Smart Meetings | Page 147 of 602 | Corporate Event Planning: Business Events, Meetings, Conferences

Plan with Confidence

All across Baltimore, former industrial zones and historic buildings are getting new life as a wave of development and innovative reuse sweeps the city.

From new waterfront neighborhoods to an entertainment zone connecting our stadium complex and casino, these projects are set to create thousands of new jobs and experiences galore. Many of these remodels are just a short drive away from the Baltimore Convention Center, so visitors won’t have to travel far to experience all that’s new in Charm City.

Warner Street District

Soon to be Baltimore’s premiere entertainment district, the Warner Street District will revitalize a previously underutilized industrial zone into an energetic and walkable corridor just minutes from the convention center and downtown district.

Bridging MGM’s Horse Horseshoe Casino and the Raven’s M&T Bank Stadium, the district has announced music and entertainment venue The Paramount Baltimore and sports entertainment venue Topgolf. The master plan also shows a 320-room hotel; a 30,000 sq. ft. bar called Yards Social Bar; 34,620 sq. ft. of additional retail space; a plaza with a waterfront feature and streetscape improvements.

A picture of the Warner Street District in Baltimore. A water taxi is driving by a grassy hill covered in tents, with skyscrapers in the background.

Baltimore Penn Station

Baltimore’s Pennsylvania Station, about 1.5 miles north of the Inner Harbor, is the eighth busiest train station in the United States. A central stop on Amtrak’s busy Northeast Corridor, dozens of trains provide frequent service to and from Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, and points north on a daily basis.

A multimillion-dollar historic renovation and expansion project will add up to one million sq. ft. of new office, retail, residential, and hotel spaces as well as the construction of a brand-new companion facility complete with a high-speed rail. Once complete, the new station will better connect train-goers to Baltimore’s surrounding neighborhoods and the overall North East region.

Royal Farms Arena

Royal Farms Arena, the city’s largest indoor sports and performance venue is undergoing a 150-million-dollar renovation. The new facility will include overhauled concourses, 30 to 40 new suites, upgraded concessions, a new dazzling glass exterior and increased seating to accommodate up to 15,000 guests. Only a 5-minute walk from the convention center, the arena can also be used for groups as a companion or additional flex space.

A densely populated mid-Atlantic location is within driving distance, a short flight, or a convenient train ride away
Budget-friendly cuisine, attractions, and hotels in comparison to other east coast cities

Diverse and historic experiences for all attendees

9,000 hotel rooms, seven distinct neighborhoods, and the famous Inner Harbor are walking distance to convention center

Home to some of the world’s leading academic institutions, government agencies, contracting firms and businesses.

Address: 400 East Pratt Street, 10th Floor

City, State and Zip: Baltimore, Maryland 21202

Phone: 1-877-Baltimore

Website: baltimore.org

You only turn 20 once. Now that we are old enough to know more, but still young enough to care passionately about supporting meeting professionals, we thought it was worth making a big deal out of it. Especially since what we are really celebrating is the innovation, resilience and dedication of our chosen meetings industry.

You are the ones who inspire us every day, make room in your life (and mailboxes) for Smart Meeting Magazine, SmartMeetings.com, Smart Chat Live! webinars and join us at Smart Meetings Experiences. You are the dynamic community we have been enjoying for two decades.

Learn about Marin Bright’s top lessons learned in this exclusive interview from the 20th Anniversary Event.

But how to mark the occasion? Our friends are scattered all over the globe. And we seem to be going through a case of revenge meetings, which means a lot of our supporters are busy planning their own events. We love seeing that, but would not want to leave them out just because they are busy doing their jobs.

A screenshot from an Instagram story from Thuy Diep. The text reads, "Loading out but still made time to attend @smartmeetings 20 Year Anniversary celebration (in the war room) 2:19 PM." — Thanks Thuy Diep for the love

That was when our friends at Allseated suggested an event on their fun ExVo platform. For those who didn’t make it, this is virtual way beyond Zoom boxes. Their fun 3D experience is the closest thing to walking into a ballroom we have seen. And it is completely customizable.

We chose an elegant art-deco theme with a hip coastal rooftop for the afterparty, but given enough time, their talented designer can turn your wildest imagination into virtual reality (Steampunk-Alice in Wonderland, ultra-modern urban retreat, if you can dream it, they can make it happen). A big shout out to Jamie Quickert for holding our hand through the process. You rock in so many ways.

Read the Smart Meetings June magazine cover story for all the lessons.

A picture from within the ExVo platform of Marin, Michelle, JT and others drinking champagne.

We were frankly humbled by the outpouring of support as friends who have traveled this journey at our side from the beginning reached out in the form of video messages, donating their services and joining us in the metaverse during the celebration. Entire Productions was kind enough to hook us up with not one, but two fortune tellers who helped us all focus on the wonderful things in store for the next 20 years (We love you Natasha).

Monterey Bay Aquarium brought the penguin-cute. Big Head Cartoon Caricature Art and Entertainment and Allseated’s sponsored video booth captured the moment. Mixology Mixer supplied the Marin-tini recipe (see below) and David Martinez Magic added the wow. Grammy award-winning DJ Logic mixed the tunes.

And to our dedicated sponsors, Caesars Entertainment, MGM Grand Detroit, Citizen Watch America, Tourism Santa Fe, Sonesta Sint Maarten, Nizuc, M Resorts, Visit Baltimore, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau, Pocano Mountains Visitors Bureau, and SnackMagic. They brought the prizes and you were the winners!

The Smart Meetings June 2022 magazine cover, featuring Marin Bright wearing a bright pink suit jacket behind a cake covered in flowers. — Thank you to the fabulous Michelle Heston for the beautiful cover cake

All of that would have meant nothing without you there to share it. Thank you to the overwhelming number of you who registered, logged in, tapped me on the shoulder to share your good wishes and posted about it on our #MeetSmart feed. You are the reason we get up every day and do what we do.

Our commemorative June Magazine and that event are a love letter to our community. We are dedicated to finding new ways to empower you to grow and thrive. Let’s make the next 20 even better!

The Marin-tini!

INGREDIENTS:
1 Mango Passionfruit Tea Bag
1 oz Lemon Juice
1 oz Apricot Syrup
2 oz Tequila
La Croix Limoncello Sparkling Water

Shake it up, enjoy!

You’ll find meeting and event space other places but what you won’t find is all we offer at MGM Resorts. For decades MGM has been leading the way by providing world-class experiences across all our destinations.

At MGM Resorts, we accepted the challenge of ensuring that our meeting experiences and options are not only robust and plentiful but inspirational as well. We continue to reinvest in our offerings with meetings and event professionals in mind. From indoor to outdoor experiences, our venues range from some of the most famous arenas in the world to incredible unique facilities.

Plan with Confidence

An outdoor patio at Mandalay Bay Beach. Blue and green couches are arranged around a small table.

Mandalay Bay Beach

This 11-acre tropical water and sand playground features a signature 1.6-million-gallon wave pool, generating waves up to six feet high, a lazy river, four distinct swimming lagunas, jogging track, private cabanas, beach bungalows and villas.

Mandalay Bay Beach is one of the most exciting event venues in Las Vegas. It offers groups many unique experiences, no matter the size, to create a memorable event. Always a popular outdoor event location for planners, Mandalay Bay Beach is a versatile space that can accommodate everything from a beach BBQ by day to a private concert by night. It’s a true one-of-a-kind destination.

The Park

Beautiful and engaging public spaces have become a trademark of MGM Resorts. The Park has re-imagined the traditional pedestrian experience by creating a dynamic destination located just off the famed Las Vegas Strip. Explore The Park, an immersive outdoor dining and entertainment district, and discover an unrivaled sports and entertainment venue, T-Mobile Arena.

This entertainment district adjacent to T-Mobile Arena offers casual outdoor dining restaurants, public art, and desert landscaping amid its three acres. The Park hosts some of the best outdoor special events, live music, and entertainment. Groups can buy out restaurant venues or space in the park for fun and games.

Read More: Las Vegas: Silver and Green

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqYw6CveQK8

Luxury Meetings District

Advanced designs in technology and architecture have long been the backbone of MGM Resorts and the meetings industry. Both innovation and architecture are on display throughout the Luxury Meetings District. This close nexus of venues makes it easy to move from inspirational location to location, with sparks and serendipitous interactions happening along the way.

You’ll find venue options of all sizes across the Luxury Meetings District from intimate brainstorming spaces like The Ideation Studio at Park MGM, designed to spur productivity and creativity, to the expansive Bristlecone Ballroom at ARIA providing convention guests unparalleled space to create and innovate together. The Luxury Meetings District includes 44 restaurants, 16 pools, and 19 unique venues and is a central hub for any company big or small.

Contact info:

MGM Resorts

mgmresorts.com

@mgmresort

Xavi Gonzalez

A headshot of Xavi Gonzalez. He is a white man wearing a suit and has short brown hair.

Gonzalez is now general manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo. In his 20 years of experience in luxury hotel management, Gonzalez most recently held the role of general manager at The Ritz-Carlton, Kyoto. He has spent the last decade leading The Ritz-Carlton properties across Asia, with executive leadership roles in China, Indonesia and Japan.

Katie Donald

A portrait of Katie Donald. She is a white woman wearing a wide-neck black blouse and has long, loosely curled brown hair.

The Ritz-Carlton New York, NoMad, the newest Manhattan property by the brand, welcomed Donald as director of sales and marketing. For over 20 years, Donald has garnered experience in accounting, sales and marketing, serving luxury hospitality hotel companies in Switzerland, England, New Zealand, Australia and the United States. Most recently, Donald was director of sales and marketing at The St. Regis New York.

Olivia Sage-El

A portrait of Olivia Sage-El. She is a black woman with medium brown skin and large turquoise earrings.

Royal Sonesta New Orleans welcomed back Sage-El as catering sales manager. Sage-El previously held the role of sales coordinator at Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans. She began her hospitality career a decade ago in events at Marcy Blum Associates Inc. in New York City and went on to serve as catering and convention services coordinator at Royal Sonesta New Orleans, before joining Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans as its people and culture coordinator.

Mirko Cattini

A portrait of Mirko Cattini. He is a white man wearing a dark suit and a red tie.

Cattini is now general manager of Hotel Eden, a luxury hotel in Rome. Cattini was most recently hotel manager of The Dorchester in London. Cattini brings over 25 years of food and beverage and hotel management experience to his new role and has held leadership roles at Corinthia London; Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts properties in Singapore, the Philippines and Thailand, and more.

Lee Kelly

A portrait of Lee Kelly. He is a blond white man wearing a dark suit and vest with a red tie.

Kelly is general manager of 45 Park Lane in London. He brings more than two decades of experience to the role, most recently working for The Berkeley in London as its hotel manager. Kelly has been general manager of Monkey Island Estate, a leader in food and beverage management at London’s The Savoy Hotel and Four Seasons properties in Singapore and London.

Luca Virgilio

A portrait of Luca Virgilio. He is an older white man wearing a dark suit and gray-red tie.

The Dorchester in London welcomed Virgilio as general manager. Previously the general manager of Rome’s Hotel Eden, Virgilio has nearly 20 years of experience in hotel management, serving as general manager of several properties including Baglioni Hotel London, Regina Hotel Baglioni – Rome and Hotel Metropole in Monaco.

Victoria Bernardo

A portrait of Victoria Bernardo. She is an Asian woman with a blue, floral-patterned sleeveless blouse.

L’Auberge de Sedona in Arizona promoted Bernardo to leisure sales manager. Bernardo brings 12 years of experience in luxury hospitality and travel sales, as well as events, most recently serving as catering sales and event manager for the property. She has been a leader at Four Seasons Resort Hualalai in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, and Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel in Southern California.

Marcel Stittner

A portrait of Marcel Stittner. He is a white man with square glasses wearing a white collared shirt.

To open this fall, Rancho Pescadero in Baja California Sur, Mexico, named Stittner general manager. Previously general manager of Tabacon Grand Spa Thermal Resort & Spa in Costa Rica, Stittner has 28 years of luxury hotel management experience. He has held food and beverage directorships and executive roles at Starwood Hotels & Resorts properties in Costa Rica, IHG Hotels & Resorts properties across South America, Eko Hotels & Suites properties in Nigeria, and more.

Elizabeth Connor

A portrait of Elizabeth Connor. She is a white woman with square glasses and a dark grey blouse.

Champlin’s Hotel, Marina & Resort on Rhode Island’s Block Island appointed Connor general manager. Previously, Connor spent over 30 years at Block Island Resorts, most recently serving as general manager for the brand. She is a community leader across the island, having sat on the Zoning Board of Review, and she was elected for two terms on the local School Committee. Connor has served on the EMT rescue squad and provides financial consulting to nonprofits in the Block Island community.

Ronny Fernández

A portrait of Ronny Fernández. He is an older Mexican man with a grey collared shirt.

To open this November, Naviva, a Four Seasons Resort, Punta Mita, Mexico, a hospitality site with luxury tents along the Pacific Coast, named Fernández resort manager. Fernández has been in hotel management for over 20 years, most recently as hotel manager of Four Seasons Hotel Houston. He has been resort manager for multiple Four Seasons properties, operations manager at Terraza del Pacifico and more.

Stacy Daeffler

A portrait of Stacy Daeffler. She is a young white woman with a black blouse and a silver necklace.

The Charter at Beaver Creek in Colorado welcomed Daeffler as its new associate director of group sales. Daeffler last served as manager of Destination Colorado Meetings, a statewide group travel services nonprofit in Colorado. While at Destination Colorado Meetings, she held roles in membership services, events, sales, marketing and nationwide event planner partnerships. Daeffler brings over two decades of hospitality management experience to her new role.

Brennan Rosonet

A portrait of Brennan Rosonet. She is a young white woman with long brown hair and a sheer black blouse.

Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans appointed Rosonet its new spa director. Rosonet has spent the last six years at Windsor Court, most recently serving as its spa manager. She has been a hospitality and wellness leader at Viva Brazil and spas frequented by locals in Southern California.

Nicolas Chammas, Chris Thompson and Jon Gray (left to right)

Three portraits of Nicolas Chammas, Chris Thompson and Jon Gray. They are all white men in dark suits.

Sentral welcomed Chammas as chief financial officer, Thompson as vice president of development and Gray as vice president of experience.

Chammas was most recently vice president of strategic finance and investment analysis at Sonder. He brings 15 years of experience in growth equity investing and finances.

Thompson was most recently senior vice president of Cumming Management Group and has 15 years of experience in technology and engineering, as well as business development, management and international expansion.

Gray has spent the last 17 years working in hotel management and hospitality brand development. He was most recently president of Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace, is the founder of his own hospitality, gaming, retail, marketing and entertainment consulting company, was senior director of global brand services for Nike and has held executive roles with Caesars Entertainment, Palms Casino Resort and Station Casinos in Las Vegas.

[wpViralQuiz id=110757]

Meeting planning always seems to have another trick up its sleeve no matter how prepared you thought you were. With this and ever-changing rules and regulations about Covid-19 safety, what is a meeting professional to do? While every case of planning differs, there exists a general idea as to what you should ask and do to keep yourself and your attendees in good health.

Events Leadership Institute (ELI) recently released The Event Professional’s Guidebook to In-Person & Hybrid Meetings, Events & Conference, an event guide that covers all things hybrid, attendee safety and general event readiness.

Here we will touch on one aspect: post-Covid site inspection preparedness.

How Concerned with Safety is the Venue?

What are the venue’s safety standards? How safely does it treat guests? Based on this treatment of attendee safety, you may be able to see how well safety procedures are handled, the guide says. Other things it says to do follow.

Find out how the venue managed during the height of Covid
Ask what is currently asked of staff, visitors and attendees
See if its policies are in writing and clearly seen, or just an afterthought

What is the Venue’s Cancellation Policy?

As venues are places that are directly affected by changing rules and regulations, it’s mentally, emotionally and financially advised to ready yourself for the possibility of forced cancellation. ELI recommends knowing about a venue’s cancellation policy as early as possible. Questions to ask your venue follow.

What will happen to my deposit if I need to cancel due to government restriction or anything else outside of my control?
Is your cancellation policy different for government-mandated cancellation versus any other type?
If I need to cancel, can I reschedule without penalty?

Does the Venue Have Proper Ventilation?

Even more important than proper cleaning are efficient air systems, ELI says. A couple of things to be considered are the humidity levels of the space; to prevent the lingering of drops, a humidity level of 50-55 percent is on the mark. Closed-circuit HVAC systems that don’t bring in air from outside are not great for circulation and decrease the number of people who can safely meet in one space. ELI recommends asking if there are portable HEPA systems to filter air in breakout rooms.

How Many Attendees Can I Host Safely?

The fewer hiccups, the better. According to ELI’s “Pandemic On-site Protocols” course, sharing your schedule with the venue as soon as possible will lessen the chances of surprises occurring for either party. There are several questions to ask about attendee capacity.

How will foot traffic flow?
Where will lines begin?
Are capacities treated differently for outdoor events?
Can entrances and exits be designed to avoid bottlenecks?

How Does the Venue Handle F&B?

Venues have vastly different policies and protocols when it comes to F&B; for this reason, it’s best to find out exactly how your venue will be handling them. ELI suggests asking questions surrounding safety and limiting time spent in gathering areas.

Can you serve prepackaged, grab-and-go meals and snacks to limit gathering?
Can you preorder meals via an app to prevent delays?
Do you operate with plated meals or staffed buffets?

It’s no secret that the hospitality industry has been understaffed since the beginning of the pandemic. The past few years saw over 70% of hotel staff in the United States and United Kingdom furloughed or laid off while hotels were closed. With more jobs offering flexible remote work than ever before, former staff are reluctant to return to physically demanding positions with rigid schedules.

The recent surge in “revenge travel” has been met with burnt out staff and slow service. Travel restrictions are being lifted around the world, drawing in even more tourists from abroad and more professionals to events. If hotels are to meet this demand, they need to incentivize people to work for them.

McKinsey & Company has found the biggest trends in hiring for the hospitality industry and developed a method for choosing the best employees. Prospective workers have high expectations—if hotels give them an offer they can’t refuse, meeting planners will reap the benefits of a smoother hospitality experience.

Technology Creates New Staff Roles

Thanks to the increase in digital booking platforms and hotel apps, many business and leisure guests prefer to check in online rather than with a receptionist. Some locations have gone as far as to install check in kiosks in their lobbies. Projects like this send staff from guest-focused roles to back-end support roles. Planners can expect a more automated lobby in the future, hopefully reducing delays.

People will need to be hired to design and manage these new customer-oriented technologies. Sure signs of a well-maintained online infrastructure are consistent updates and attentive customer support. Most brands have social media managers to keep the company in the public consciousness. Ad campaigns and posts bring properties to meeting planners’ attention.

AI is also gaining popularity in the hospitality world. Booking platforms and hotel apps use customer information like budget, preferences and needs allows it to generate vacation plans tailored to each guest or group. AI can add a personal touch to the impersonal automated check in, too, when it gives you recommendations and makes plans like a human concierge.

Flexible Schedules

Though some are eager to return to working in person, some still prefer working from home. With the emergence of increased technology-based jobs, more people can work remotely. In fact, Forbes predicts that 25% of all jobs in the U.S. will be remote.

Hotels have started offering remote and hybrid jobs to draw more people to a position. Jobs that were formerly onsite can be modified to give staff more control over their schedules. You’ll be seeing fewer staff in hotels, staffing shortage or not. Roles that can be performed remotely include:

Social media manager
Event planning consultant
Accountant
Marketing and PR executives
Customer support associate
Concierge (with the appropriate infrastructure)

Positions like housekeeping and waitstaff will still be on location. Higher pay, benefits and flexibility will likely improve the quality of service they give you and your group.

Chances for Career Growth

In short-staffed workplaces, employees are susceptible to burnout—especially in physically demanding roles. A 2021 study by Hartford found that 61% of employees were feeling the effects of burnout, most often expressed as exhaustion, irritability and cynicism. If you’ve had a bad experience with a hotel employee recently, they were probably doing the work of three with the hours of one.

The opportunity for upward mobility and new positions can keep staff motivated to do good work. Some may be trained to perform high-skill tasks on certain days. Housekeeping, waitstaff and reception also may rotate duties to minimize monotony.

Remember ESG During Hiring

When choosing who to work for, employees often assess a company’s environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG). They want to be part of a company that respects its employees, supports social issues and takes care of the environment.

Hotels may hire dedicated staff to take care of some elements of ESG. A position overseeing the company’s climate impact, water usage and sustainability can improve the brand in the eye of a meeting planner. Kitchen managers might source local produce and meat to create an authentic culinary experience for guests.

Meanwhile, hiring managers are making a conscious effort to hire a diverse workforce. According to a study by McKinsey, diversity within a company can increase economic growth. Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants is partnering with employment organizations such as Trans Can Work, The Mom Project and DirectEmployers Association so they can draw from a broad pool of applicants.

The staffing situation seems dire, but by following these trends, the hospitality industry can meet the influx of business and leisure travelers from around the world. With solutions like these in play, more and more hotels are listening to customers’ and employees’ concerns. Staff with flexible schedules and career opportunities will be less susceptible to burnout and more motivated to provide good service.

The process for creating a request for proposal (RFP) has wildly changed now that virtual and hybrid events are regularly in our repertoire. While we’re excited to welcome back face-to-face events, we know that attendees and companies require flexibility.

This means virtual and hybrid events aren’t going away anytime soon. So, we must continue to be laser-focused on creating RFPs that will truly meet our needs and set us up for success. Technological considerations play an important role in creating your RFP.

Don’t rely on a cookie-cutter approach to RFP creation, especially when you are in need of an event platform or mobile app to facilitate a virtual event. Your technology can make or break your event. Here are 10 key questions that can help start the conversation.

Type of Event

What is the purpose of the event? Are you gathering for marketing, networking, or community building? Are you bringing teams together for data download, messaging, or rewards/recognition? The purpose of the event will drive questions like whether networking, live polling, Q&A or chat functions are important to include in your RFP.

Registration

Will integration with registration content be needed? Will you need to access to basic attendee data, or will you need to create unique schedules for all attendees? Will there be a need to include specific details pertinent to some groups and not others? Understanding the integration needs is critical early in the process to set you up for success.

Privacy

A vector image of three people around an oversized laptop screen with a lock icon.

What privacy settings are expected for the app? Will public app downloads be acceptable? Will the app be hidden? Will you require attendees to log in to the app or virtual event? Will you be expected to offer easy access to the app, but lock it down? Clearly defining the level of privacy expected within the event app will help you create an RFP that ensures security takes top priority.

Social Media

Is social sharing within the event app encouraged, or restricted? Is this a public event with links to social media platforms, or is this a private event that should only be held within the event app? Some companies may have super strict guidelines that don’t allow participants to upload photos or add comments. Make sure you fully understand the client expectations so your technology can support these expectations effectively.

Branding

What level of customization is needed? Does your event app need to accommodate branding and logos specific to the meeting? Do you need to account for company or sponsor logos? Will you need an event description to help attendees find the correct app download? Determining the branding needs is important to ensure the app will meet marketing specifications.

Content Development

How much content is needed within the event app and virtual site? Will you need an on-demand content library? With the content be easily digestible? Will there be a gamification component? Stretching out the digital experience and giving your attendees content as early as possible will set them (and your event) up for success.

Speakers

Will you have any featured speakers? Think through how you want to display your speakers, whether they are serving in the keynote, breakout, or support role. Should those speakers be linked to any sessions?

There are several levels in which you can showcase your speakers, and understanding that detail helps in the overall design. Are assets available for your speakers, like headshots, bios, company logos, social media links and websites? All of these materials are helpful to have up front, yet they tend to take a lot of time to track down.

Networking

A vector image depicting five people in a video conference.

Is networking a priority or required? Do you expect your attendees to network via email or chat, or will there be an expectation to network virtually (in which webcams are required)? Will attendees need an opportunity to interact with sponsors? This question is essential to identify technology requirements for both your app and virtual site.

Analytics

What data do you need post-event? This is an important question that can fuel greater privacy conversations. If you aren’t asking for attendees to log in, often times you will have lost a big opportunity to collect meaningful data.

Vendor Support

What level of technological support will be available? Onboarding large teams onto a new platform/solution can be an arduous task. Will you have the vendor support you need?

To bring it all together, it’s important to create a robust capability spreadsheet to use when vetting a virtual event platform or app. This allows you to receive a quick, high level “yes” or “no” from your short list of service providers before you dig into the more specific details.

Next, identifying your list of must-haves, nice-to-haves and wish-list items will help refine your questions. Finally, take an honest look at the sales process of each vendor you’re reviewing. You can tell a lot about their customer service by taking an honest look at your own experience throughout the process. Transparency within the partnership and consistency of service is imperative.

Libby Zito is the lead, attendee experience manager and Melissa Patruno is the executive producer at Bishop-McCann, an award-winning, full-service event management partner that helps innovative companies elevate their events and increase audience engagement by connecting audiences with their brand in a passionate, strategic way.

The process of picking the perfect event venue is a time-consuming one. It can take hours of driving and flying that many planners can’t spare. RendezVerse, a new Metaverse-based company, revealed its plan to dramatically reduce time and resources spent on-site inspections.

In collaboration with some of the most well-known hotels around the world—namely InterContinental Paris le Grand, Atlantis Palm Dubai and Madrid Marriott Auditorium—RendezVerse has created “digital twins” of event spaces that can be customized through their RV360 app. Announced in May at Europe’s m&i Event, these virtual environments are explorable and interactable by hotel owners, event planners and clients.

A Virtual Mission

Two avatars stand in a RendezVerse room.

RendezVerse’s method of creating virtual models of existing venues diverges from other digital meeting ventures. Companies like AllSeated craft fully customizable original environments to host events (much like they did for Smart Meetings’ 20th Anniversary Celebration). These range from realistic to fantastical and can display content within the environment to show attendees.

RendezVerse was started with the intention of following this path. Mark Brown, chief marketing officer for RendezVerse, says the team wanted to build a massive digital arena to serve as a convention center with a series of exotic private rooms.

The idea came from the sales opportunities that could come from these private rooms. RendezVerse’s parent company, Worldwide Events, already offers potential venues to their meeting planner clients. Unifying the Metaverse with site inspections has produced a result that is faster, more economical and more environmentally friendly.

Brown said the company’s main goal is to reduce the number of physical site inspections every year. Rather than flying across the country to evaluate a hotel, planners can simply put on a headset and slowly eliminate sites from their shortlists. By the end of 2023, the company wants to have 1,000 hotels modeled for clients.

Accessible Technology

An employee of RendezVerse wears a Meta Quest headset.

Immersion is important to RendezVerse. They want virtual meetings to progress beyond a “flatscreen experience” and move to headsets. Their app, called RV360, can be accessed on a standard Meta Quest VR headset or on a smartphone. Phones with the app can be used with cardboard enclosures that allow users to convert their phones into VR headsets. The app has light hardware requirements, giving potential buyers easy access to the Metaverse.

When using a headset, users feel as if they’re in the same room as people from around the world. Hand and eye movements make conversations more personal, while the ability to move around in space makes networking more realistic. Being able to interact with an environment and the people in it can make all the difference.

The company will offer an online marketplace, RVDiscover, for venues to list their properties that will be available when RendezVerse fully launches this fall. RVDiscover is set to work as an easy way for clients to search and survey potential event venues. Properties will upload their own 360 photography to the market so clients can quickly get a read on how well the space would work for their event.

Hybrid Opportunities

While a hotel’s digital duplicate may primarily be intended for use in site inspections, the interactive environment has additional uses as well. With the changing landscape of meetings, people are more open to attending events virtually. A hotel with a capacity of 1,000 people in its event space can invite additional attendees to their Metaverse counterpart.

RendezVerse lets planners customize their environments to suit the needs of every event. Multimedia content, games and announcements can be delivered throughout the space, creating opportunities for more hybrid events.

“Once hotels enter the Metaverse, they’re not going to look back.”
Peter Gould, RendezVerse CEO

The company also wants to give meeting hosts more control over private virtual conversations. Using a blockchain—a digital ledger that has massive encryption capabilities—RendezVerse will allow hosts to generate a unique key for each meeting, letting them control who attends and what happens to the audio, video and transcript after the meeting has ended.

New Incentives

Traditionally, companies that work with meeting planners would offer incentives to prospective clients to draw them into a site inspection. Business class flights, elaborate hotel rooms and fancy dinners are all standard fare that Worldwide Events uses. But how does a company give incentives to a client who is only attending virtually?

RendezVerse plans to resolve this problem with their own cryptocurrency, $NGAGE. These tokens will be given out to those who work with the company, which can then be exchanged for loyalty points with participating airlines and hotels or cashed out in the token’s marketplace. Much like other cryptocurrencies, the tokens can appreciate or depreciate in value based on how many are in circulation and RendezVerse’s assets. The fluctuating rewards can give recipients the opportunity to hold onto their tokens in hopes that they will be worth more later on.

RendezVerse hopes to greatly reduce the carbon footprint of every company using their services this fall.

As health and safety standards change with every new surge in Covid cases, many planners adopted virtual or hybrid platforms, but not all attendees have embraced the shift.

Some are eager to get back to in-person meetings, while others are hesitant to be around others again. Some prefer the accessibility of virtual sessions, while others struggle to focus on one thing at a time.

To account for the diversity of habits, personalities and wants, American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) put together a list of the most common “personas” and provided suggestions on how to make every type of attendee feel comfortable, included, engaged and prepared during your event. Those tips are organized below to give you the edge while planning your next meeting.

In-person Events

Though planners are most familiar with in-person events, it is important to understand how much they’ve changed in the last few years. Try taking these new expectations into account during your next event.

Main Takeaways

Leave room between sessions for socializing and resting.
Implement mask and social distancing policies that will put attendees at ease.
Try a non-traditional venue that engages with the local culture.
Include small breakout sessions to let attendees connect with each other.

Hybrid Events

When an event offers both in-person and virtual sessions, attendees will often determine how they attend based on how the event caters to their interests. These three attendee types can be found at any type of event—here’s how to give them the best event experience.

Main Takeaways

Include multiple methods of communication between attendees, speakers and organizers.
Incentivize in-person attendance with exclusive sessions and guests

Virtual Events

This type of event exploded during the pandemic. While many are moving to hybrid or in-person meetings, virtual solutions are still sometimes necessary. Here’s how you can improve your virtual event for the five main types of online attendees.

Main Takeaways

Recommend that attendees keep their cameras on to discourage multitasking.
Include polls, games or any other engaging activities in sessions to encourage participation
Invite exciting speakers to keep attendees focused

No matter what type of event you’re planning, there will be a wide variety of people that will attend. Providing attendees with the tools and events they want will leave them satisfied with the experience and willing to come back for more.