Event Promotion "Tricks of the Trade"

Bethany Curtis, Director of Sales, Bavarian Inn Lodge - Frankenmuth, Michigan

Event Promotion "Tricks of the Trade"
by Bethany Curtis, Director of Sales, Bavarian Inn Lodge and Geri Root, President Root Management & Consulting, LLC

Bethany Curtis, Director of Sales for the Bavarian Inn Lodge, recently sat down with meeting professional, Geri Root, President of Root Management & Consulting LLC to talk about event promotion. It seemed fitting since Bethany was attending the Michigan Chapter of MPI's Annual Education Conference planned by Geri herself. Here are a few "Tricks of the Trade" that Geri shared:

Bethany: Most of us know that event promotion depends on the size of the event and the area of reach you are marketing to. For a state association like MMPI how much time is really needed in advance to start your event promotion?

Geri: Ideally for small events 60 – 90 days before the conference, for larger events a save the date should be sent at least 6 months prior and the full program sent 3 months prior. Meeting professionals are taught a full year in advance but that is sometimes difficult to pull off.

Bethany: What is the first promotion that you like send to your potential attendees? (email, Face Book, mailed postcard).

Geri: An email or postcard because it is a quick and inexpensive way to get the word out. It is always a good idea to get the event on your organizations social media site but that does not reach the entire audience.

Bethany: Do you feel that your promotional plan needs to be comprehensive to include all forms of media?

Geri: Yes, definitely.

Bethany: How have you used Social Media to increase attendance?

Geri: We have used social media to get the word out not only to those on our mailing list, but those that keep in touch with the association through social media. Also, we use it to build excitement for the event, for quick promotions, to give out teaser info on session and exciting new details about the conference.

Let the event promotion beginning!

MPI Mid-America 2012 by Kim Corcoran, CMP

Meetings Michigan recently attended MPI Mid- America in Sandusky, Ohio.  We attended with 8 partners, including Boyne Resorts, The Henry Ford, Ann Arbor Area CVB, Traverse City CVB, MotorCity Casino Hotel, Great Lakes Bay Region CVB, DoubleTree by Hilton Bay City and Bavarian Inn Lodge.   It was a great conference with two themes emerging for me:  Collaboration and Leadership. 

Angela Rampin from The Henry Ford is posing in front of their latest and greatest exhibit: Driving America!

Those that know me know I have always been a big fan of collaboration.  I truly believe you can accomplish more by partnering with other individuals and other organizations.  It certainly rang true for the MPI Mid-America Conference with the partnering chapters of Ohio and Kentucky.  They pooled their resources, had an outstanding committee of volunteers and worked together in every aspect of the event.  They put on an impressive regional conference with national caliber speakers.  The host hotel, Kalahari Waterpark and Resort, did a phenomenal job as well.  The food and beverage was out of this world!  Even “foodies” were impressed by the culinary prowess of these folks!

I was hard leaving the shores of beautiful Grand Traverse Bay on an 80-degree March day, but Sarah Barnard packed up to join Meetings Michigan at the recent MPI Mid-America Conference.

Leadership was another key theme I took away from this conference.  Several speakers honed in on our need to be leaders within our organizations and within our industry.  My favorite was Dr. Todd Dewett.  He is a professor, a scholar, a leader… but he is also a real person.  He boasts about his tattoos and his Harley.  While I’m not a huge fan of tattoos, he helped me break through the typical stereotype one might acquaint with those who choose to don their body with tattoos.  He opened my eyes to many different aspects of leadership through his unique stories and engaging rapport.  I would highly recommend him if you are ever in need of a speaker on leadership!  For your reference, www.drdewett.com

Patti Ingleson & Kristy Poore from Visit Ann Arbor joined Meetings Michigan at the recent MPI Mid-America Concerence. Above is Patti at Zingerman’s Deli. One of their biggest fans is Oprah Winfrey, who bit into one of their sandwiches and remarked: “On a scale of 1 to 5....11!”

The conference concluded with our closing luncheon hosted by Meetings Michigan.  Everyone loved our Meetings Michigan t-shirt promotion.  Attendees will be taking their t-shirts home to find a creative and fun place to take their photo of themselves.  We look forward to seeing all of their photos on our Meetings Michigan facebook page and notifying our winners in each of the unique categories!

-Kim Corcoran, CMP