Break out of the gray boxes at your next virtual or hybrid meeting by bringing in illustrators who can add color and capture the reason for the Zoom. Visual artists have long been popular at conferences and brainstorming sessions. They put marker to posterboard to document presentations and conversations in real time.
Now, meeting planners are calling on these same active listeners to capture the information shared through the computer and deliver a PDF that will be much more memorable than a PowerPoint slide deck.
Smart Meetings asked animating professionals for tips on how best to make use of a graphic recorder in the era of COVID.
Activate the Cool Factor
William Warren, founder and CEO of Atlanta-based The Sketch Effect, and his North American team had been drawing their way through keynote speeches for seven years. Then, in March, in-person meetings were suddenly shelved, and he found himself looking for ways to survive. He quickly found a market for virtual sketching—and even discovered it had its upsides.
For one, he has been able to staff projects with as little as two days’ notice. “That is not ideal,” he admits, but without the need to book flights or hotel rooms, he can squeeze in a tech run-through to familiarize the artist with the content and the team, and to ensure that all equipment is working well.
And he has discovered there is real need for his services. Meeting planners and their attendees are hungry for something to break up the monotony of looking at their own faces all day. “The service we provide makes a virtual meeting not lame,” as he puts it.
Especially now that the novelty of virtual meetings has worn off, organizers need to keep people from being distracted, or even clicking away to shinier things. Watching a drawing come to life in front of their eyes based on what is being discussed is hard to look away from—thus enhancing attention and engagement.
“It also increases alignment, so everyone is on the same page,” he says. That was difficult enough when everyone was gathered around the conference room table, and it’s even more challenging now when there is a screen dividing participants.
At the same time, a colorful PDF or time-lapse capture of the program gives everyone something to refer back to later. One of Warren’s clients mandated that everyone make the drawing a screensaver; another printed it supersized and plastered it on the wall.
Digital visual notes remove boundaries—geographic and psychological. Chicago-based Ink Factory was already working with clients all over the world, including Walmart and Unilever, before the pandemic. Now it is giving distributed team members the benefit of eye-catching tools that stimulate the emotional centers of their brains, streamline the recall function and are widely accessible.
Multi-sensory Appeal
Whenever big ideas are on the agenda, a graphic recorder can help more people participate fully. In 2019, PCMA EduCon in Los Angeles brought in Michelle Boos-Stone of Five Elements Consulting Group. For the visual learners in the audience, it made the content easier to absorb. But even those who process information primarily through other senses (auditory, kinesthetic) benefitted—when walking down the hall between sessions, they couldn’t help but notice the bright, flowing words and pictures on the walls that captured the session they had been in earlier in the morning. Smiles of recognition were often accompanied by lots of mobile snaps to share back at the office.
Goal Setting
Drawing doesn’t have to be a spectator sport. Patti Dobrowolski, principal of Up Your Creative Genius, is a speaker and coach who uses art to help people better understand what they want. In a recent Zoom session called “Drawing Solutions: How Visual Goal Setting Will Change Your Life,” she walked participants of The Eventprofs Book Club through the process of dreaming big by drawing their own powerful pictures.
She stresses that the exercise is not just for natural artists. “ You will be amazed, whether you can draw or not—30 days from now—how much you get done when you have a proven process for drawing the desired reality of your business,” she says.
Her secret? Overriding that inner critic and looking at goals with a fresh perspective.
Live chatting with a GBT travel counselor via Apple Business Chat has expanded to more than 24 countries beyond the United States, including Canada, France, Germany and Britain. GBT planners can send messages and tips to travelers based on their location; in coming months, two-way conversations via push notifications will also be available.
Travel Vitals is key to the company’s mobile-first strategy. With this platform, travelers can now access up-to-date information to ensure they’re traveling safely. Users of the app can use a know-before-you-go feature that highlights specific data from Travel Vitals to create a pre-trip summary about relevant regulations and restrictions.
Connect Portal is another online hub through which travelers can communicate, as well as access their company’s online booking information, policies and news, plus personal itineraries, invoices and profile information. Further expansion of these popular messaging channels is planned before year’s end.
The app’s integration capabilities include the ability to book accommodations and transportation, such as air, rail, taxis, black cars and ride shares.
“Mobile and messaging channels have untapped potential to be a conduit between the travel manager, traveler and travel counselor in today’s constantly changing travel information environment,” said Andrew Crawley, GBT’s chief commercial officer. “COVID-19 has been a catalyst for the expansion of our messaging capabilities and platform. We are thinking differently about information as a service and want to help our clients support the needs of their travelers by being present in the channels they trust.”
Olivia Hoblit
Hoblit has returned to Innisfree Hotels as regional manager; she will oversee Seaside Amelia Inn in Fernandina Beach, Florida, and dual-branded SpringHill Suites and Courtyard by Marriott in Amelia Island, Florida. She previously served as general manager for Seaside Amelia Inn. Before this, Hoblit worked at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, where she was an assistant rooms executive.
Cynthia Ordyke
Ordyke is director of sales and marketing for The Westin Anaheim in California. Previously, Ordyke was vice president of sales and marketing for Four Diamond Hilton Los Angeles/Diamond City; prior to Four Diamond, she worked as director of sales and marketing for Pacific Palms Resort in City of Industry, California.
Anton Moore
Credit: Karston Tannis
Moore is general manager for Gansevoort Meatpacking NYC, a hotel in New York City. Moore recently worked for Aka Hotel Residences as managing director for its Central Park and Times Square locations. In 2010, Moore worked with Marriott International to launch the property’s Edition brand; he joined the team as global director of entertainment sales and later became senior director of global sales. Throughout his time with Edition, he assisted in the openings of properties in Hawaii, Istanbul, Miami Beach, London and New York.
Ulf Bremer
Bremer is general manager for Kowloon Shangri-La in Hong Kong. He previously worked as general manager for Island Shangri-La in Hong Kong. Bremer has worked for numerous other Shangri-La properties over a period of 20 years, including Pudong Shangri-La, East Shanghai; Shangri-La’s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, Taipei in Taiwan; Kerry Hotel, Beijing; Shangri-La, Jakarta in Indonesia; and Shangri-La, Qaryat Al Beri Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates.
Karen Kaufman, CMP
Innov8 welcomed Kaufman to the team as director of global accounts. She is a former vice president of the MPI Potomac Chapter. Kaufman’s events experience reaches outside of the corporate world: Before joining Innov8, Kaufman worked as senior events program specialist for Goodwill Industries International, and prior to that, she was conference logistic specialist for U.S. Naval Institute.
Philip Barnes
Credit: Red Photographic
Effective Sept. 1, Barnes will be regional vice president in Southern California for Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and general manager for Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles. Barnes recently worked as managing director and regional vice president for The Savoy in London. Before that, he held other leadership roles for Fairmont across the globe, including regional vice president, Middle East; regional vice president, Pacific Northwest; and general manager for Fairmont Pacific Rim in Vancouver, Canada.
Kelly Blecke and Rosa Luke
Blecke and Luke are senior national account directors for Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB).
Blecke will focus on the Washington, D.C., area. She recently worked as market senior account executive for JW Marriott Indianapolis. Before JW Marriott, Blecke held sales roles for Hilton Anatole in Dallas and Marriott International.
Luke’s focus will be on the Chicago market. Before PHLCVB, she was senior sales manager for Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Puerto Rico Golf and Beach Resort. Before Wyndham, Luke worked for Discover Puerto Rico as senior director of sales. Prior to that, she worked as national sales manager with GES Exposition Services and director of sales for Choose Chicago.
If it transpires, this collaboration would create the world’s largest hotel group, with more than 1.6 million hotel rooms among 50 brands between the companies. Such a merger would follow the precedent set by Marriott International’s acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts in 2016.
The growth of Accor’s portfolio began in 2017, when the company acquired Canadian FRHI Holdings, which owns Fairmont Hotels, Raffles Singapore and Swissotel Hotels & Resorts.
A merger would also result in greater geographical coverage, as Accor’s subsidiaries mostly reside in Europe, while IHG’s operations are primarily in the United States, with an increasing presence in China.
Could Hotel Mergers be the Norm, Post-COVID?
Intercontinental Grand Hotel Paris Opéra, IHG Hotel
Just before the pandemic, mergers and acquisitions had been seeing a global decrease, from 2,349 in February 2020 to 1,984 in March 2020, according to GlobalData, a research and analysis organization. However, some industry observers now say it’s plausible this trend will see a reversal, as smaller hotel groups begin to have less options, and selling out to a larger company becomes the only way to remain in operation.
Despite small improvements in occupancy month-over-month in the hotel industry, progress remains slow, and if smaller hotel chains can’t attract enough business to stay afloat, they remain vulnerable to either bankruptcy or selling out. A study by consulting firm Trepp suggests that nearly one in four hotels are currently delinquent in loan payments.
Many hoteliers in Spain, the second-most visited country in the world pre-COVID, believe investors might well seize this opportunity to buy properties in crisis. The last major acquisition in Spain took place in 2018, when Black Group LP’s bought Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios, as the country’s hotel industry continued to recover from its financial crisis of 10 years ago.
“Major companies will be in a fierce battle for whatever revenue is available as demand slowly but surely returns. Smaller hotel companies will have no choice but to listen to offers from their larger competitors, as cash reserves deplete at a staggering rate,” says Ralph Hollister, travel and tourism analyst at GlobalData.
“One of the biggest problems that arises in a substantial economic downturn is that major players usually end up benefitting, while smaller players with less market share and cash are either consumed or become bankrupt,” he continued.
In addition to the global pandemic, the state of California must now contend with the threats of rolling blackouts due to extreme heat and the effects of more than 200 wildfires.
In Southern California, fires this week blazed through the Mojave National Reserve, burning more than 43,000 acres of habitat to one of the world’s largest collections of iconic Joshua trees.
In Northern California, infernos in Napa, Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties forced evacuations for thousands of residents. In Santa Cruz County, visitors and tourists staying in hotels and vacation rentals were asked to leave to make room for fire evacuees.
“It’s not an order, we are just having issues with more than 20,000 people evacuated, and this is likely going to get significantly larger today,” a spokesman for the Santa Cruz County Emergency Operations Center, Jason Hoppin, told The New York Times. “So we need all the capacity we can get.”
Local Hotels Affected by Past Fires On Alert
Silverado Resort in Napa; Photo credit: CVENT
Bob Geller with Silverado Resort in Napa, which suffered damage to its golf course in 2017 wildfires, said the resort lost bookings when the current Lake Hennessy Fire east of St. Helena forced evacuations, but then saw new reservations from evacuees as the direction of the winds became clear. The resort has been monitoring alerts from Cal Fire as directed by local officials. “The smoke from the fires is very visible and looming over the eastern portion of the Vaca Mountains, but our focus is on the direction of the wind—currently it is blowing away from the resort, towards the communities of Vacaville and Fairfield,” Geller said.
He noted that the resort was prepared for an evacuation if necessary.
Red Cross Revises Evacuation Procedures
In recent days, a combination of lightning storms, dry weather and an extended heat wave brought a startling number of blazes to Northern California. Normal sheltering protocols undertaken by the Red Cross in community centers, churches and high school gyms, with their shared sleeping spaces and buffet-style meals were shelved, so the organization and its volunteers are instead engaged in health screenings for arriving evacuees, prepackaging meals and repurposing safer housing options, such as AirBnbs and college dorms.
Jake Scott, an infectious disease specialist at Stanford University, refers to the risks involved in typical emergency shelters as the Three C’s: confined spaces, crowding and close contact. Local residents forced from their homes by advancing flames are directed first to a temporary outdoor shelter location, where they undergo a needs assessment. The Red Cross can then attempt to help evacuees with vouchers for lodging at nearby motels if they have no other options.
In an effort to help, some hotels across the state are offering discounted rates to those seeking refuge from wildfire areas. CVBs on the Central Coast composed lists of participating hotels for those in need of lodging.
Precautions for Respiratory Health
Months ago, research was released from Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health that linked air pollution with the number of cases involving serious illness or death from COVID-19. Furthermore, the effects of wildfire smoke inhalation, such as coughing, headaches and general respiratory issues, can make it more difficult to distinguish these symptoms from those of a coronavirus infection. Although many Californians are currently mandated to wear face masks in public, health officials caution that the only N95 masks with two face straps are effective against dangerous particles from smoke inhalation.
In response to the double respiratory threat, the CDC has released a specialized list of best practices for protection against the effects of wildfire smoke and COVID-19.
Editor’s Note: When special correspondent Kate Patay flew to Las Vegas to “take the temperature” of visitors and staff on The Strip after the first Las Vegas casinos reopened their doors on June 4, she described the overall mood as “excited, but respectful of personal space.” The pent-up demand was evident. Following are snapshots of what she saw in her week in the No. 1 convention city in the world.
Las Vegas is back to doing what it does best…hospitality. From airport arrival to settling in to a guest room, the overall experience of traveling to Las Vegas as it reopened was surreal, yet familiar. While there were fewer lines and guests than on trips prior, it was clear that the desert city had stepped up and put its best foot forward.
There was a genuine feeling of camaraderie and excitement from both staff and guests. Team members were excited to welcome back visitors, and guests were clearly happy to be there. Physical distancing was marked in all areas, and masked staff was available to answer questions, provide protective gear and clarify expectations.
Safety measures, such as temperature screenings, were in place at nearly every stop, but each with a slightly different protocol. The first one I encountered was upon entry to Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa. Station Casinos, owner of this property, has entering guests form a queue and stand on designated spots, where scans are done within a couple of seconds.
Sahara
A manual version was done upon arrival at Sahara Las Vegas, which added aesthetically pleasing designs to distancing protocols—smoked glass barriers and matching hardware. The distinction of trailblazing the most discreet screening system goes to Wynn Las Vegas, where many guests strode into the soaring atrium without even realizing they had been thermally scanned.
All employees wore protective gear throughout every property, yet for customers certain areas were “mask required” vs. “mask suggested.” At most casinos, the “required” area included the widely spaced table games, a departure from when no face coverings were allowed in gaming areas.
To make complying more fun at Caesars Entertainment properties, celebrities recorded how-to videos demonstrating the practice. Even Real Housewives star Lisa Vanderpump showed off her sequined mask and exclaimed, “This is what we have to do so others feel safe, and we can get back to business!”
For those who don’t bring a mask or preferred a fun, logoed fashion accessory rather than the free plain masks offered at check in, a colorful assortment was available at most gift hotel shops.
Wipes and sanitizer were available at every turn, and all the interactions between customers and staff—and among customers—that I observed were remarkably friendly and efficient, even considering the few seconds added for proper sanitizing after each transaction.
At Sahara, rooftop pool areas were popular for their fresh air and lounge chairs positioned at a safe distance. Inside, surfaces such as elevator buttons were coated with BioProtect antimicrobial coatings for added safety. Rooms were stocked with packets of masks, gloves, pen, paper and the Sahara promise.
Grand Reopenings
Caesars Entertainment CEO Tony Rodio reopened Caesars Palace with an assist from a tuxedoed Wayne “Mr. Las Vegas” Newton. Bookings were limited to 75 percent of the resort’s 4,200 rooms and were completely sold out. Caesars Entertainment also opened The Linq Promenade (including High Roller Observation Wheel) with a similar reception. Harrah’s Las Vegas followed with the debut of a new, $200 million transformation of guest rooms, the casino floor and Ruth’s Chris Steak House.
Open signs were also hung at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas; The Venetian Las Vegas; Bellagio; New York-New York; MGM Grand Las Vegas; The Flamingo; Treasure Island; The Linq; The STRAT Hotel, Casino & SkyPod; Plaza Hotel & Casino; and a number of downtown properties, including Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino, Downtown Grand, The D Las Vegas Hotel & Casino and Golden Gate Hotel & Casino.
Parts of Paris Las Vegas, Luxor, Aria, Mandalay Bay and Four Seasons Las Vegas were scheduled to follow.
In a surprise announcement this week, Circa Resort & Casino unveiled that its grand opening would be the end of October, a full two months before the planned opening thanks to some creative construction rescheduling that focused on public spaces, leaving the guest room towers to the end of the year. The downtown property will include what is billed as the world’s largest sportsbook, a special event pool amphitheater with super cabanas that can hold up to 50 people, a two-story casino and signature restaurants.
June 4 was an emotional day for Stephanie Glanzer, chief sales officer and senior vice president at MGM Resorts International. After 78 days of closed doors at iconic properties that previously never slept, the feeling of welcoming employees and guests back was over the top. “I have been with company 22 years and experienced many grand openings; this had the same overwhelming feeling,” she said.
Her team went through numerous scenarios as they prepared for reopening after working from home for more than two months. “It is not just like flicking a switch,” she explained with a laugh. Furloughed workers are learning new ways to serve that will protect everyone.
That reopening included a Seven-Point Safety Plan with employee temperature checks and COVID-19 testing, a mix of required and strongly suggested masks, handwashing stations on the casino floors, contactless check-in, digital menus and a special email address for guests who test positive after visiting an MGM property.
“We have all been through this together as a world and now, finally, we are starting to see some sort of normalcy,” she said, looking back on the day she spent greeting people at Bellagio. The No. 1 goal was to allow people to still experience Vegas, but in a safe, healthy manner with the help of medical consultants and guidelines. “Guests were happy, but respectful as they entered,” she reported.
Glanzer admitted that no one had a crystal ball in this scenario, but demand exceeded expectations and that led to announcements that openings of other properties would happen faster than anticipated initially.
“This has to be done right the first time to be successful for the long-term plan, which includes group business,” she said. Glanzer has reservations for small groups that fit the guidelines of under 50 people starting June 26. Larger groups with programs in place for August and September are waiting to see if they will be allowed and how the opening with transient visitors goes. By the fall, she thinks her team will be hosting larger groups with new requirements for cleaning, F&B and signage. “It is definitely more logistics now, but we have been in constant communication and are so appreciative that we can get back to work,” she said.
At the end of that long reopening day, Glanzer’s family showed up to watch the Bellagio fountain show with her and make sure she got home safe. She took a selfie there, with the explosion of Chihuly glass in the background so she would always remember that feeling of relief.
Meetings Indicators
Lisa Messina, Caesars vice president of sales, described the mood as “pure excitement” on the part of not only guests, but also employees, in a city where the hospitality workforce accounts for 60 percent of jobs. “People want to dress up and see if they can still find their fancy shoes,” she said.
Messina saw the positive response from vacationers as a good sign for meetings. “Leisure travelers are going to set the confidence meter for meeting attendees to travel again,” she said. “When event organizers see that people are ready to travel, they will feel better about moving ahead with events.”
Caesars already has some small groups planning meetings for June, plus a few more sizeable gatherings in July that would fill 800 rooms each with 1,200-1,500 people. Past Labor Day almost all previously scheduled bookings remain intact. Messina said she is particularly excited to welcome groups to the massive new Caesars Forum, which was set to open just as restrictions went into place in March. “It was devastating,” she said. “It is this beautiful diamond, and we can’t wait to show it off.”
The MPI Foundation board member saw Las Vegas as the perfect place to pioneer the return to meetings. The new Forum boasts spaces large enough to socially distance 2,000 people, while still complying with all the regulations and guidelines. “We can work with customers to determine their tolerance for risk and their goals, diagram a solution in the largest pillarless ballroom, and learn what works best together,” Messina said.
Ready for Business
A tour of an empty Las Vegas Convention Center central hall with John Schreiber, vice president of business with Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), had an expectant feel. Next door, construction is continuing on a 1.4 million-square-foot expansion. The second tunnel of an underground system being constructed by Elon Musk’s The Boring Company was completed during the slowdown, with Wynn Las Vegas and the emerging Resorts World Las Vegas expressing interest to expand the system beyond the convention center.
“The lights are on, and we are ready for business,” Schreiber said. LVCVA is promoting a Vegas Smart reminder for visitors and convention attendees to remember protocols and physical distancing measures. “It is safe to come, and we want you to have a great time, but it is important to do these things,” he said.
Many properties in Las Vegas were bringing back their sales team to prepare for returning groups. Maureen Robinson, director of sales at South Point Hotel Casino and Spa, described seeing her staff back in the office (masked, of course) and getting her first inquiry for a group event as nothing short of “exhilarating.”
She commended groups that are going ahead with modified programs that lean more toward education and less on expo format. “They are leading by example,” she said. “We just need to build up that comfort zone for face-to-face because the enthusiasm of locals shows people are ready to get out.”
Chris Flatt, longtime executive vice president of sales and marketing at Wynn Las Vegas was open about how devastating the closure was to her, personally. “It’s a small town. It has been so sad to watch all of this happen. This town is meant to be fun. It is supposed to be a place where you let your hair down and forget everything else. To see it shut down and dark with no people was heartbreaking,” she said as she described how fast it all happened. “I didn’t think anything like this could happen here,” she said with a shake of her head.
Watching business that took years to put in place unravel in a flash was even more tear-inducing because Wynn had just opened a major new expansion of 430,000 sq. ft. of meeting space—doubling the available square footage. “Convention and meeting business is our life blood. It is the stabilizer that allows these big buildings to operate. It was an emotional thing to lock the door and walk away,” she said.
But that time away was not lost. The sales team worked from home and stayed in contact with customers. “We really are like a family here and after all this time of meeting on Zoom calls, we are even closer,” said Flatt, who serves on the U.S. Travel board, which advocated for helping the hospitality industry get through this devastating time.
After lot of false starts, when the team finally got the date from the governor that they could open, everyone scrambled to put all the safety measures in place so they could provide a warm, but safe experience.
The first weekend, demand was strong, but everyone was understanding, she found. People came back without hesitation. They valet-parked their cars and made reservations for the pool deck and tried out the new Mexican restaurant Elio. “It was so uplifting to see,” she said of the experience of watching the banquet and services team come back, prepared to take care of a small group planned for the following week—with safety precautions in place. “This is what we do,” she said with a wide grin visible in her eyes, even if she was wearing a mask.
Flatt compared the whole experience to a roller coaster. The upside is that so many customers stayed with them for the ride and are still booking business for ’21 and ’22 and beyond. “We know we will get back and Las Vegas will make a complete recovery. It will just take time.”
George Aguel, president and CEO of Visit Orlando, announced last week that he will be retiring as head of the CVB after seven years. A transition plan including the exact timing of his departure is underway, according to a spokesperson from the agency.
Aguel, a former Disney executive, joined Visit Orlando in 2013. Under his leadership, Orlando reached a national record of 75 million visitors in 2019. He also led regional crisis response efforts through hurricanes, the PULSE Nightclub shooting and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, serving as co-chair of Orange County’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery Task Force.
Smart Meetings recently spoke to Aguel about the $605 million expansion planned for Orange County Convention Center, the second largest convention center in the country. The GBAC STAR accredited property will be adding a multipurpose venue with exhibition space, a new ballroom and new meeting rooms to its existing 7 million sq. ft. It has also instilled a 24/7 medical concierge program, planner access to a medical expert, access to PPE for attendees and medical advisory services for host hotels.
“We are preparing for a recovery, and our industry is working hard to support planners and their conventions. We’re coming together with the sharpest possible focus on keeping our visitors safe,” said Aguel.
Prior to Visit Orlando, Aguel served as a senior executive for The Walt Disney Company for 23 years and senior marketing and sales officer for Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville.
He is retiring to spend more time with family.
“While this is a decision I’ve been considering for some time, if there is anything 2020 has shown me, it’s that you can’t take your health for granted and there is no better time to spend it than with those I love most,” Aguel said, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Politics aside, meeting professional viewers watching the virtual Democratic National Convention may, understandably, have experienced flash backs to roaming the aisles of IMEX America during the creatively staged state roll call on Tuesday night. And, they may have learned a thing or two about hybrid meeting production values along the way.
First, let’s talk about the pivot from a chaotic, in-person convention marked by long political speeches and lots of jostling in a cavernous hall for a view of the action. The necessary shift to a virtual format started with a “Behind the Rhyme” pre-show featuring celebrities and DJ Beverly Bond. It was streamed live on Twitch and archived for on-demand viewing on demconvention.com.
The formal convention program was a tightly produced mix of pre-taped and live presentations, some as short as two minutes and optimized for prime time viewing on Pacific and East Coast. Sizzle reels played highlights from the last 44 years. And performers as diverse as Fort Worth, Texas-based soul singer Leon Bridges; rising star from Easton, Maryland, Maggie Rogers; Springfield, Ohio-based star John Legend; and newly renamed country pop band The Chicks from Dallas, Texas.
The host city of Milwaukee showed off with sporting event-style panoramic shots and hot takes from inside Wisconsin Center District.
The entire package resembled a variety show with the audience chiming in live on the platform and on Social Media feeds such as Twitter. “The stage for the acceptance speech was awesome,” said Cindy Brewer, principal with Memphis, Tennessee-based Leo Events. She called out the socially distanced head nod between the newly minted official Democratic presidential and vice presidential candidates and the wave to Zoom fans for emotional production values. “All content was short and easy to enjoy,” she said.
A Sense of Place
The segment that was near and dear to many travel industry hearts was the stream of videos from all over the country that featured mayors, celebrities, scenery, and in some instances food from each of the districts as they announced their choice for presidential candidate as part of a visual roll call.
The Washington Post columnist Alexandra Petri called the 30-second vignettes “a thing of beauty” and demanded that henceforth all roll calls be conducted virtually. Brewer agreed. “It was a joy to watch. They should never do that live again. The roll call nailed recognition.”
The Twitterverse particularly salivated over Rhode Island’s video of a masked chef with a giant platter of fried calamari and labeled the Northeastern destination the “calamari comeback state.”
Somewhere, there's an amazing team of #eventprofs who just pulled off the 1st virtual #DNC2020. They'll sleep for the first time in weeks. You'll never know their names but they figured out a way to bring people together to spark change during a pandemic because that's what we do
Other segments included glimpses of the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada sign, farmers in cornfields in Iowa, a fisherman in Alaska, historic Edmund Pettus Bridge in Alabama.
Remote work is the new normal for meeting professionals during quarantine life, which may be tricky if you rely on interaction at the office to keep you sane. On the flip side, remote work affords you the opportunity to integrate wellness into your day. You can play the music that helps you focus, or take movement breaks without looking strange for lunging down the office hallway.
Choose a Goal and Start a Routine
Choose a single aspect of wellness that you felt you didn’t have the time to pursue as you bustled from place to place during a normal work week. Would you love to get stronger? Increase your flexibility? Meditate? Journal? Eat healthfully? We’ll cover tips for starting on all five below.
Your daily commute, office schedule and afternoon run to a favorite coffee shop are all on hold. Creating a simple home routine related to wellness can provide a replacement ballast. Schedule your commitment like a meeting at the office and set a reminder on your phone. To keep things achievable, start your appointments at ten minutes or less a day.
Increase Strength with Pushups
With gyms and fitness classes closed, it’s important to keep active for the many benefits we know exercise brings us: It lowers blood pressure, levels hormones, increases oxygen and blood flow, strengthens the immune system and lowers stress, just to name a few!
The pushup is a perfect starting point, as it can be done anywhere with little room and no equipment. While it builds strength mainly in the chest and shoulders, a proper pushup requires stability through the entire body, especially in the core. A full, deep pushup is a mark of full body strength.
Megan Gallagher, a certified personal trainer and founder of Strong Strong Friends (known through Instagram as MegSquats) devised a free 4-week pushup program for quarantined strength gains. Whether you’re starting with half pushups, full, or advanced decline, the program will automatically customize your plan when you enter your base number of reps.
Increase Mobility
If you spent your work week before quarantine sitting for much of the day, you’re likely familiar with tight hips, calves, and a lower back. Even if your event duties required lots of movement, repeating the same movements without variety can also lead to imbalances. Mobility is important to keep us from injury during daily tasks, as well as to retain our movement abilities as we age.
Kelly Starrett is a renowned physical therapist, CrossFit trainer, author, and founder of The Ready State, a company devoted to increasing mobility. The site has a free 14-day trial that allows you to access a vast wealth of online content. Even if you don’t choose to continue after the trial, you can easily write down and perform one of your chosen mobility workouts after it ends.
Meditate—But Really This Time
You’ve read countless headlines about meditation, so we won’t go into the nitty gritty here. You know it’s good for you and there’s plenty of research to back it up. Have you had trouble fitting it in to your schedule before? Take a five-minute meditation as soon as you wake up, and another 5 minutes just before you go to sleep. There are many different types of meditation, so don’t stress about clearing your mind of every thought (it’s the hardest meditation to do). If that’s been your experience, focus instead on a simple, pleasurable situation, and recall it in all its detail. Use all five senses to create the scenario—or relive one that pleased you. It could simply be a walk you took where you noticed the smell of the coming rain, or the details of making and enjoying your morning coffee.
Journaling to Set a Mood
Like meditation, journaling is one of those tools that many aspire to but can never find five minutes to indulge. As with meditation, consider doing this as soon as you wake up or right before you go to sleep. Not sure what to write about? Writing about almost anything can provide the cathartic benefits of expression. Here are three to start with:
Reflect on a quote. Whether through Instagram or in a book you’re reading, sometimes a quote hits home. Practice your writing by expanding on why the quote resonates with you.
Express gratitude. Listing the simple things you enjoy throughout your day and within your life fosters greater notice and appreciation of those aspects, leading to greater ease. A gratitude practice is a form of meditation in itself.
Describe an event in detail. Wax poetic about making lunch with your kids, the last social event you attended, the day you met your significant other, or even a dream you had. The challenge of recalling all aspects and describing them verbally can help get your creative juices flowing.
Making Simple, Healthy Home Meals
Cooking can bring the same centering effects as journaling and meditation—and it’s something you can do alone or with family you happen to be quarantined with. With many restaurants closed, now is the perfect time to devote a little attention to your culinary skills (or lack thereof).
Bon Appetit’s website has a new collection of digital resources labeled “Cooking at Home in the Time of Coronavirus,” featuring recipe collections like “89 Recipes With 5 Ingredients or Fewer—Seriously.” Head that way to master everything from simply perfect jammy soft-boiled eggs to fresh, homemade salad dressing.
Many destinations around the United States and the Caribbean are welcoming back small groups with inventive, adventurous and out-of-the-box team-building experiences that involve being outdoors and allow your group to stay physically distanced. Here’s a sampling of where to get meetings rolling again.
Equipped with plenty of opportunities for rest and relaxation, including a rooftop pool, bar venues and outdoor spaces, Grand Hyatt Nashville will be ready for groups on Oct. 1. Think culinary and spirit tastings, cooking and educational classes, and spa and wellness journeys.
Aptly named Music City, a group activity favorite in Nashville is musical immersion, which can be done at Grand Hyatt Nashville or nearby venues, such as Ryman Auditorium or Country Music Hall of Fame. Your group can also partner with award-winning songwriters like Grammy- and Emmy-nominated Billy Kirsch, to create their own songs or watch a live recording session.
Rio Grande is a tropical paradise your group will love. In addition to the 48,000-square-foot Oceanfront Conference Center, there’s abundant outdoor space.
Through Castillo Tours, unique experiences include coral reef snorkeling (along with underwater photography); night snorkeling; tropical nature trail walks; bike trips along Rio Mar Trail, where groups can learn about local flora and fauna; and night walks to experience the sights and sounds of coqui frogs, fireflies, crabs and bats.
Wyndham Grand Rio Mar works closely with El Comedor de la Kennedy (The Kennedy Dining Room), which serves more than 600 kids weekly and delivers groceries for families in need.
This property sprawls over 25 acres, with 217 accommodations and more than 10,000 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor space.
With so much land, the property’s team-building experiences focus heavily on its eight-acre farm, community outreach and activities that get you close to nature. Chatham Bars’ farm-based team-building activities include Pick for a Cause, in which two teams compete to see who can harvest and pack the most vegetables to donate to a local food bank; Farm and Florist, where groups can tour the farm, highlighting the importance of flowers, edible flower tasting and how to put together a flower bouquet; fly-fishing lessons at the only fly-fishing school in Massachusetts, Orvis Fly-Fishing School; and Oyster Farm Tours, which includes oyster tasting, which groups can pair with champagne, whiskey or wine.
With 57 remodeled one-, two-, and three-bedroom guest rooms and penthouse private residences, (which feature up to 3,200 sq. ft. of living space), Marigot Bay Resort is fresher than ever and will reopen to guests Oct. 1.
The property offers a variety of boating adventure for groups, such as tranquil cruises on a catamaran, during which you can see the Pitons in Soufriere, Pigeon Island National Park or Anse Cochon Marine Reserve; speed boating for adrenaline junkies; or a sailing yacht, with the option of fishing or snorkeling.
Marigot Bay’s service has been upgraded as well, with its new butler-like option, Marigot Moment Maestros, which includes personal meet-and-greet pickups from Hewanorra International Airport (UVF) and a dedicated team that’ll cater to your group throughout the duration of your stay.
In recent days, a combination of lightning storms, dry weather and an extended heat wave brought a startling number of blazes to Northern California. Normal sheltering protocols undertaken by the Red Cross in community centers, churches and high school gyms, with their shared sleeping spaces and buffet-style meals were shelved, so the organization and its volunteers are instead engaged in health screenings for arriving evacuees, prepackaging meals and repurposing safer housing options, such as AirBnbs and college dorms.
Lisa Messina
