5 Ways for Attendees to Use Technology at #WECon2018

By Sherry Hayes-Peirce  

The top four trends to watch for 2018 in the meeting industry are Budget and Benchmarking, Security and Safety, Experience and Expectations and Tools and Technology. It seems the planners of WECon designed this year's program in perfect alignment with providing members with great sessions on all four of the trends aforementioned, to help you sharpen your skillset. Here are some session you may want to attend to cover each trend:

• Budget and Benchmarking – Check out Successful Negotiations in a Seller's Market, Speaker: Robyn Mietkiewicz

• Security and Safety – Strategies for Effective Event Security, Speaker: J. Tripp Mitchell

• Experience and Engagement – Collaborative Forum: 2018 Meeting and Event Trends, Managing Customer Expectations for the Ultimate Conference Experience 

• Tools and Technology – 5 Easy Tips for Folding Social Media Into Your Event Planning Speaker: Sherry Hayes-Peirce

In 2018, 65% of event professionals responding to a successful meetings survey reported keeping up with the evolution of meeting technology as a challenge for running effective meetings. I would suspect the main reason for that is most of us are so busy with managing events that we've forgotten what it's like to attend a meeting for the technology savvy. So here’s a personal challenge for you to use technology as part of your #WECon2018 experience to gain perspective. Here are 5 things that you should do to see how using technology works for today’s attendees.

Use the Official Hashtag

So, attending the upcoming conference is the perfect time for you to take your planner hat off and put your attendee one on.  Let's start with what you can do before you even dock onto Catalina Island and that is to create conversation around the event by using the official hashtag #WECon2018 on your social media pages.

Download the Event App

Take the time to download the conference app in advance of the conference starting and it's really easy to do:

1.        Go to the app store and search for the Attendify app and install it on your phone.
2.        Enter 2018 MPISCC WECON in the search events field tap the selected event.
3.        Click the blue join button
4.        Create your profile
5.        Verify your email address by responding to the verification email from Attendify.
6.        Enter the event code in all caps WECON18.

Connect With Speakers on LinkedIn

There are some great speakers presenting awesome sessions and you can connect with them on their LinkedIn pages before the conference begins. It's a great way to learn more about them beyond the meager bio provided. It also allows you to ask questions and make a connection with them before the session begins.

Capture Business Cards Using an App

Sessions are the big draw for most attendees, but meeting people and networking is also an important part of the conference experience.  Exchanging business cards is really becoming passe' for many business professionals and a number of apps have been developed to help you capture contacts using technology versus exchanging cards. A popular practice is to take pictures of the badges and send an email to yourself with an attachment of the picture with a note or to use an app to capture your contacts. Just visit the appropriate app store for your smartphone and type in business card scanner app, a quick search reveals that there are more than 1.5 million to choose from on the Google Play store.

Go Live From the Conference

The most engaging content shared on social media now is video. Adding an Instagram story, Facebook Live or story and if you are into it even a snap chat, really drives engagement. Sharing a snippet of video from a session you are waiting to start or at the party, well before you get too tipsy is advisable. Look for something to compliment the organizers on and share a message of thanks using the official hashtag #WECon2018 helps the conference and boosts your individual social credibility.

Well hopefully these 5 tips will help you to see how attendees expect to have technology be a part of the conferences they attend and prompt you to fold technology and social media into your planning for future events!