I have been writing a lot lately about professional speakers and other aspects of what makes a meeting successful. It is my personal goal when I deliver a keynote presentation to set the tone for a great meeting that impacts all attendees. I put a lot of faith in the power of the right speaker to make meetings thrive.
But more than that, I believe in the power of bringing business professionals together for conferences, conventions, sales meetings, etc... Anytime people meet and share ideas... BIG THINGS happen!
The downturn in the economy has impacted the meeting business. Many companies have canceled their meetings. Others have held them on shoe-string budgets. But many have continued to hold these industry gatherings, as they know the power.
The reality is that no matter how great the speakers, panels, meals, venue, etc.... it is the meeting planer who really puts into motion all the factors that lead to the success of the event. The best meeting planners have found amazing ways to put on great events on smaller budgets over the last few years.
The best meeting planners are wizards who sews together the program and ensure that everyone has a fantastic experience.
Then how come very few people ever seek out the meeting planner and say "Thank You"? They find the speakers and praise them (Keep doing that, too, by the way!).
I made this video a while back, but never posted it on the blog. It is short, and to the point:
Have A Great Day.
thom
Great reminder, Thom. I've made it a point now to go out of my way to do this. It is the right thing to do and can go a long way to you getting recommended to others. Often these meeting planners put in the most work and get the least amount of kudos . . .
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more about thanking the person or persons who were in charge of putting together the sales meetings. There's usually a ton of effort required to make such meetings a success that they deserve a simple "Thank you".
ReplyDelete-Jon