In Case You Missed It
Last month, BizBash unveiled its 2023 40 Under 40 list, which comprises impressive industry leaders who have made an early mark on the meetings and events industry—before even celebrating their 40th birthday.
We also took a closer look at Quest Software's sales kickoff event. In order to strengthen team connections and get employees involved in the conference experience, Orlando-based ​​creative content and production company edgefactory was tasked with creating an interactive “TV channel,” dubbed “QTV,” that broadcast custom videos during the event. The segments, called the “QTV Pregame Show,” included interviews with conference attendees, announcements, and other content featuring employees.
Earlier this month, BizBash also heard from a guest columnist, Best Corporate Events managing partner Roy Charette, on how CSR impacts employee engagement and retention. "CSR reflects a business’s accountability and commitment to contributing to the well-being of communities and society through various environmental and social measures," he wrote in the column. "But it’s also fast becoming an effective way to engage and retain employees," Charette added. Read the managing partner's full column here.
Here are five more things you should know about this month...
1. Event Tech Live makes its North American debut this month.
Now in its 10th year, following its successful run in London, Event Tech Live will make its North American debut next week, April 26-27, at The Expo at World Market Center Las Vegas. At Event Tech Live Las Vegas, "attendees can expect to see world-class event technology alongside an exciting and informative conference program," Event Tech Live co-founder Adam Parry told BizBash. "The show floor is packed to the brim with exhibitors from industry names such as Cvent and Bizzabo, to smaller organizations and tech start-ups in our Tech2Grow Collective (curated with our friends at Dahlia+)."
Attendees can also expect speakers from top brands like Google, Zoom, Bloomberg, and SXSW, who will take the stage to discuss their own event tech experiences and best practices. There will also be tech demo sessions from exhibitors and interactive roundtable discussions. (Check out the full agenda here.)
As for what session Parry is most looking forward to? "There are probably too many to mention, as I'm a bit of a geek when it comes to tech," he said. "I love hearing about how it's being used well—and on the flip side not so well. One session that springs to mind is Ryan Howard's session on April 26. Ryan is the co-lead of Google Experience Institute at Google and will be sharing some insights from running their events and experiences. It's always fascinating to hear how larger companies have incorporated event tech in to their events, what's worked, and what hasn't. Great content is something we pride ourselves on at Event Tech Live, and I'm proud to say that we've achieved above and beyond even my expectations at our North American debut."
Event Tech Live Las Vegas is free to attend. Register here.
2. The 2023 NAMM Show brought music industry leaders to Anaheim, Calif.
One of Anaheim’s largest B2B conventions, the 2023 National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Show, returned to the Anaheim Convention Center from April 13-15 with an estimated 49,000 attendees and 20,935 hotel nights booked, resulting in a projected economic impact of $88,740,501 to the local community.
This year, the trade-only show—which has been held in Anaheim since 1978—was centered around the theme of “Bringing the Future into Focus.” Vendors included major music and tech brands like Yamaha, JBL, and Sony, and they offered attendees a look at new products before they hit the market. Conventioneers also enjoyed hundreds of free education sessions and networking opportunities, plus a wide variety of concerts and events during the show and after hours in the hotels. (According to Visit Anaheim, there was even a stage the size of Coachella's main stage.)
3. Visit Seattle shares 2022 visitation data.
Visit Seattle—whose destination recently unveiled a brand-new convention center building—held its annual meeting at the end of March, where the DMO unveiled preliminary tourism impact metrics from 2022 to more than 500 tourism and business profs. The event included insights from prominent hospitality professionals and local civic leaders, including Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, King County Executive Dow Constantine, and Visit Seattle CEO and president Tammy Blount-Canavan.
Highlights from the data, created in conjunction with Tourism Economics, include:
- A total of 33.9 million visitors came to Seattle and King County in 2022, a 27.4% increase from 2021.
- Those visitors spent $7.4 billion in the city and county in 2022 (up 37.8% from 2021) and paid $689.1 million in state and local taxes in 2021, an increase of 34.4% from the previous year.
- A steady increase in tourism sector jobs in the city and county: There were 61,978 in Seattle and King County in 2022, up 12.6% from 2021.
Blount-Canavan and the Visit Seattle team attribute this growth to a number of factors, including a global rebound of leisure travel coming out of the pandemic, an increase in business travel and meetings and conventions, an increase in entertainment and sports offerings, and the return of cruise season.
“Recovery is not an overnight fix, but there’s a lot of hope and excitement in looking at the year ahead,” Blount-Canavan said in a press release. “Our city will be in the public eye in a big way—from major sporting events to international conferences. With these major events, we’re ready to show the world what we know: Seattle is the best city to visit and to do business in.”
Knowland partly attributes D.C.'s jump in its meetings-by-volume rankings to the renowned National Cherry Blossom Festival, which draws groups and tourists from around the world each year to see the cherry blossoms in peak bloom.Photo: Courtesy of Knowland
4. Data says Washington D.C. was the top meetings market in March.
Knowland, a provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality, reported that provider the Washington, D.C./DMV area (which also includes parts of Maryland and Virginia) market led the U.S. meetings and events industry by volume for March. Second place went to Chicago, with Los Angeles/Long Beach in third. The leading industry driver for meetings was national associations across four of the top five markets.
Knowland partly attributes D.C.'s jump in the rankings to the renowned National Cherry Blossom Festival, which draws groups and tourists from around the world each year to see the cherry blossoms in peak bloom. According to Knowland, the market averaged 200 attendees per meeting and 5,468 square feet of space used, and an average of 16 bookings per property for the month.
5. EnventU introduces its new board of directors.
EnventU, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a pipeline for entry-level careers in the event industry, has unveiled its newest board of directors.
"As EnventU continues to strengthen our 'pipeline' for youth to excel professionally within our industry, we are ecstatic to welcome our new board members who are 100% committed to this mission," said EnventU founder and executive director Latoya Lewis in a statement. "I am confident their diverse backgrounds and extensive expertise will be instrumental as we transform our business model and realize our vision of fundamentally impacting the lives of teens."
The new board of directors includes:
- Edna Ezzell, managing director at Accenture
- Alexis La Broi, director of audio visual services division of MidPoint Technology Group
- Trish Simitakos, CEO of Singularity Event Production
- Stuart Levy, associate teaching professor of management and tourism studies at The George Washington University
- Deidre West, executive event producer and brand strategist.
By focusing on key values of education, service, community, and opportunity, EnventU collaborates with businesses in the D.C. area's events industry that support its mission, vision, and goals by donating their time, talent, and services to EnventU. "We invite industry partners who want to learn more about this important organization to contact us," Lewis added.
