March 25, 2025 • 18 mins
The magic of attending a truly exceptional event stays with us long after we've returned home. What makes some events so memorable while others fade quickly from memory? In this episode, we tackle a listener question about customer experience best practices for event planners seeking to create standout experiences.
Drawing from her extensive experience as both keynote speaker and attendee, Jeannie walks through practical recommendations that can elevate any event, regardless of size or budget. We start with seemingly small touches that make significant impacts - from double-sided name tags that don't flip around to clear wayfinding that helps attendees navigate unfamiliar venues confidently. These foundational elements create a sense of care and competence that permeates the entire experience.
Beyond logistics, we explore how thoughtful programming, personalized communications, and intentionally curated networking opportunities build meaningful connections between participants. We emphasize the importance of inclusivity through accessibility accommodations, dietary options, and creating sensory-friendly spaces where introverts and others can recharge. Looking toward the future, we imagine how artificial intelligence might transform events through personalized agendas while preserving space for those serendipitous hallway conversations that often become highlights of in-person gatherings.
Have you experienced an event that completely exceeded your expectations? Or perhaps you're planning one yourself? Want to create an unforgettable event experience? Let’s make it happen! Jeannie Walters brings real-world customer experience insights, engaging storytelling, and actionable strategies to help your audience think differently about CX. Whether it’s a keynote, workshop, or panel discussion, we’d love to help make your event stand out. Visit ExperienceInvestigators.com to learn more and to book Jeannie for your next event!
Want to ask a question? Visit askjeannie.vip to leave Jeannie a voicemail! (And don't forget to follow Jeannie on LinkedIn! www.linkedin.com/in/jeanniewalters/)
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
MC (00:00):
Experience Action.
Let's stop just talking aboutcustomer experience, employee
experience and the experience ofleaders.
Let's turn ideas into action.
Your host, Jeannie Walters, isan award-winning customer
experience expert, internationalkeynote speaker and founder of
Experience Investigators, astrategic consulting firm
(00:20):
helping companies increase salesand customer retention through
elevated customer experiences.
Ready Set Action.
Jeannie Walters (00:31):
It's the Experience Action Podcast and
guess what?
It's events season.
We're all attending conferences, speaking at industry events
and lots of other ways that weinteract in person.
That's why I'm so excited aboutthis week's question.
Listener Question (00:50):
Hi Jeannie.
I attend a lot of big eventsand some are so much better than
others.
What CX best practices wouldyou recommend to event planners?
Jeannie Walters (00:59):
Oh, we've all been there, right.
We've been to events that haveabsolutely blown us away.
The attention to detail, theway that we feel kind of in awe
of what they actually created,the moments of surprise and
delight that can send anyonegoing back to their workplace
(01:20):
and their calendar saying I needto make time for this next year
too.
So, for all the event plannersout there, first of all, let me
say you work hard.
We recognize that it is not aneasy task.
In today's environment.
We have to deal with shrinkingevent budgets, increased spend
for the events that we do hostand lots of other points of
(01:44):
friction.
So first of all, before weanswer the question, let's talk
about just sending kudos to allthose event planners out there.
We appreciate what you do and,as a speaker, as someone who
does a lot of keynoting andworkshops and different things
at events, I'm often there inthe role of a B2B influencer, so
I work with all sorts ofdifferent teams.
(02:05):
I work with PR, I work with theevent coordinators, I work with
the clients who bring me in tospeak to their teams and the AV
teams.
Everybody there plays a very,very important role.
So thank you to everybody whopulls off these amazing events.
Some of these events have maybea few dozen people, some of
(02:27):
them have several thousand.
So let's talk about some of theways that you can have an
impact on the experience thatyour attendees have at your
events.
I'm going to go through this ina way that will start small
some of the little touches thatmight make a difference and then
(02:50):
go from there and let's dreambig, because, just like
everywhere else in customerexperience, I'm really excited
about the future here.
We have amazing technology totap into.
We have different points ofdata to understand to make
things better for the people whoattend.
So let's talk about, first ofall, what are the some of the
small touches that make a bigdifference, and I'm going to
share one that I've talked aboutbefore: Double sided name tags.
(03:14):
Sounds so simple, sounds likesomething most of us could do,
but how many of us have beenwearing those lanyards
beautifully made lanyards,branded, sponsored, maybe a big
plastic sheet that covers yourname tag with a QR code,
different things about yourself?
Some of the name tagsthemselves are fantastic, and
(03:35):
then, just throughout the day,they spin around, so as you're
talking to somebody, you don'trealize that they are not seeing
your name tag.
Double-sided name tags can makeall the difference.
The other thing I would say areadjustable lanyards as well.
I often self-adjust my lanyardbecause I'm not the tallest
person in the room, so I wantthe name tag to be a little
(03:56):
higher.
So I will adjust by making aknot in my lanyard in the back.
But the more that we can giveoptions of how people want to
wear their name tag that's avery simple thing that we can do
A clip versus a lanyard versusa pin Give people I Give people
different ways of doing that.
I love the magnet ones.
(04:17):
Those are great because theydon't mess up your clothes, but
they're also really sturdy aswell.
So lots of different optionsfor that.
We also want to think about thefact that most people attending
our events have not been to thevenue, necessarily, or an event
like this before.
So signage, signage, signage Idon't care if it's not the most
(04:38):
glamorous signage in the worldeither.
Give people ideas of where andhow to get to where they're
going.
One of my favorite examples ofthis was at the huge, the
enormous Salesforce event in SanFrancisco, they even had decals
on the sidewalks outside of thehotels where most of the
(04:58):
attendees stayed, withdirections of not only the
direction of where to get there,but how long of a walk it was.
It's brilliant because then youcan make an informed decision.
Do I need to get an Uber?
Well, it's only 0.8 miles away.
So they were doing things likethat to give people information
to make better choices withinthe signs.
(05:19):
Direction and wayfinding are soimportant at these big events.
Make sure that, whatever you'redoing, you are giving people
information every step of theway, literally.
You could even use sidewalkchalk for that.
So get creative.
Think about ways that you canreally walk in your customer's
shoes and help them find wherethey're going.
(05:40):
I also like the idea of seatingpeople who are maybe more
engaged, people who are morelikely to ask questions, and
things like that.
Give them a chance to sit upfront, invite them into the
process.
Encourage people to reallyengage in different ways.
(06:01):
We've all been to events whereit's been people on a stage for
hours not interacting with theaudience.
Those are painful.
We do not have the attentionspan we used to.
I personally really don't likesitting that long.
So think about ways you canbreak that up.
(06:21):
Engage with speakers who aremore apt to include people, to
be more interactive, to answerquestions, because then they
will bring that energy to thestage.
They will interact with theaudience.
The audience will have a muchbetter time.
Another idea for you isreal-time event support.
Now, this can be anywhere fromsimple to pretty complex, but
(06:45):
one of the things that I reallylike is when we have ways to
access information that we needquickly.
Most people want to know whatis the Wi-Fi code here?
How can I make my connectionwork?
So that has to be everywhere,not just on signs, but also, if
you're using an app, even on theagenda page for people who have
(07:06):
signed in, having QR codesaround that people can use.
There are all sorts of ways toprovide that information.
Qr codes are also a great wayto link to things like a
frequently asked question pagesomething super simple or where
to find the person that you need.
You can also use social mediafor this.
If you have social mediainteraction at your event, use
(07:30):
it to occasionally post thingslike hey, if you're looking for
the bathrooms, don't forget,there are two on your right and
two on your left.
This can be really helpful,especially in those outdoor
venues that can get a littlecrazy as well.
So think about ways that youcan communicate so that giving
people information that theymight not need until they need
it.
Of course, bathrooms are one ofthose things.
(07:52):
Wi-fi is another.
What if somebody gets hurt orneeds assistance?
What's the best way for peopleto do that?
Instead of just making anannouncement in the beginning of
the event when people might notthink it applies to them, when
they need it, have a way forthem to access that information.
So those are a few ideas that Ibelieve anybody can really
apply to any size of event, butlet's talk about enhancing the
(08:16):
experience just a little bitmore.
One way that we can do this is,leading up to the event.
Send some tailored,personalized communications
based on what they've indicatedare their interests.
So maybe alert certain peopleas you introduce new workshops
or breakouts or keynote speakers, based on who they've been
(08:38):
excited about in the past.
We can also do things like tryto curate networking
opportunities, provide smallgroup topics or specific meeting
places for people who havesimilar interests.
There are some low-cost,low-key ways to do this that
make people feel more connected.
A lot of organizations now havereally restricted their travel
(09:03):
budget around these types ofevents, these types of
professional development events.
So what I've noticed is a lotof organizations are not sending
a team of people anymore.
They are sending two, maybe oneperson, so that one person is
going there for very specificreasons, but guess what?
They are on their own.
We all know it's more fun whenwe know people at these types of
(09:26):
things.
So provide opportunities forpeople who don't know people to
know people, and we do thatthrough small group interaction,
encouraging networking,curating those types of
opportunities for them.
We also, of course, want to beaware of how to be inclusive.
Any event needs to think abouthow are we providing access to
(09:47):
people who have ability that isdifferent than our own?
That can mean providing visualaids, that can provide
additional signage in differentlanguages, that can be a sign
language interpreter.
There are all sorts of ways toreally think about that.
So if you know you haveattendees who are coming to your
(10:08):
event who have certain needs,make sure you're really thinking
about what is accessible tothem as well.
And if you are serving food, ofcourse, dietary restrictions
are also something to be awareof and inclusive about.
So just having choices thatpeople can make it doesn't mean
that we have to make everysingle thing gluten-free or
vegetarian.
(10:28):
It just means that we have tohave those options for people so
they feel included and gettreated in a similar way as
everybody else.
Another thought is some of thesebig events have a lot going on
that can be really challengingfor certain people.
Introverts sometimes just wantspace.
They need a time to take abreak.
(10:49):
Even those of us who aren'tclassic introverts need that
sometimes.
I think of myself as more of anambivert, meaning that I do a
lot of work on my own.
I enjoy people, I enjoy parties, I enjoy those things, but I
run out of steam as well.
So, thinking about how can youcreate sensory-friendly places,
one of the things I've seenlately that is kind of fun is
(11:11):
I've seen that they have peoplewalking around with
stress-reduction dogs so you cango pet a dog for a few minutes.
It lowers your cortisol level,it lowers your blood pressure.
It's a great way to take abreak.
There are different things likethat as well as just quiet rooms
where it says kind of like alibrary, this is a room where
you can recharge, you can work,you can do certain things, but
(11:34):
we request that you don't haveconversations.
This is just a quiet room forpeople to get away.
That can be very effective aswell.
And as somebody who does attendevents.
As an influencer and a mediaperson, I always appreciate a
great media room because that'swhere there are plenty of
outlets.
There might be water, coffee,things like that, but it's a
(11:56):
time when, if I am responsiblefor writing an article or making
a video, I need some time toplan that to really get to work.
It's great if I have a safespace for that where I can get
away and get that done.
So that's a shout out toanybody planning for future
events with media or influencersit's great to have a great
(12:16):
media room.
Let's think big.
Let's think about a big, hugeevent in the future.
What could we do with that?
Well, you know what I'm goingto bring up.
Right, I'm going to bring upartificial intelligence.
Now think about what we coulddo if we could use AI to really
tap in anytime somebodyregisters.
They would have to opt intothis, of course, but let us look
(12:39):
at their LinkedIn history.
Let us look at their past eventhistory with our organization.
Maybe ask a few questions andthen say, okay, here's your
personalized agenda based onwhat you've said is interesting
to you.
Now, some of this is done withcertain apps and opt-ins right
now.
Like you can say, yes, I'minterested in customer
(13:01):
experience and the digitalexperience and AI, but usually
what happens is you just geteverything that has those words
in it and it doesn't feel supercurated.
I'm talking about curatingsomething.
So it says we would suggestthese events for you, this
networking event, this person tomeet.
There are so many ways toleverage this.
(13:22):
I think it's a really excitingchapter that we're about to
enter in the event planningspace.
However, I'm going to put alittle asterisk on that, because
one of the best parts of events, in my humble opinion, are
those spontaneous things thathappen.
We bump into somebody in thehallway and we have this amazing
conversation.
Maybe we're in totallydifferent industries, maybe we
(13:45):
would never be at the samebreakout session, but we're at
the bigger event and we happento get along.
That's great.
When we happen to end up in thewrong room and we end up
hearing a speaker, we did notexpect that blew our mind.
There are so many amazingthings that can happen
spontaneously.
We want to leave a little roomfor that whenever we are
(14:05):
suggesting agendas, becausethat's the magic of being
together in person.
That is harder to replicate withthose virtual events.
When we have event apps, howcan we really use those to their
full potential?
Many events now have apps whichare super helpful.
You can find attendees, you canlook up speaker bios all that
(14:26):
is right there.
But maybe providing a littlemore interactivity asking people
for their specific action steps, having reminders about where
to go, interactive maps,interactive curated networking
suggestions all sorts of ways toreally lean in to the
technology that's available.
And then we could also havethings that again some of this
(14:48):
is in play now, where some appsnow will say okay, if you missed
a breakout session, therecording and the summary will
be on our app within the nextday or so.
That's all great, but what ifwe did some more with that in a
dynamic way?
What if we did more pollingwith the app or different things
to really find out how arepeople feeling here today and
(15:09):
how can we use that to improvethe event in real time?
Now I've seen this done.
There are times where sometimesthe app has said what did you
think about event or what didyou think about specific
breakout sessions or keynotesessions?
And there was a complaint oneyear that there weren't enough
chairs in the breakout sessions.
(15:30):
So the next day they announcedthat they had brought in 1000
more chairs to alleviate thatpressure point.
That's a great way to usedynamic information.
There are so many ways to thinkabout events.
There are always too manythings to do and again, let's
give props to the event plannersout there who are making things
(15:53):
happen.
As event attendees, it is ourjob to number one understand
where we are and why we're there.
I see a lot of people go toevents.
They don't really partake inthe content, they don't really
attend sessions and then theysay, well, it was okay.
So, as attendees, it's our jobto really get clear and
(16:15):
intentional about why we'rethere and on the flip side, I
would say for the event planners, it's also our job to be
intentional and proactive aboutthe experience and the journey
we want our attendees to have.
I love going to events, I lovespeaking at events, I love being
a part of that magic thathappens when we're all together.
(16:39):
And yes, there are sometimesthings that happen that are
disappointing or don't live upto our expectations, like any
other customer journey.
But I think, for the most part,if we can partner in this way,
as both event planner andattendee, that's when really
amazing things happen.
So I would also encourage eventplanners to really listen to
(16:59):
the feedback that you receive,because sometimes it might not
be wrapped in a bow, it mightnot be something that you think
you can do anything about today,but I encourage you to think
about innovation.
How can we innovate around ournext event based on what
customers are telling us?
And let's get real.
Sometimes we can't fit enoughchairs in the room, so how can
(17:23):
we better set expectations forthe attendees so that they don't
leave disappointed.
I appreciate the work thateverybody who pulls off these
amazing events, that you do, andI appreciate all the attendees
who also make these eventshappen.
We are in cooperation here andwe need to embrace that and look
for ways to really support bothsides of this equation.
(17:45):
So here's to customerexperience, here's to the event
planners and here's to thepeople out there who are asking
great questions.
So don't forget, you can ask mewhatever question you want.
Leave me your voice recordingat askjeannievip.
You can do this on your laptop,on your phone.
It's super easy and simple and,if you want to, you can share
(18:07):
who you are and we will let youknow when your episode is live.
Thank you so much for all youdo.
Thank you for being here withme on the Experience Action
Podcast and I will talk to yousoon, maybe at an event.
Take care.
Announcement (18:28):
Do you want to create an unforgettable event
experience?
Let's make it happen.
Jeannie Walters brings realworld customer experience,
insights, engaging storytellingand actionable strategies to
help your audience thinkdifferently about CX.
Whether it's a keynote,workshop, or panel discussion,
we'd love to help make yourevent stand out.
Visitexperienceinvestigatorscom to
learn more and to book Jeanniefor your next event.
Experience Action.
Let's stop just talking aboutcustomer experience, employee
experience and the experience ofleaders.
Let's turn ideas into action.
Your host, Jeannie Walters, isan award-winning customer
experience expert, internationalkeynote speaker and founder of
Experience Investigators, astrategic consulting firm
(00:20):
helping companies increase salesand customer retention through
elevated customer experiences.
Ready Set Action.
Jeannie Walters (00:31):
It's the Experience Action Podcast and
guess what?
It's events season.
We're all attending conferences, speaking at industry events
and lots of other ways that weinteract in person.
That's why I'm so excited aboutthis week's question.
Listener Question (00:50):
Hi Jeannie.
I attend a lot of big eventsand some are so much better than
others.
What CX best practices wouldyou recommend to event planners?
Jeannie Walters (00:59):
Oh, we've all been there, right.
We've been to events that haveabsolutely blown us away.
The attention to detail, theway that we feel kind of in awe
of what they actually created,the moments of surprise and
delight that can send anyonegoing back to their workplace
(01:20):
and their calendar saying I needto make time for this next year
too.
So, for all the event plannersout there, first of all, let me
say you work hard.
We recognize that it is not aneasy task.
In today's environment.
We have to deal with shrinkingevent budgets, increased spend
for the events that we do hostand lots of other points of
(01:44):
friction.
So first of all, before weanswer the question, let's talk
about just sending kudos to allthose event planners out there.
We appreciate what you do and,as a speaker, as someone who
does a lot of keynoting andworkshops and different things
at events, I'm often there inthe role of a B2B influencer, so
I work with all sorts ofdifferent teams.
(02:05):
I work with PR, I work with theevent coordinators, I work with
the clients who bring me in tospeak to their teams and the AV
teams.
Everybody there plays a very,very important role.
So thank you to everybody whopulls off these amazing events.
Some of these events have maybea few dozen people, some of
(02:27):
them have several thousand.
So let's talk about some of theways that you can have an
impact on the experience thatyour attendees have at your
events.
I'm going to go through this ina way that will start small
some of the little touches thatmight make a difference and then
(02:50):
go from there and let's dreambig, because, just like
everywhere else in customerexperience, I'm really excited
about the future here.
We have amazing technology totap into.
We have different points ofdata to understand to make
things better for the people whoattend.
So let's talk about, first ofall, what are the some of the
small touches that make a bigdifference, and I'm going to
share one that I've talked aboutbefore: Double sided name tags.
(03:14):
Sounds so simple, sounds likesomething most of us could do,
but how many of us have beenwearing those lanyards
beautifully made lanyards,branded, sponsored, maybe a big
plastic sheet that covers yourname tag with a QR code,
different things about yourself?
Some of the name tagsthemselves are fantastic, and
(03:35):
then, just throughout the day,they spin around, so as you're
talking to somebody, you don'trealize that they are not seeing
your name tag.
Double-sided name tags can makeall the difference.
The other thing I would say areadjustable lanyards as well.
I often self-adjust my lanyardbecause I'm not the tallest
person in the room, so I wantthe name tag to be a little
(03:56):
higher.
So I will adjust by making aknot in my lanyard in the back.
But the more that we can giveoptions of how people want to
wear their name tag that's avery simple thing that we can do
A clip versus a lanyard versusa pin Give people I Give people
different ways of doing that.
I love the magnet ones.
(04:17):
Those are great because theydon't mess up your clothes, but
they're also really sturdy aswell.
So lots of different optionsfor that.
We also want to think about thefact that most people attending
our events have not been to thevenue, necessarily, or an event
like this before.
So signage, signage, signage Idon't care if it's not the most
(04:38):
glamorous signage in the worldeither.
Give people ideas of where andhow to get to where they're
going.
One of my favorite examples ofthis was at the huge, the
enormous Salesforce event in SanFrancisco, they even had decals
on the sidewalks outside of thehotels where most of the
(04:58):
attendees stayed, withdirections of not only the
direction of where to get there,but how long of a walk it was.
It's brilliant because then youcan make an informed decision.
Do I need to get an Uber?
Well, it's only 0.8 miles away.
So they were doing things likethat to give people information
to make better choices withinthe signs.
(05:19):
Direction and wayfinding are soimportant at these big events.
Make sure that, whatever you'redoing, you are giving people
information every step of theway, literally.
You could even use sidewalkchalk for that.
So get creative.
Think about ways that you canreally walk in your customer's
shoes and help them find wherethey're going.
(05:40):
I also like the idea of seatingpeople who are maybe more
engaged, people who are morelikely to ask questions, and
things like that.
Give them a chance to sit upfront, invite them into the
process.
Encourage people to reallyengage in different ways.
(06:01):
We've all been to events whereit's been people on a stage for
hours not interacting with theaudience.
Those are painful.
We do not have the attentionspan we used to.
I personally really don't likesitting that long.
So think about ways you canbreak that up.
(06:21):
Engage with speakers who aremore apt to include people, to
be more interactive, to answerquestions, because then they
will bring that energy to thestage.
They will interact with theaudience.
The audience will have a muchbetter time.
Another idea for you isreal-time event support.
Now, this can be anywhere fromsimple to pretty complex, but
(06:45):
one of the things that I reallylike is when we have ways to
access information that we needquickly.
Most people want to know whatis the Wi-Fi code here?
How can I make my connectionwork?
So that has to be everywhere,not just on signs, but also, if
you're using an app, even on theagenda page for people who have
(07:06):
signed in, having QR codesaround that people can use.
There are all sorts of ways toprovide that information.
Qr codes are also a great wayto link to things like a
frequently asked question pagesomething super simple or where
to find the person that you need.
You can also use social mediafor this.
If you have social mediainteraction at your event, use
(07:30):
it to occasionally post thingslike hey, if you're looking for
the bathrooms, don't forget,there are two on your right and
two on your left.
This can be really helpful,especially in those outdoor
venues that can get a littlecrazy as well.
So think about ways that youcan communicate so that giving
people information that theymight not need until they need
it.
Of course, bathrooms are one ofthose things.
(07:52):
Wi-fi is another.
What if somebody gets hurt orneeds assistance?
What's the best way for peopleto do that?
Instead of just making anannouncement in the beginning of
the event when people might notthink it applies to them, when
they need it, have a way forthem to access that information.
So those are a few ideas that Ibelieve anybody can really
apply to any size of event, butlet's talk about enhancing the
(08:16):
experience just a little bitmore.
One way that we can do this is,leading up to the event.
Send some tailored,personalized communications
based on what they've indicatedare their interests.
So maybe alert certain peopleas you introduce new workshops
or breakouts or keynote speakers, based on who they've been
(08:38):
excited about in the past.
We can also do things like tryto curate networking
opportunities, provide smallgroup topics or specific meeting
places for people who havesimilar interests.
There are some low-cost,low-key ways to do this that
make people feel more connected.
A lot of organizations now havereally restricted their travel
(09:03):
budget around these types ofevents, these types of
professional development events.
So what I've noticed is a lotof organizations are not sending
a team of people anymore.
They are sending two, maybe oneperson, so that one person is
going there for very specificreasons, but guess what?
They are on their own.
We all know it's more fun whenwe know people at these types of
(09:26):
things.
So provide opportunities forpeople who don't know people to
know people, and we do thatthrough small group interaction,
encouraging networking,curating those types of
opportunities for them.
We also, of course, want to beaware of how to be inclusive.
Any event needs to think abouthow are we providing access to
(09:47):
people who have ability that isdifferent than our own?
That can mean providing visualaids, that can provide
additional signage in differentlanguages, that can be a sign
language interpreter.
There are all sorts of ways toreally think about that.
So if you know you haveattendees who are coming to your
(10:08):
event who have certain needs,make sure you're really thinking
about what is accessible tothem as well.
And if you are serving food, ofcourse, dietary restrictions
are also something to be awareof and inclusive about.
So just having choices thatpeople can make it doesn't mean
that we have to make everysingle thing gluten-free or
vegetarian.
(10:28):
It just means that we have tohave those options for people so
they feel included and gettreated in a similar way as
everybody else.
Another thought is some of thesebig events have a lot going on
that can be really challengingfor certain people.
Introverts sometimes just wantspace.
They need a time to take abreak.
(10:49):
Even those of us who aren'tclassic introverts need that
sometimes.
I think of myself as more of anambivert, meaning that I do a
lot of work on my own.
I enjoy people, I enjoy parties, I enjoy those things, but I
run out of steam as well.
So, thinking about how can youcreate sensory-friendly places,
one of the things I've seenlately that is kind of fun is
(11:11):
I've seen that they have peoplewalking around with
stress-reduction dogs so you cango pet a dog for a few minutes.
It lowers your cortisol level,it lowers your blood pressure.
It's a great way to take abreak.
There are different things likethat as well as just quiet rooms
where it says kind of like alibrary, this is a room where
you can recharge, you can work,you can do certain things, but
(11:34):
we request that you don't haveconversations.
This is just a quiet room forpeople to get away.
That can be very effective aswell.
And as somebody who does attendevents.
As an influencer and a mediaperson, I always appreciate a
great media room because that'swhere there are plenty of
outlets.
There might be water, coffee,things like that, but it's a
(11:56):
time when, if I am responsiblefor writing an article or making
a video, I need some time toplan that to really get to work.
It's great if I have a safespace for that where I can get
away and get that done.
So that's a shout out toanybody planning for future
events with media or influencersit's great to have a great
(12:16):
media room.
Let's think big.
Let's think about a big, hugeevent in the future.
What could we do with that?
Well, you know what I'm goingto bring up.
Right, I'm going to bring upartificial intelligence.
Now think about what we coulddo if we could use AI to really
tap in anytime somebodyregisters.
They would have to opt intothis, of course, but let us look
(12:39):
at their LinkedIn history.
Let us look at their past eventhistory with our organization.
Maybe ask a few questions andthen say, okay, here's your
personalized agenda based onwhat you've said is interesting
to you.
Now, some of this is done withcertain apps and opt-ins right
now.
Like you can say, yes, I'minterested in customer
(13:01):
experience and the digitalexperience and AI, but usually
what happens is you just geteverything that has those words
in it and it doesn't feel supercurated.
I'm talking about curatingsomething.
So it says we would suggestthese events for you, this
networking event, this person tomeet.
There are so many ways toleverage this.
(13:22):
I think it's a really excitingchapter that we're about to
enter in the event planningspace.
However, I'm going to put alittle asterisk on that, because
one of the best parts of events, in my humble opinion, are
those spontaneous things thathappen.
We bump into somebody in thehallway and we have this amazing
conversation.
Maybe we're in totallydifferent industries, maybe we
(13:45):
would never be at the samebreakout session, but we're at
the bigger event and we happento get along.
That's great.
When we happen to end up in thewrong room and we end up
hearing a speaker, we did notexpect that blew our mind.
There are so many amazingthings that can happen
spontaneously.
We want to leave a little roomfor that whenever we are
(14:05):
suggesting agendas, becausethat's the magic of being
together in person.
That is harder to replicate withthose virtual events.
When we have event apps, howcan we really use those to their
full potential?
Many events now have apps whichare super helpful.
You can find attendees, you canlook up speaker bios all that
(14:26):
is right there.
But maybe providing a littlemore interactivity asking people
for their specific action steps, having reminders about where
to go, interactive maps,interactive curated networking
suggestions all sorts of ways toreally lean in to the
technology that's available.
And then we could also havethings that again some of this
(14:48):
is in play now, where some appsnow will say okay, if you missed
a breakout session, therecording and the summary will
be on our app within the nextday or so.
That's all great, but what ifwe did some more with that in a
dynamic way?
What if we did more pollingwith the app or different things
to really find out how arepeople feeling here today and
(15:09):
how can we use that to improvethe event in real time?
Now I've seen this done.
There are times where sometimesthe app has said what did you
think about event or what didyou think about specific
breakout sessions or keynotesessions?
And there was a complaint oneyear that there weren't enough
chairs in the breakout sessions.
(15:30):
So the next day they announcedthat they had brought in 1000
more chairs to alleviate thatpressure point.
That's a great way to usedynamic information.
There are so many ways to thinkabout events.
There are always too manythings to do and again, let's
give props to the event plannersout there who are making things
(15:53):
happen.
As event attendees, it is ourjob to number one understand
where we are and why we're there.
I see a lot of people go toevents.
They don't really partake inthe content, they don't really
attend sessions and then theysay, well, it was okay.
So, as attendees, it's our jobto really get clear and
(16:15):
intentional about why we'rethere and on the flip side, I
would say for the event planners, it's also our job to be
intentional and proactive aboutthe experience and the journey
we want our attendees to have.
I love going to events, I lovespeaking at events, I love being
a part of that magic thathappens when we're all together.
(16:39):
And yes, there are sometimesthings that happen that are
disappointing or don't live upto our expectations, like any
other customer journey.
But I think, for the most part,if we can partner in this way,
as both event planner andattendee, that's when really
amazing things happen.
So I would also encourage eventplanners to really listen to
(16:59):
the feedback that you receive,because sometimes it might not
be wrapped in a bow, it mightnot be something that you think
you can do anything about today,but I encourage you to think
about innovation.
How can we innovate around ournext event based on what
customers are telling us?
And let's get real.
Sometimes we can't fit enoughchairs in the room, so how can
(17:23):
we better set expectations forthe attendees so that they don't
leave disappointed.
I appreciate the work thateverybody who pulls off these
amazing events, that you do, andI appreciate all the attendees
who also make these eventshappen.
We are in cooperation here andwe need to embrace that and look
for ways to really support bothsides of this equation.
(17:45):
So here's to customerexperience, here's to the event
planners and here's to thepeople out there who are asking
great questions.
So don't forget, you can ask mewhatever question you want.
Leave me your voice recordingat askjeannievip.
You can do this on your laptop,on your phone.
It's super easy and simple and,if you want to, you can share
(18:07):
who you are and we will let youknow when your episode is live.
Thank you so much for all youdo.
Thank you for being here withme on the Experience Action
Podcast and I will talk to yousoon, maybe at an event.
Take care.
Announcement (18:28):
Do you want to create an unforgettable event
experience?
Let's make it happen.
Jeannie Walters brings realworld customer experience,
insights, engaging storytellingand actionable strategies to
help your audience thinkdifferently about CX.
Whether it's a keynote,workshop, or panel discussion,
we'd love to help make yourevent stand out.
Visitexperienceinvestigatorscom to
learn more and to book Jeanniefor your next event.
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