Events are largely successful because of deeply connected partnerships based on aligned values and shared respect. It is our business philosophy that a small group of A plus, senior level event professionals is a stronger contingent than a large agency of varied skill levels. This is the lens through which we search for our hand-picked partners and teammates, and why we celebrate them so openly. To provide insights into how and why this matters, here is our event partnerships…
Event Branding & Marketing
Tapping into Emotional Intelligence
Maya Angelou said: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” This quote rings true as a human being. That kindness, positivity and an engaged interaction can often change a perspective, a moment and sometimes a life. Have you ever considered this quote as inspiration when looking at how you deliver experiences to your audiences at events? There was a moment this year at the JUNO…
Power of Transformational Relationships
In business, do you take the time to intentionally build partnerships that are truly transformational, as versus transactional? Both transformational and transactional relationships play a role in commerce and that is ok. But, I want to know: when building out big strategies for clients, or if you are an in-house event producer and carry the weight of important projects on your shoulders without a large internal team (as is often the case), do you consider transformational event relationships a part…
Use Corporate Retreats To ReConnect
Business leaders have a problem. On one hand, their workforces are saying that they are tired of Zoom meetings and feeling isolated as they work from home, and mostly, that they miss the human connection. Leaders miss connecting with their teams in person too. But, on the other hand, employees are not keen to rush back to five days a week, 9-5pm office setting with crammed commuting and cold corporate cubicles. So how do leaders reconcile this problem? How do…
Surviving The Next Big Wave
If you made it through the last two years and still have your company and team intact, then you are still standing and are ready to take on what is happening in our industry. The work is coming in harder, faster and with staggering momentum and we will need to learn to ride the wave. Our team decided early on that we would never call (whatever was to come) a tsunami, but that’s exactly what it is. For more…
Springing Forward for 2022 Events
We’re stepping into an exciting time for the events and meetings industry; and as I write this piece, I’m filled with confidence and delight. March 1, 2022 was big day for us in the events world here in Toronto as venues went back to operating at full capacity and all of a sudden a huge piece of the planning puzzle just fell in to place! While we move forward in our planning process with a sense of optimism, it…
Boost Your Brand with Engaging Content
The meetings and events industry is a great place to start to build a personal brand, but once your brand is created, then what? When you’re in events, you’re in the “experience” business, so it’s an ideal place for creative individuals who want to carve out a personal brand through content creation. Meetings and events have some very unique opportunities for those that want to create engaging and enticing content. It’s through this content that we start to build…
Sponsorship Expectations For 2022
Understanding that in 2021, oil reached its highest levels in seven years. Unemployment is at the same level as it was pre-pandemic. We saw record levels for the TSE, although late year dipping and sell-off was expected as a correction, but we are still ahead. All this leads to predictions of a future strong economy, although we will continue to have an inflationary effect on our spending dollar and continued COVID effects. This means that brands will have to…
The Need to Have Sustainable Meetings
The disruptions of the past 20 months have shown the meeting and event industry’s resilience with event planners running numerous safe, meaningful meetings and events online, and recently again in hybrid and in-person formats. We’ve proved that we’re here to thrive through whatever the world throws at us, and are growing to meet the increasing demand for better-than-ever meetings and events. Edmonton’s first carbon-neutral conference three years ago represented a pivotal moment for us, solidifying that sustainability must be…
Destination Vancouver: Outlook and Goals
After thriving for decades, Vancouver’s tourism and hospitality industry has been predictably hit hard by the ongoing pandemic. According to the Vancouver Economic Commission, cruise and conference traffic is significant to the city, representing an estimated $2.2 billion in direct and indirect economic impact. Meanwhile, the meetings and conferences sector drives more than $1.6 billion in direct and indirect visitor spending. We ask Royce Chwin, president and CEO of Destination Vancouver, about what is happening and projections for how…
