godfrey-hotel-mobile-room-key-appThe Godfrey Hotel Boston, located in Boston’s Downtown Crossing neighborhood

The Godfrey Hotel Boston announced recently that it will be using OpenKey to grant its guests mobile key access via the smartphone app.

The Godfrey Hotel Boston opened in February, and the 242-guest room lifestyle boutique is already making a name for itself as a technologically forward-thinking property with the introduction of OpenKey.

The app will allow guests to authorize and secure access to their hotel room from their smartphone or mobile device, check in remotely, call the front desk, confirm their identity using an ID capture and send their estimated time of arrival to the hotel.

“We want to provide the very best digital guest experience possible,” says Justin Tait, director of operations at The Godfrey Hotel Boston. “The hotel industry is evolving and technology has a big role in that. We are excited to work with OpenKey and have a partner with a hospitality technology platform that supports our needs and can be implemented into our existing BLE locks.”

The Godfrey Hotel Boston, located in Boston’s Downtown Crossing neighborhood, is the second Godfrey Hotel property developed by Oxford Capital Group, LLC. The first opened in 2014 in Chicago’s River North neighborhood.

Other features of the app include being notifying guests when their room is ready, giving them their room number, and it provides the hotel with valuable guest data. According to OpenKey, 64 percent of travelers want the ability to use their smart phone as a room key. The app is available for iOS and Android devices.

Other hotels that use OpenKey as their mobile room key provider include Hyatt Regency Savannah, Georgia; Dallas Marriott Suites Market Center; and Crowne Plaza Rivinia, Georgia.

In March, Smart Meetings identified electronic keying as an industry trend to watch in 2016, and it’s no surprise that more hotels are jumping on board. In addition to letting guests feel more in control, it decreases check-in times and eliminates the need for RFID cards.

bizzabo integrates with salesforce

Bizzabo, an award-winning event success platform is launching three new integrations that will empower event organizers to take smarter decisions and work more collaboratively. The release integrate events, which is the single largest marketing channel for corporations, into other core business functions like Marketing, Sales and Operations.

Organizers of professional events now have the ability to integrate their event management software with other essential tools used to run their organization, such as Salesforce, Mailchimp and Slack. The product update comes in an effort to provide organizers with the functionality they need in order to better sync data, analyze event performance, and communicate with team members.

Now that Bizzabo and Salesforce are integrated, event marketers can identify their most valuable prospects, customers and contacts and leverage the power of events to achieve their goals and finally measure their real ROI.

Thanks to the integration with Mailchimp, Bizzabo organizers can segment, personalize, capture and analyze their event marketing email campaigns. With this added data, event marketers and organizers experience improved conversion rates and often, increased registrations.

Rounding out the list of integrations, is Slack, which is already used by over 2 million people each month. The integration allows organizers to feel the pulse of their event via a dedicated Slack channel. Now the entire event planning team can see how an event is performing, in real time, right from Slack. That means every new registration, social share or any other event activity is surfaced, allowing all key stakeholders to be in-sync in real time.

This announcement represents an important development in the event planning industry, because it shows that event planning is becoming a core business function. Business leaders understand the importance of collecting data gained from live events into Sales and Marketing platforms. Leaders also want to be able to monitor the status of an event in-real time, without having to leave their main tool of communication.

Bizzabo Co-Founder & CMO, Alon Alroy, said, “our new integrations represent a big step forward in helping our customers become even more data driven. Event planners are storytellers by nature. By enabling their data to flow more seamlessly between their suite of tools, we’re helping them tell better stories and create better experiences. The Salesforce, Mailchimp and Slack integrations were requested by some of the leading brands and corporates in the market.”

Learn more about Bizzabo’s Salesforce, Mailchimp and Slack integrations here.

About Bizzabo
Bizzabo is an all-in-one event software that helps organizers create successful events by empowering them to build amazing websites, manage registration, sell tickets, grow communities, go mobile and maximize event experiences – using a beautiful, ROI driven platform. Bizzabo is used by thousands of conference organizers from around the globe, from Fortune 1000 companies to elite universities, associations and small corporate events. It is the winner of the prestigious “Best Event Management Software Award” and the “People’s Choice Award for the Favorite Event Tech Provider”. The company has offices in New York and Israel and was co-founded by Eran Ben-Shushan, Alon Alroy, and Boaz Katz.

periscope live stream from drones

Live video streams empower planners to take attendee engagement to the next level. You can boost your conference’s impact and reach by sharing a keynote speech with viewers who are unable to attend in person. The streams also enable planners to measure interest in real time by receiving and responding to viewers’ comments instantaneously. Planners can immediately make adjustments to boost engagement during a live stream and save video streams to be watched and analyzed on a later date.

Video is becoming an increasingly important and valuable resource for meetings and events, and free tools such as Facebook Live and Periscope have made it easier than ever to set up a live stream and broadcast your event. Not long after Facebook announced that the platform’s live video could be streamed from drones (and just about any other device you can imagine), Twitter’s Periscope followed suit. As one of the world’s most popular live video streaming apps, Periscope is a fantastic tech tool for meeting planners, and it’s now more powerful than ever.

-24h_phones-periscope

Periscope will soon be rolling out exciting new features that allow broadcasters to stream from a GoPro or DJI drone. Simply connect your iPhone to the drone remote, and Periscope will immediately capture the drone’s video feed. The app will make it simple to switch between sharing video from your phone, GoPro and drone—giving you the flexibility to offer a variety of perspectives to the viewer. According to Periscope, this feature will soon be available for iOS devices.

Additional features Periscope is rolling out will give planners the ability to search from broadcasts by title, topic and hashtag. Similar to Twitter, this searching capability will help broadcasters ensure that their videos reach a specific segment of viewers.

Periscope also plans to make it possible for broadcasters to choose how long they want their broadcasts to be viewable. Previously, Periscope streams were deleted automatically after 24 hours. Soon, streamers will have full control over when their broadcasts are deleted.

uber-scheduled-rides

Six years ago Uber revolutionized the world of transportation with the introduction of an elegant app that allows the public to instantly hail a ride on demand. The only feature lacking in the highly functional app was the ability for customers to schedule rides in advance. That has changed with Uber’s scheduled rides roll out June 10.

The new feature permits users to pre-order pickups 30 minutes to 30 days in advance. Passengers simply select UberX, tap “schedule a ride,” and set their preferred pickup date, time, location and destination. Uber will send reminders both 24 hours and 30 minutes before the scheduled pickup. Like other Uber reservations, the request can be cancelled with no penalty before the driver is dispatched, and is subject to price surging.

The new scheduled rides feature debuted in Seattle but will be expanded to other major markets soon.

Scheduled Rides Designed With Business Travelers in Mind

According to Uber, ride scheduling was a top-requested feature from business travelers. Designed with them in mind, the company is giving priority access to riders with business profiles or those with Uber for Business accounts.

Its business customers are delighted. “Scheduled rides will improve the business travel experience for our employees, especially when they want extra assurance a ride will be there when they need it,” said Zillow Group, an online real estate company, in a statement released by Uber.

“Seattle has grown into one of the world’s great technology markets, and we’re excited to see Uber launch new and innovative features here first,” added Microsoft, which is headquartered in Seattle.

The Seattle Times reports that Uber chose to launch the new service in Seattle because developers who created the system are based there, and the city has a lot of business travelers. It notes that the service will be particularly helpful for business travelers with early morning flights.

They “want an extra degree of assurance Uber will be there when they head out” and will “sleep better knowing their Uber ride is arranged,” Tom Fallows, director of global experiences for Uber, told The Seattle Times.

cvent-onarrival-kioskCvent OnArrival kiosk mode

Managing attendee registration and check-in doesn’t have to be stressful and time-consuming. By using a few helpful tech tools, long lines and disgruntled guests will become a thing of the past. Below are five great mobile apps and event management software platforms that will help to start your event off right.

Cvent OnArrival

Cvent boasts that OnArrival allows planners to manage attendees in ways typically seen only at major trade shows and conferences, and at a fraction of the cost. This onsite check-in app aims to make the check-in process as quick and simple as possible. The app even uses Bluetooth to enable check-in by scanning a barcode.

Planners can also take advantage of OnArrival’s self-serve kiosk mode, which allows attendees to register, check in, pay, and even create and print their own name badges. It’s simple to set up—all you need to do is pair an iPad running the mobile app with a compatible printer.

OnArrival is included at no extra cost in Cvent’s Event Management service. For an additional fee, Cvent offers OnArrival premium, which is designed to fit the needs of planners holding larger events.

RegOnline by Lanyon

According to Lanyon, planners who use RegOnline spend 90 percent less time on event registration than they did previously. RegOnline is a web-based event registration and management software tool that aims to streamline the event planning process. The best thing about RegOnine? It’s free to try.

Planners can use RegOnline to handle registration processes ranging from simple to complex, including session sign-ups and inputting lodging and travel details. Event information can be accessed in real time and is sharable from PC and mobile devices. Participants can also log in any time they need to update their registration details. RegOnline is PCI Level 1 compliant, which means payment information is secure and a variety of payment types are supported. The software includes onsite event tools such as badge printing and self-service check-in kiosks.

Event-Farm

Event Farm

Event Farm is a unique attendee management and event marketing platform that specializes in using experiential technology. Event Farm’s powerful suite of software tools and wearable technologies enable planners to enhance interactivity, and easily quantify and measure engagement. Because the company believes an event’s experience begins the moment invites are sent, the product offers a highly customizable and brand-focused invitation and registration experience.

For onsite check-in, a mobile app is included in all Event Farm attendee management packages, and can be purchased for stand-alone use. The check-in app offers features such as an offline mode that provides access to your attendee list even if your internet connection is spotty. Planners can also set up arrival alerts for VIPs and special guests.

Social Tables

Social Tables is a cloud-based event management software that makes it simple for teams to collaborate and manage events from any location and any device. It is an easy-to-use platform that allows planners to communicate with each other as well as collaborate with their venues.

The mobile check-in feature is integrated into Social Tables and it can be used on an unlimited number of devices. The fully customizable check-in feature is so intuitive that you won’t need to train onsite staff to use it. Attendee information can be accessed in real time, and sensitive information is stored securely in the cloud.

boomset

Boomset

Boomset is a mobile event app that comes with several powerful features for easy check-in, real-time reporting, lead retrieval and networking at events. Boomset’s innovative features allow attendees to register, check in and change their existing event schedules—all on their own.

Boomset makes it easy for planners to edit guest information and add names to their attendee list. One unique feature of the app’s kiosk mode allows guests to take selfies as they check in. The selfies can be printed on attendees’ badges or saved for event archives and photo galleries. Boomset also offers free trials for planners who want to try before they buy.

video-apps-for-events

Today it seems like everyone with a selfie stick enjoys being in the limelight. At events, planners with smartphones can shine a spotlight on attendees with easy-to-use video apps that create instant, professional-looking short movies that can be downloaded and shared on popular social media channels.

beth-ziesenisAt MPI’s 2016 World Education Congress held recently in Atlantic City, tech consultant, public speaker and self-proclaimed nerd Beth Ziesenis showed just how easy it is to create videos that put your attendees in the spotlight. During a presentation, it took her just 91 seconds to whip up a video, dispelling the myth that creating digital movies is a long and laborious process.

Using one of the many technology tools on the market, Ziesenis says planners can capture and share the excitement of an event, stimulate genuine engagement and make a real production over attendees. She points out that the format is also useful for highlighting event sponsors … rather than simply showing their logos, you can visually introduce them to an audience.. highlighting their humanness with funny pictures and videos.

Ziesensis, who favors free or bargain tech tools, recommends the following three video apps:

Animoto

Launched in 2007, Animoto has grown to include millions of registered users who, with no professional editing expertise, can easily create an impressive-looking video on their Apple or Android smartphones, laptops or tablets. Their movie can incorporate still images and short video clips, as well as music from a royalty-free library containing thousands of songs from all genres.

Users simply select one of 90 customizable styles, upload the content, choose the music and in minutes, the program meshes it all together into a lively video montage with transitions and text captions.  The videos can then be posted and shared via email, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, or embedded into a blog. Planners can schedule videos to be sent out on a given date—a great idea for before or after a conference.

Businesses can custom-brand the videos with logos, and create slideshows or marketing videos. Animoto offers a 14-day free trail of the product. After that, prices range from $8-$34 per month, depending on the options selected. To see some practical examples of what you can do with the program, click here.

Magisto

This app is ideal for those insecure about their skills, as Magisto employs artificial intelligence to do most the work for you. The company’s sophisticated algorithms analyze your uploaded photos and videos, selecting specific footage to create an emotional response and capture a mood. It utilizes only what it determines is most interesting and share-worthy; stabilizing and color correcting when necessary and choosing audio that fits best with the images. It then automatically generates a script based on a video style you have pre-selected, synchronizing the music so the tempo fits.

Depending on the style you selected (Sentimental, Party Beat, Roaring Twenties, Love, etc.), video effects and enhancements will create a mood for your project. The result is professional-looking movies that can help companies launch a new product, create short tutorials or communicate unique aspects about their businesses. Custom branding, styles, captions and commercially-licensed music can be added.

The program adds a lot of comic book-like effects, and can make pictures appear animated. Unlike Animoto, movies made with Magisto take about 15 minutes to process. Videos can be no longer than 2.5 minutes.

The company offers several subscription levels. Magisto for Business costs $9.99 per month with the purchase of an annual plan. This level gives users a bit more flexibility to edit and reorder scenes, and save a movie numerous times. A nice feature is that users can create themed video albums (such as Travel, Food or Animals), and can invite others to post their videos to these albums.

Magisto is available for Apple and Android devices. To see some examples of videos, click here.

PicPlayPost

Using an assortment of different size frames, this simple app by Mixcord Inc. allows users to combine different types of media such as photos, videos, GIFs and music into live collages. These sharable “postcards” are great to send out to attendees after an event. The basic app is free, but can be enhanced with custom packages that range from $1.99 to $9.99.

After they are created, PicPlayPosts can be shared on social networks like Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr and YouTube. The app is available for Apple and Android phones and tablets.

Apple users who have iPhone 6S and S+ devices can take advantage of several advanced features, including Live Photos.  Live Photos are not GIFs but images that move when you press on the iPhone 6S and S+ screen.  This feature used to be limited to iPhone 6S and 6S+ devices with 3D Touch, however now anyone running iOS 9 can create and view Live Photo Collages.

Using PicPlayPost is easy. A planner simply selects a layout from dozens of choices, adds the GIF, Live Photo or video clips, and saves the project to their camera roll. It can then be posted, downloaded or emailed.

To view a YouTube video about how to create a PicPlayPost collage, click here.

pokemon-go

Pokemon have comeback in a major way, calling on players everywhere to catch ‘em all. The Japanese franchise reached the height of popularity during the late 90s, and is once again on everyone’s radar with the mobile augmented reality game Pokemon Go. The game was officially released last week in the United States for download on iOS and Android devices, and has since topped the charts in the App Store. According to App Analytics Company Sensor Tower, Pokemon Go has been downloaded an estimated 7.5 million times, with average daily usage outpacing Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook.

Aside from being wildly popular and insanely addictive, Pokemon Go, which was developed with Google Maps, is taking gamification outside four walls and into the real world. Groups are playing the game together, visiting various points of interest, such as churches and other landmarks that appear as key stops within the game. Players walk around until they are alerted to a flick a Poke ball on their mobile phone screens to catch the creatures only visible in the camera app.

At first glance, Pokemon Go may seem like a silly fad, but there are actually a lot of lessons meeting planners can take from the game. People of all age groups and backgrounds are catching on to the craze. Even meeting groups can join in on the fun.

Teams can play the game together or against each other virtually anywhere in the U.S. Along the way, players discover nearby attractions they may not have known before. The tech-enabled team-building activity is free of cost, aside from optional in-app purchases.

Take some inspiration from Pokemon Go to make events more interactive and fun:

1. Boost networking: Because the virtual creatures appear in random locations in the real world, the game drives foot traffic to many physical landmarks. Well-placed local businesses are already experiencing the effects. In the future, the game’s creators plan to let businesses sponsor Poke stops (locations where players can collect virtual equipment).

Poke stops bring together people with common interests who might otherwise never meet. You can take advantage of this at your event. By sponsoring Poke stops or strategically placing beacons for use within an event game app, planners can encourage attendees to come together, mingle and make connections.

2. Get attendees moving: Playing Pokemon Go requires players to be active, leave the comfort of their couches and explore their surroundings in an exciting new way.

Meeting attendees are often stuck indoors all day; busy schedules leave them with limited time to visit the gym or explore the great meeting destination planners have selected. Use Pokemon Go or design your own scavenger hunt to lure attendees to key attractions throughout the city. Participants will love the opportunity to get out, get active and have fun.

3. Make it memorable: Although the technology has been around for a few years, Pokemon Go may finally make augmented reality mainstream. Using your smartphone’s GPS and camera brings virtual Pokemon to your backyard—literally.

Take your cue from the game and use augmented reality to enhance attendee experiences. Have you ever listened to a great speaker and immediately wanted to learn more about them? Augmented reality makes it possible for attendees to scan a marker on a speaker’s podium and instantly receive information about them. There are many inventive ways to use augmented reality to impress attendees and keep them talking about your event long after it ends.

upside-business-travel-app

A new start-up by Priceline.com founder Jay Walker will reward employees who are flexible about their business travel. By booking their hotel and flight packages on the soon-to-be-released mobile app Upside, they will save their companies 5-15 percent off travel costs, and personally earn up to $200 in free e-gift cards to popular retailers for each trip.

This new model for booking business travel is made possible thanks to advances in big data analytics and cloud computing. It allows Upside to examine every possible airfare and hotel room, crunch the numbers and instantly package it so travelers can immediately see how to save money. The company asks the employee a few simple questions, provides options and the employee then selects the one that best suits his or her needs. Users can keep the e-gift cards or apply their value to reduce the cost of the flight or hotel. A $35 service fee that covers 24-hour customer service is added to each package booked.

Incentive-Based

Although small- and medium-size companies (Upside’s target market) may urge their employees to be conscientious when booking business travel, up until now there was never an incentive for the worker to choose the cheaper hotel several blocks from the convention center, or opt for the flight with an hour layover. Walker is now providing that incentive with this innovative self-booking tool.

“When Priceline was created, we knew that flexibility would become an extraordinary asset in the modern commercial world,” Walker told Fortune in an interview. “We also knew that to really make it work you needed enormous software power and you needed all kinds of tools that didn’t yet exist. It was really only in the last year to 18 months that it was clear that all the pieces came together and we could actually finish what we couldn’t before,” Walker says.

Walker told Skift that the $300 billion business travel market in America is “up for grabs” and that “the whole space is going to be reinvented in the next five to 10 years.” Upside’s demographic is firms that don’t currently use travel management services, a market Walker estimates accounts for half of U.S. business travel.

Walker believes business travelers making buying decisions will be delighted to discover what their flexibility is worth, and with this incentive will voluntarily choose packages that save their companies money.

“There is pretty much no business traveler who can’t afford to make a stop or stay a five-minute Uber ride away from the convention center, if that’s what they want to do. There’s never been a reason for the business traveler to be that flexible, because the company policies and other people’s money basically give them what they’re entitled to,” Walker said in the Skift interview. “On the other hand, if you were getting $1,000 to stay at a two-star hotel that was perfectly fine instead of a four-or-five star, where do you stay?”

pokestop-pineapple-watertownPoke Stop at Watertown Hotel, Seattle (Photo from MeetMeinSeattle)

Less than one month after its launch, Pokemon Go has become the most downloaded app on Apple’s App Store ever, as well as the mobile game with the most active users in the United States, with a record 21 million users. Nintendo, which owns The Pokemon Company, has seen its stock rise to meteoric highs thanks to the success of Pokemon Go.

However, the Japanese company is not the only business to take advantage. The travel industry has jumped on the bandwagon in a big way. Ryan Solutions, a hospitality CRM company, surveyed 5,000 hotels and resorts and found that nearly 10 percent mentioned Pokemon Go on Twitter from July 6–17. Here are some of the most inventive ways hotels, CVBs and booking sites are taking advantage of the game’s popularity.

1. New York City resident Nick Johnson was the first person to capture all 142 U.S-based Pokemon. It took him just two weeks and a few hundred dollars. After hearing of his achievement, Marriott Rewards contacted him with an offer to sponsor his trip to capture region-specific Pokemon that can only be found overseas.

Throughout his journey, Johnson has stayed at a variety of Marriott properties, such as Renaissance Paris Arc de Triomphe Hotel and Renaissance Hong Kong. He’s now landed in Australia at Pier One Sydney Harbour, Autograph Collection. The entire trip has been documented by Johnson and Marriott through social media platforms such as Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram.


2. San Diego Tourism Authority has released a comprehensive guide to catching Pokemon in the seaside city. From downtown San Diego to Legoland California—which features a whopping 40 Poke Stops—the CVB’s guide highlights key Pokemon Gyms and includes a handy map for the most up-to-date listings.

3. Alltherooms.com, a booking site that claims to be the “world’s largest accommodation search engine,” has debuted a feature that shows the types and number of Pokemon available within a 500-foot radius of each property. Search results also reveal the number of Pokemon Gyms and Poke Stops nearby.

AllTheRooms

4. A reviewer on tripadvisor.com gushed about his stay at Villa Royale hotel in Paris, calling it the “best Pokemon Go hotel ever!” Because of its central location, visitors can find Pokemon and Poke Stops aplenty without even leaving the property. In response to the positive review, the hotel’s management team replied with several insider tips on hidden Pokemon Go hotspots that guests might have missed. The manager even encouraged visitors to make the most of their hunts by requesting access to staff-only areas.

5. On July 20, Zipcar, a car rental service, offered free chauffeured rides for Pokemon Go players in Boston. Users simply had to tweet @zipcar to take advantage of the service, which included a handy survival kit of snacks, phone chargers and other game necessities.

6. Pineapple Hospitality, which operates seven boutique hotels on the West Coast, has fully embraced this trend. The company regularly drops in-game lures to attract Pokemon (and players) to its hotels and offers a weekly prize drawing for players who tweet photos with the hashtag #PlayPineapple. Complimentary bicycles are also available for those who want to explore the city.

eventboard-meeting-management-software

To boost ROI, corporate meeting planners search for ways to make meetings more engaging, effective, concise and relevant. Now, as technology becomes an increasingly important part of the meeting planning process, tools are available that help planners determine the key factors impacting the success and effectiveness of a meeting.

EventBoard, a cloud-based software and analytics platform for meetings management, is using data to break down the effectiveness of an organization’s meetings and identify areas that can be improved. The Salt Lake City-based startup’s innovative use of technology is gaining recognition—the impressive list of early adopters includes TripAdvisor, Twitter and Airbnb.

Futuristic features

Conference Room Scheduling

EventBoard’s scheduling feature gives employees real-time visibility and access to the rooms and resources that they need, when they need them.  The software streamlines scheduling and reduces the risk of conflicts while integrating with popular office calendar programs from Microsoft Office and Google.

EventBoard’s customizable conference room display software, which runs on iPad and Android tablets, shows real-time meeting room availability and allows users to reserve rooms through the app. Attendees are also able to check in when they arrive, which reduces lateness and helps keep meetings on schedule.

Meeting Room Utilization Reports

EventBoard can provide an amazing amount of information about an organization’s meetings, such as conference rooms that are used most often, the number of attendees participating, duration of meetings and employees’ preferred dates and times for holding them. This information can help planners determine ideal times and locations to boost group engagement and meeting effectiveness.

The platform also offers insights on conference room technology, such as which tech tools are most-liked and most used, and which are most prone to errors. Planners can use this data to determine which meeting technologies are worth the investment—and which aren’t.