Who would have thought that you could “collect people, places, and things with a touch”? Poken, is a small device that stores all of your personal information, such as, your name, business, and contact information. This information can be traded with other individuals at the touch of another Poken. This would be great for an event! Rather than trading business cards, you can simply exchange your information through the Poken, and in return, Poken creates a timeline of the people you met with all of their information. This is a great way to generate business leads and gather brochure information at your next event! Here are some of the benefits:

For You:

• Generate high quality business leads
• Simple and easy to deploy infrastructure
• Reduce paper waste and send a message of social consciousness
• Minimize printing and logistics costs of leaflets
• Track networking success with post-event analytics

4000 people were hosted in Orland, Florida and participants were allowed to collect information via Poken, click here to see the results. ABCey Events hopes to use Poken at our upcoming events!

Virtual events and Hybrid Events have been a hot topic for a while now. If you’re unclear on what a Hybrid event is, it is simply the extension of traditional in-person events with tools such as broadcasting and social media. For some special event professionals, hybrid events are not cutting-edge but commonplace. Every event now-a-days should really be considered a hybrid from the start, unless there is a specific reason for there not to be. The more people to get involved into a brand, a product or a communication message, the better their response will be in the form of buying decisions or recommendations. Hybrid events involve people even more than classic events did in the past, and at this point you can see that virtual and social media elements offer a lot of advantages for companies planning to use them. It’s not just regular “ROI” anymore, it’s Return on Involvement as well!

International event powerhouse Vok Dams Group, headquartered in Germany, was among the first agencies to integrate the Internet into special events back in 1998. And the company’s commitment to hybrid events is clear: “The future belongs to hybrid events, which pair live with MoSoLo—the use of mobile/social/location-based technologies,” says company leader Coja Dams. For Microsoft’s partner conference in Germany last week, the Vok Dams team turned to a mix of elements, including a custom event guide app, communication via Facebook and Xing (the German version of LinkedIn), Xbox Kinect modules at the event, and scannable tag codes at networking events that helped the 1,400 guests learn more about one another.

ABCey Events loves learning about the immersion of new and innovative technology and events. Several event pros who routinely stage hybrid events stress that complex technology is not a must though. Multi-source events can also be incredibly cheap, from Skype and Twitter, to most costly, satellite and interactive texting. We do think that putting a digital spin on a live event can make the event better. Technology is changing at light speed. It is time for the us, the event marketers of the world to assess their portfolio and align new business models to their event marketing strategies!

This post was adapted from “Hybrid Special Events–So ‘Now’ or Not Yet?” by Lisa Hurley of Special Events Magazine.

Meeting and event management companies have reported that current trends are driven by people who are technologically savvy. Today it is a necessity for planners to create customized and interactive experiences. There is good news and there is bad news on the horizon for meetings and events. Take a look at these statistics released from current research reports.

1)  Meeting Spend Up; Satisfaction With That Spend Down Meeting spend was up 22% for 2010 as compared to 2009. Yet, 66% of respondents say that their number one concern is reducing costs while increasing savings of both face to face and digital events.

2) Digital Events Popularity Grows More than 30% of all meetings are now digital.Companies that use digital events save on average 12% cost savings.

3) Speakers Treated As Commodities With meeting expenditures up and organization’s dissatisfaction with that spend down, more meeting professionals are negotiating a speaker’s fee.

4) Shorter Than Short Lead Times With shorter lead times comes more meeting professional empowerment. 68% of respondents said they had permission to sign-off on short-term meeting contracts without managers’ approval.

5) The Rise Of The Spend-Shift Movement Conference participants want quality and affordability. Savvy conference organizers create experiences that cultivate connections of online community members in face to face meetings.

6)  The Business Case Trumps Intangibles Meeting professionals secure speakers that can provide a business case for their message. If a speaker’s message helps an organization meet their event’s goal, there’s a win-win for everyone.

ABCey Events wants to hear about what other meeting trends you have seen lately? Which of these surprises you?

Today fighting through a tough economy and engaging with increasingly savvy consumers, being “standard” is no longer a viable option. Organizations, nonprofits, and associations alike must constantly strive to adjust and grow to meet the needs of their constituents to remain relevant, interesting, and in business. Below are some suggestions Behind the Scenes Events offered when asked how event planners can start changing things up and out-witting that tendency to stick with the norm:

1. Know your audience: For the clients we work with, the new economy has fueled a need for increased networking opportunities and less of an interest in education forums, unless those educational opportunities afford credit toward degree programs.

2. And while you’re asking: Utilize the opportunity to inquire about their preferences in determining the logistical details. Small adjustments like the time of day the events are held, length of programming, and the location of meetings can have a big impact on the likeliness that your potential audience will attend.

3. Understand the gens: Realize that going forward you are going to have to please three generations: the youthful Gen Y; older, more experienced, and all-to-often very tired Gen X; and even Baby Boomers, who have seen it all.

4. Stay fresh: Engage new talent, particularly those who dare to ask, Why? They are your allies.

5. Ask for feedback: As with most association or corporate events, you can almost be sure that a similar event will be held again next year. So ask attendees for feedback as to what worked, what didn’t, and what they would like to see more of. Criticism is critical to positive growth.

Events come in all shapes and sizes. To put on a spectacular event that escapes the norm, you must do your research. How do you connect with your audience?

By now you’ve probably heard of Google+, possibly by the tons of notifications flooding into your inbox. Note to self: turn notifications off! Google has finally unveiled their company’s top secret social layer that turns all of the search engines into one giant social network.  This  is the culmination of a year-long project led by Vic Gundotra, Google’s senior vice president of social. The project, which has been delayed several times, constitutes Google’s answer to Facebook. A limited field test began rolling out last week.

The search giant’s new social project will be omnipresent on its products, thanks to a complete redesign of the navigation bar. The familiar gray strip at the top of every Google page will turn black, and come with several new options for accessing your Google+ profile, viewing notifications, and instantly sharing content. The notification system is similar to how Facebook handles notifications, complete with a red number that increases with each additional notice. Google+ will also introduce you to Circles+, Photos & Group Video Chat, Content Discovery Through Sparks, and new Mobile abilities.

For me, the hangouts are the coolest feature of Google +, and one that really distinguishes it from any other social network out there.  Users can mute video or audio, even giving you a second to make sure you’re presentable before joining the chat. YouTube is also integrated so you can watch a video together. One question now is how fast the search company can move. With no add-on for publishers available yet, it’s clear that Google has a long way to go before they put a serious dent in the massive lead that Facebook already has when it comes to measuring consumers’ interest in content around the web.

As event planners, we love the idea of being connected and sharing our photos of events and work. How many social networks can you manage though? Will you be giving Google+ a go?

Have You Heard of Prezi? Prezi is a web-based presentation tool using a map layout and zooming to show contextual relationships, which addresses some of the shortcomings of Microsoft PowerPoint. Making a Prezi as a pitch to new client is a great way to make a lasting good impression.

The company was founded by Adam Somlai-Fischer, who started working with his zooming presentations in 2001. Adam became an internationally desired speaker and as more people saw his zooming presentations they wanted to create their own. In 2007, Adam met Peter Halacsy, who became his editor and CEO. Peter helped build the product and company so that anyone could make a zooming presentation. He prepared the company for its launch in April 2009 in Budapest, where Prezi received an investment from TED Conferences and Sunstone Capital. The San Francisco office was established in November 2009 and the company has been cash flow positive since 2010.

Somlai-Fisher says, “At Prezi, we’re all about helping people understand each other better. Presentations have not evolved much in the 50 years since the slide was invented, but Prezi is changing that. Prezi lets you bring your ideas into one space and see how they relate, helping you and your audience connect. Zoom out to see the big picture and zoom in to see details — a bit like web-based maps that have changed how we navigate through map books.”

As event planners, we are always proposing venues, caterers, entertainment, and other services to our clients. Does Prezi look like a presentation tool you would use?

With technology taking over the world these days we have been blessed with the creation of multiple apps that are specifically made to help us with our everyday jobs. When it comes to event planning, there are multiple components that need to be completed to make the event a success. Staying organized and on task is key to planning an event smoothly. This article written by Mike Mcallen gives us an inside look to the top twenty Ipad apps for planning meetings, events and much more. We picked our favorite 15 apps we think are the best for event planning. To see the entire list of apps visit this website.

1) Pages – It’s like Microsoft Word. Technical agendas, transportation, BEO’s and any word documents can be edited in this app.

2) Manage -  To-do lists with folders.  Rate by importance and due date as well as change color and write with a pen.

3) Evernote – Where I do all my note taking. Put notes into folders and email them.

4) MobileMe iDisk – Allows you to store all your docs, photos, even videos in a single place that is accessible from your computer, iPad, or iPhone. (Also Dropbox.com is a great sharing solution)

5) iBooks – Is not only for downloading books (I use the kindle app for that) but all PDF’s can be stored and read in iBooks. This includes all diagrams and beo’s if sent in PDF form. Don’t waste your money on an actual pdf app as this does it for free.

6) Numbers – Allows you to open and change excel docs.

7) Dragon Dictation – Speak notes outloud if I am to rushed to type and then email them to myself.

8 ) Flight Aware – Track flights of VIPs / presenters and see if they have arrived or are delayed.

9) World Mate -  Travel it tracks all my flight, hotel, and transportation info. Even where you park my car!

10) Angry Birds, Words with Friends, Pandora (music) or other game to play on down times.

11) Skype- Skype is a great way to make phone calls or instant messages for your communication needs.

12) 2Do – For creating to do lists on multiple projects at the same time and being able to names notes and flag critical due dates.

13) VMWare View- for virtual desktops linking with your work PCs and application sharing

14) Quick Office-for viewing editing Microsoft Office documents.

15) Noterize – for signing contracts and e-mailing them with your ipad.

These apps are all greatly useful when keeping organized and managing your next event or meeting. Being organized while planning can keep both the customer and the planner less stressed and on the right path to a successful event.

Which App is so helpful to your business that you cant imagine life without it?

People hailing from all over the world arrived around 7:00pm at 25 Lusk in SoMa on Sunday evening, having just come from the 133rd Annual Meeting of the INTA, (International Trademark Association), Conference.  The convention spanned from May 14th-18th, and featured events such as an academic course on international trademark law, advanced mediation training, several receptions, roundtable events, and a Grand Finale at the California Academy of Sciences.

The host of Sunday’s event, CMS Legal, the European provider of legal and tax services, opened their doors to legal professionals who were in town to attend the main conferences.  Some of the attendees were representatives of EPEC from the Netherlands, Thomas Reuters of Belgium, Salans from the Republic of Kazakhstan, MAGS Law Firm of Lithuania, and Boss&Young of China.  These are only a few of the places visitors came from!

CMS members and their guests gathered for a reception on the lower level of 25 Lusk to network, share a delicious meal, and enjoy the soothing vocals of Betty Foo and her band.  Accomplished photographer Dan Blanchard moved about the spacious room to capture the event in its fullest.

ABCey Events was fortunate to have helped with such a wonderful and successful event, and extends a big thank you to CMS Legal and all their guests!

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The San Francisco Bay Area has some awesome tech events coming up in the near future!  Attend these events to learn about new trends in the tech world and to hear keynote speakers from companies all over speak about their part in the digital market.

1. 7th Annual Gilbane San Francisco Conference: This annual convention will dissect aspects of Web and enterprise content management, and will delve into detail about the ways in which the sphere of customer service is changing to meet digital needs.  It will also address social media and blogging and their effects on collaborative knowledge.  May 18th-May 20th, The Westin San Francisco Market Street

2. Eli Pariser, Former Executive Director of Moveon.org: This conference centers around the ideas of internet privacy and personalization.  Topics of discussion will focus on how certain companies in the industry are limiting and filtering information through customized searches.  May 19th, 6:30pm-7:30pm; Silicon Valley Community Foundation Center

3. Technology Conference: From Data to Display- How Visualization Transforms Industry: This conference showcases telecommunication and IT technologies and the changes they are making throughout the industry, and will cover things like Generating of Data, Communications, Immersive Multimedia Displays, and Industry Cases.  May 26th, 9am-8pm; Sutardjah Dai Hall UC Berkeley

Developments in technology are extremely important to the event planning community.  We look forward to hearing about the changes that are reshaping and redefining our industry.  See you there!

To learn more about these events or to hear about other upcoming tech events in the area, click here!

Today wraps up the 2011 Ad:Tech Inspire conference in San Francisco where industry professionals met to discuss the future of the digital advertising world. As the name implies, the three day event at the Moscone Center was designed to explore concepts of creativity, inspiration and vision through a jam-packed schedule of speeches, panel sessions, exhibitions,and networking events/breaks. One new feature of this conference is the Startup Spotlight Series where digital marketing startups had the opportunity to profile their companies.

Keynote Speakers included Antonio Lucio of Visa, Guy Kawasaki of Garage Technology Ventures (and Alltop, our favorite news gathering site!), Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, and many more! With such significant speakers from today’s tech and advertising world, the conference was sure to accomplish its goal to provide attendees with the tools and techniques they need to compete in a changing world.

From a planning standpoint, we at ABCey know that successfully pulling off such a large and important event as this takes impeccable expertise! If you attended this years Ad:Tech conference, or have been to any in years passed, did you feel that it was a well organized event? What was most successful and what could have been improved?