steps to keeping them coming back to your meeting. 

Third, increase the attendee's DESIRE to be part of the meeting.

This is probably that hardest pinnacle to reach AND the hardest to sustain. This happens when the attendee is really looking foreword to and excited about your meeting. They wouldn't miss it! 

This is where your goals are completely aligned with the attendee's goals. Your vision and theirs are one and the same. In essence it is no longer your meeting, it is THEIRS. 

Bottom Line: If and only if, you meet the attendee's needs and wants can you work on their desires. 

Are you event planning in California? AV Event Solutions has a wide range of interactive technology tool rentals that can help you in all three arenas: needs, wants and desires! Give them a call today at 888.249.4903 to get started! 

Have you ever wondered, "Why is my meeting not growing in attendance?" or "Why aren't attendees excited and engaged in the event?"

If you have thought one or both of these questions, you are not alone. Below six meeting problems and their fixes aimed to help you with meeting growth and attendee engagement. 

Reason #1: Your event is stale. 

If you are producing a meeting or tradeshow the same way you were 3-5 years ago, something is wrong. It says to your attendees that you have not adapted to change because you are either afraid of it or you feel "if it isn't broke, don't fix it".

Embrace change. Ask attendees what changes they want and why they want it. Much of your change will come in the form of interactive technology tool rentals. If you are uncomfortable with technology, by all means recruit someone from your team to help you with it.

Reason #2: Your event provides no value to the attendee.

Do not have a meeting just to have a meeting. If attendees fly or drive long distances, you don't want them saying to themselves and others, "That was a waste of my time!"

Your event needs to provide attendees with fresh and valuable content. By asking your audience what they want to hear and who they want to hear it from, you can be assured that you are addressing the age-old adage, "What's in it for me?" 

Reason #3: Black and white printing abounds with no imagery. 

Your handouts and surveys are black and white with many words and no visuals. 

In 2013, we are a very color-orientated, visual world. Videos, photographs and color can be delivered effectively through digital signage, video wall rentals and touch screen kiosks. Not only are you cutting down on the amount of paper, but with these technology tools you have eliminated shipping and storage of your paper, and your organization is presenting a greener, cleaner image to attendees.  

Reason #4: Too many sponsors and exhibitors. 

Meeting planners rarely turn away sponsors or exhibitors even when these organizations have little to do with the meeting theme or demographics of the attendee. 

Having too many sponsors or exhibitors can overwhelm your attendees and allow your message to be lost in the process. It is all about balance. 

Reason #4: No social sharing. 

Your conference does not allow attendees to post information to social backchannels. 

Rent iPads and have the social channels already preloaded onto the systems. Create a hashtag for the conference and promote it to attendees well in advance. Encourage participants to post before, during and after the conference. Respond in a timely manner when they post a question, comment or complaint to social. 

Reason #5: No comment. 

You are not surveying attendees to find out what they like and dislike about the conference.

Wireless Audience Response Systems provide an easy way to take the pulse of your attendees in a quick and confidential manner. 

Reason #6: Comments are ignored. 

The worst possible scenario for your meeting is to question your attendees and then, ignore their feedback. 

Once the data is gathered and analyzed, post on your social media channels what is going to be different at next year's conference. Or better yet, consolidate the comments and recommendations in a visually-based report that attendees can review and download from your website. 

Are you event planning in California? Contact AV Event Solutions for all your audio visual needs! 

Pinterest is a photo sharing website that allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections such as events, interests and hobbies. Users can browse other pinboards for inspiration, 're-pin' images to their own pinboards or 'like' photos. With over ten million unique U.S. visitors, it is by far the fastest growing social media channel. 

If you are not familiar with Pinterest, it allows you to create or contribute to a series of boards. In the audio visual world, one such board might be "computer kiosks". You can complete a search on that term and find out what has already been pinned and re-pin the ideas you like onto this board. In addition, you can upload your own photos and videos. 

How can this tool help promote your next event? Here are four ways you can use Pinterest effectively as originally presented by Arwin Adriano, Founder and Editor at EventChecklist.net and with added thoughts by myself, an active Pinterest user.  

Brainstorm

If you are looking for fresh and innovative design ideas, Pinterest is for you. If you type in the word "meetings" and click on boards, you will find over 150 boards that contain over 1,000 pins! You can re-pin ideas on your event boards and start to follow pinners of interest. 

If you have a lot of small meetings, perhaps create a board for each meeting. You can create as many boards as you like and they are easy to delete if you find that too many were originally created. 

Crowdsource Ideas

You can create different boards for your event including: Lighting, Meeting Room Layout, Audience Response Systems, Food, Beverage, Presenters and so on. You can re-pin ideas on these boards as well as upload your own pins. The owner of the board can designate as many pinners onto each board as they would like. Once there are a series of pins on each board, you can ask attendees to vote on the visual ideas they like.  

This process not only engages your attendees, it also allows them to see how the lighting, room and food will look well before the event take place. 

Linking to other Social Channels

When someone looks at a pin, they can like it on their Facebook page, Tweet about the pin or email the pin to someone else. Every time you pin something, your web or blog address should be below the pin to drive more traffic to these entities.  
 

During and After the Event

Attendees can post photos and videos on the Pinterest site during and after the event if they have smartphones or if you rent iPads with the camera integrated into the tablet. Next year's potential attendees can see a visual summary of the event that can stay up on Pinterest long after the meeting is over. Attendees can also re-pin photos to their own boards. 

Here are some other interesting facts about Pinterest as reported in the Huffington Post: 

• 80% of all American Pinterest users are women
• Over 80% of all pins are re-pinned
• 57% of the users interact with food-related categories
• The average user spends 16 minutes on the site per visit

AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rental company, wants to help you with state-of-the-art interactive technology tool rentals for your next meeting or event. Get started with our express quote form and an experienced Account Executive will return your inquiry within four business hours! And don't forget to check out their Pinterest Boards for great AV ideas! 

Imagine,  if you will, a conference where there are no paper programs, exhibitor manuals, session handouts, or surveys. There is no paper. Period. 

Sounds great, right? You and your staff don't have to spend tireless hours printing, collating, punching and assembling binders AND then shipping them to the conference. Somewhere, somehow you know with all the interactive technology tool rentals available there is a better way. But how can you justify the spend? Surely, it is going to be very expensive to rent iPads and the apps to go on it. Right?

EventPilot, an organization that markets a mobile app for scientific and medical meetings, recently came out with two calculations that can help justify the use of mobile devices both from a carbon footprint and revenue standpoint. By sharing this methodology, hopefully you can plug in your own numbers and sell a paperless meeting to your boss, board, and staff members. 

CO FOOTPRINT CALCULATOR

The major benefits of integrating mobile technology into your conference are:

1. The attendee can have all the documents in a central location, including PowerPoint presentations
2. Speaker information includes bio, photographs, video and any other information can be easily accessed
3. Evaluations happen on-the-spot
4. All exhibitor information and mapping of the trade show floor is readily available
5. Real-time conference updates can happen across all devices
6. The iPad is light and can usually last all day without being charged
7. Connection to social channels, email and the Internet are an icon away. 

Here is one example of a carbon footprint calculation: 

Number of attendees: 1,000
Total number of sheets of paper per attendee: 100
Average printing cost per attendee: $8
Average tote bag cost: $2

 Total CO2 savings: 6,100 lbs.

Minimum waste savings: 1,200 lbs. 

Total number of hours to stuff tote bags: 17 x $35/hour = $595

Total cost for Shipping and Handling: $1,200

Minimum cost savings: $11,336

REVENUE CALCULATOR

The question on every planner's mind is who is going to pay for the hardware and apps that reside on the mobile device? Unless your meeting is extremely small and you know for a fact the apps you are going to use are prevalent across multiple mobile devices, you will want to stick with one mobile platform (think rent iPads). It will save you a lot of time when you are trying to configure the right Wi-Fi network support for your program as well. 

Here are some possible revenue opportunities for your meeting: 

Of course, you will have to take into account the cost to rent iPads and the apps. Some apps are going to be free and some apps are going to web-based so the attendee can download the app themselves, thus saving staff and vendor time.  

AV Event Solutions, a SmartSource Computer and Audio Visual Rental Company, is available to serve your AV needs if you are event planning in California. They have iPads, Wi-Fi network arrays, and much, much more! Contact them today for more information! 

With flatter organizations, an increase in responsibilities and technology improvements, some of your potential attendees may feel they don't have the time for long, multi-day meetings or are inclined to catch the presentation in the comfort of their office via a webcast. In addition, with the emergence of Gen Y attendees who are constantly multi-tasking, long drawn out meetings can have the connotation of being boring. 

But the overriding question is: How do you design a meeting that is long enough to meet the attendee's objectives but short enough to get them there and engaged?  Here are 8 tips to make certain your meeting is the right length of time. 

Short and Sweet Tip #1: Identify the core purpose of the meeting. 

Do you really need to have a meeting or can your message be conveyed via an email or conference call? If a face-to-face meeting makes the most sense, attendees need to know the purpose, key takeaways, speaker bio, and time allowed for the meeting. 

Short and Sweet Tip #2: Choose a presentation style that forces brevity. 

You can be creative in your approach, but here are the 3 most common short presentation options:  

• Pecha Kucha is a presentation methodology in which 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each. The total presentation is 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
• Ignite gives presenters 5 minutes to speak about their ideas on 20 slides where each slide is displayed for 15 seconds.
• TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) where speakers are given 18 minutes to present their ideas in the most innovative and engaging ways they can. 

If you have multiple speakers, be certain to load all the talks onto the presentation services audio visual equipment hours before the session starts. 

Short and Sweet Tip #3: Load all the presentations onto mobile devices. 

If you rent iPads, all the presentations can be loaded onto the tablet so attendees can review each presentation before the meeting and have their questions and comments prepared in advance.  

Short and Sweet Tip #4: Give them a hashtag.

Having the ability to communicate via Twitter or another online community, will keep all comments, questions, and complaints in a central location so attendees do not have to be redundant. In addition, event organizers and speakers can answer those questions before, during and after the session to save valuable time. 

Short and Sweet Tip #5: If you have multiple speakers for multiple days, consider a video wall rental unit. 

A video wall is a great way for attendees to gather and catch videos of your speakers, check to see if there have been any last minute changes to the schedule, view the conference twitter feed, or obtain directional signage to each break-out session. This can be a gathering place for attendees before the meeting starts and during breaks. 

Short and Sweet Tip #6: Provide plenty of networking time. 

Hold networking functions before and after your meeting and make it mandatory for your speakers to stay during this time. Attendees can ask questions of the presenters in a more informal setting thus helping the attendee feel more connected to your meeting. 

Short and Sweet Tip #7: Start and end your meeting on time.  

Short and Sweet Tip #8: If you have breakout sessions for brainstorming, hire a professional facilitator to keep the conversation on track and on schedule. 

AV Event Solutions can help make your next meeting short and sweet through their complete suite of interactive technology tool rentals, including iPads, video walls, and much, much more! Check out their express quote form to get started!

Mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets and e-readers are outselling standard cell phones and computing devices nearly 2 to 1 according to Forbes magazine. If you are on the fence about integrating mobile devices into your next meeting or event, here are 5 reasons why you should use mobile devices at your next event:   

Mobile Devices are mini computers. 

With several Gigabyte (GB) available at an attractive price point, attendees can do almost everything they want on a smartphone or tablet as compared to a laptop. These devices are much smaller, sleeker and have longer battery life than a laptop. Due to technological advances, they will continue to get faster and hold more data. 

Mobile Devices have thousands of apps. 

There are somewhere around 500,000 apps available on either a smartphone, tablet or both. That number will continue to explode in 2013 and apps will become easier to download and more intuitive to use. If they are web-based apps, the attendee will be able to download the app themselves and the event meeting services company can easily keep those apps updated on a real-time basis. 

Mobile Devices are a communication tool. 

They are not just dedicated to email and phone calls. They are used for social media and blogging to CRM and note taking. Mobile technology is used for listening to music, taking photographs and recording video. Lastly, mobile devices enable the  sharing of all this data with other attendees and event staff the instant it happens.  

Mobile Devices are for people on the go. 

Individuals can use their phone or tablet while they are sitting, standing or walking. Attendees can check their emails, social networks or voicemails from almost anywhere at all times. 

Mobile Devices can help you and your sponsors with event branding. 

If you rent iPads, you can put your logo and/or sponsorship information on the splash page. You can integrate company video, photos and a tutorial for a product launching event. Sponsorship information can be worked into a gamification app. Every time an app is opened up, there can be 10 second video about your organization. The possibilities are endless and can be worked into the program in a very clever way. 

Now that you are sold on the use of mobile devices, it is important that you answer the following 3 questions in order to proceed: 

1. What apps are you going to use for your meeting? Are they off the shelf, written just for your meeting or somewhere in between? Are they web- or native-based? 
   
   Obviously, off the shelf apps are going to be the least expensive and many of them are free. However, most of the free apps are web based, therefore potentially causing a strain on the Wi-Fi system at your venue. These decisions will require some thought and budgeting on your part to see what serves the best needs of the attendee. 
    
2. What mobile platform are you going to use? 
   
   Most apps are written for 2 or 3 devices. It requires a lot of code to convert an app that runs on an iPad to an Android tablet. It is highly unlikely that your attendees will have the same smartphone or tablet technology. Rent iPads because they have the most applications and every attendee will be able to access the same applications at the same time. 
    
3. Based on answers to questions 1 and 2, is the Wi-Fi system at the venue enough? 
   
   Chances are the venue's Wi-Fi system does not have enough bandwidth to keep up with your attendees' needs. Having an outside company do a thorough examination of your bandwidth needs is important to keep your network fast, robust and secure. 

AV Event Solutions is your mobile device provider in California. They have iPads and Wi-Fi network array rentals available. To check out more Wi-Fi tips, visit their Facebook page and please like it!