A trend is a passing fancy, like the Pantone Color of the Year. In the last five years Pantone has made this interesting, including ‘ultraviolet’ and ‘greenery’ and for the complexities of 2021 they have addressed it with two colors. Ultimate Grey with Illuminating (yellow) “Practical and rock solid but at the same time warming and optimistic, the union of PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating is one of strength and positivity. It is a story of color that encapsulates deeper feelings of thoughtfulness with the promise of something sunny and friendly.”    This e ..read more

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to major shifts in the events industry. Event planners everywhere had to get creative to switch events to online affairs.  At first, the novelty of attending a conference from your living room couch excited people enough to pay attention for hours on end. But now, almost one year into mandated distancing, many people are struggling to find new ways to keep online events engaging and meaningful.   Digital fatigue has set in and it’s making virtual events difficult. So what can you do to make sitting in front of a computer fun again? Our team has a long li ..read more

Virtual events are part of today’s new normal. In fact, the virtual event platform market is predicted to skyrocket, with Travel News Daily reporting how enterprises are now pivoting towards hosting virtual events instead of in-person ones to adapt to the changes brought about by the pandemic. And available technologies making it convenient to attend events hosted in the digital sphere only strengthens the case for virtual events as the industry's next big thing. This bullish outlook underscore an increasing reliance on digital meetings, and it is a trend that is likely to continue ..read more

As the world of events continues to pivot, we see a rush of technology solutions popping with the promise of seamless virtual events. But most of the conversation is being driven by marketers who have an agenda, not actual event experts. We want to change the conversation by amplifying the voice of industry leaders who are on the battlefield, confronting the real challenges event planners are facing daily.   We had the opportunity to talk recently with Tahira Endean, CITP, CMP,DES,CED, Head of Events at SITE (Society for Incentive Travel Excellence), about the future of events. Tahira des ..read more

2020 has been a challenging year, but it was also a time to learn and experiment. As we approach the new year, what are the learnings we will apply to improve the way we manage events during a time of uncertainty? Our team at Attendease got together to share our favorite resources for event professionals, so you can learn the latest trends and ideas from industry experts.  This list was part of a larger guide that we launched: 10 Survival Skills for Corporate Meeting & Event Planners in 2021. You can get the full guide here. Let us know in the comments which resources are your favouri ..read more

No one likes change. When you’re used to doing things a certain way, the thought of trying something different can be scary - even if what you’re currently doing isn’t really working for you.    We’ve talked to a lot of corporate event planners who’ve gotten stuck using clunky, outdated software. We’ve also talked to corporate event planners who are still using spreadsheets to project manage and keep track of their event analytics (if you’re making the scream emoji face, we are too).  What’s kept these event professionals from making a move to something better? Here are a few re ..read more

On October 23rd we celebrate Event Organizers Day, and we, at Attendease, would like to do more than just say thank you for all your efforts. 2020 has proven to be a challenging year, and our team wants to share something that is meaningful and genuine. So we created a list of resources to help event planners cope during these strange times, and we are also launching our very first Giveaway as a way to say thank you for all the hard work you do!   As we all know, the event planner's job is on the top of the list of most stressful jobs in America, and that was before the pandemic. Since CO ..read more

The pandemic has fundamentally changed the way event organizers plan, run and measure the success of meetings and conferences. Here are some insights on what attendees expect and how event planners are adjusting to meet the challenge. Virtual events stats: Unsurprisingly, Google searches for “virtual event” and “virtual conference” have steadily increased in the US and Canada since COVID-19 struck in early March. However, it turns out that virtual events were popular even before the pandemic: 42% of organizations were already running virtual events in 2019 (Source: Wild Apricot 2020 Virtua ..read more

Speakers can easily make or break an event. If you have a presenter who doesn’t understand who they’re talking to, or who can’t keep the audience’s attention, you’re wasting everyone’s time (and possibly their money).  Conversely, if you have a speaker who has a compelling topic and knows how to deliver it with clear takeaways, you’ll have a happy crowd who will leave positive reviews for your event, and tell others.    While big-name keynote speakers tend to attract registrants and attendees, sometimes it’s the lesser-known subject matter experts or people who have persona ..read more

The novel coronavirus outbreak has had a significant impact on the events industry, from venues and vendors to speakers and sponsors.  As Roland Swenson, SXSW CEO & Co-Founder put it, “Today we find ourselves contending with what it’s like to adjust to a new normal that is anything but. We feel great sympathy for all affected by COVID-19 and the ripple effects this global pandemic has caused.”   Highly anticipated in-person events like South By Southwest and Dreamforce have been canceled for 2020, leaving event planners scrambling to come up with online alternatives that can en ..read more