Asking how many people could have predicted the shape of the current industry five years ago, David Adler, founder and CEO of BizBash, said ECTC10 is about taking risks. Events like Blog World Expo and Burning Man are not traditional gatherings, and “we need to think about that and how we attract our audiences.”

Adler outlined some initial ideas, including:

• Return on relationship: “Meeting one person here can change your life.” Event people are essentially programmers of human interaction.
• Sector curators: The Groupon effect “will drive attendance more than all the marketing you can do.” Knowing which events people—especially influencers—attend is important.
• Crowd control: Given social media’s success in getting people to events, organizers may have no control over the number of attendees. Letting go of control is an emerging theme and the planning process must address crowd control.
• Spectacle opportunities: Events like Lollapalooza fill more hotel rooms than some traditional conferences. “You see brands like Levi’s® using Laundromats as a marketing tool at an event.” The economic indicators and drivers of spectacles and civic events are significant.
• Exclusive gatherings: Event planners must ensure the right people attend events. The issue is how to make events more exclusive, “not from a snobby point of view, but by making sure the right people are coming.”
• Speaking formats: Speakers must talk in sound bites to connect with people tweeting at a conference—this will transform how people do presentations.
• Social anxiety: Reliance on computers has led to people having less practice at meeting people. It may be necessary to go back to more human elements and traditional icebreakers.
• Drayage rethought: Convention centers should explore ways to reduce this expense and reinvent trade shows. Broadway staging techniques or airport baggage techniques are possible solutions.
• Game layer: The game layer is being incorporated into the social media fabric to encourage people to use these platforms. Foursquare, scavenger hunts, and frequent flyer miles are all types of games. “You’ll see this game layer at everything we do—the train has already left the station on this one.”
• Green thinking: The industry is reaching a tipping point—“companies and suppliers have to get on board; it is absolutely a trend and important.”
• Edu-Cor: Decor can be more than decoration—for example, a symbolic centerpiece can provoke conversation. Such considerations change the budgeting process because “you’re more likely to spend money on that than flowers.”
• Platform consensus: While many technologies are out there, people do not want to constantly learn new things. “What we’re doing here today—the process is almost more important than the technology.”
• Stunted egos: “You get instant feedback as an event planner. You lose power and have to admit you’re wrong.”
• Event planner as mayor: “I think when you do an event, you have to think in terms of the model that you are the mayor of your event.” This changes the concept.

Adler asked participants for their wish-list ideas. Ideas included:

• Increased audience contribution and participation-rich events
• More events that take risks and try new things like ECTC10
• Successful events that make every attendee want to bring their boss or co-worker the following year
• Diabetic-friendly food at events and catering to people with food allergies
• Nutritious and substantial food; regular morning and afternoon snacks
• Fast media, audience engagement, and attention to slow food
• Seamless involvement from the virtual presence
• More work with audience feedback
• Better guidelines on using social media at events because it is difficult in real time, especially for regulatory bodies
• Discussions about engagement and technology by C-level executives that occur well before the event
• Larger audiences through virtual events
• Instantaneous virtual presence

What’s on your future of events wish list?

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