Okay, so this week I’m not going to stun you with an AudioVisual wonder or insanely cutting edge meetings tool. However, I am going to share my current absolute favorite technology for productivity.

Let me start with this question: do you feel like at least once a day you’re supplying your email address for a subscription service, special offer service or industry publication? Do you receive Linkedin notifications, Facebook alerts, Twitter replies/mentions/messages, Pinterest messaging, Groupon/LivingSocial/Daily Deals, etc, etc, etc? How about some of your friends or colleagues who share YouTube videos incessantly? And, granted, they are really funny and you enjoy watching them…but it’s just an incredibly annoying distraction if you’re not ready to check it out at that moment. Is any of this sounding familiar? Well, if you’re like me, about 90% of your email is interesting and intermittently educational, but, overall, a low-priority.

Yes, even Puff the Magic Dragon would be impressed

Are you nodding and rolling your eyes in a solidarity of annoyance? If yes, then you positively must explore SaneBox. It’s like someone blew pixie dust on my email system and now the Easter bunny is having a tea party with the Tooth Fairy in my inbox…well, maybe it’s more like someone took your the birthday cards and separated it from the pile of bills. But, seriously, it’s THAT good.

What SaneBox does is creates a “SaneLater” folder. It takes about 30 seconds to download and then it does it’s happy little magic. The next morning, when you open your email, you will have about 15-20 emails from *actual* people. The other 70-80 will be in your SaneLater folder and you can read those once you’ve consumed and conquered those high priorities. After reading and replying to the most important email, you will review your SaneLater folder. You may find there are some contacts or higher priority emails you’d like to have delivered to your inbox. Thinking you have to go in and tweak settings or redesign rules? Nope, just move the email into your inbox!! As my 4 year old would say…Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy!!

If you’re ready to sign up, check it out here. We each get $5 if you use this link, but feel free to sign up on your own, if you prefer. I’m honestly just happy to share such a super great technology that will hopefully make your life easier…because that’s the AVGirl way!

If you’ve ever attended an event with me, you might have sought me out for my (soon-to-be) famous pink power strip and/or extension cord. I also carry at least one (usually two) iPhone chargers, iPad charger, Macbook chargers, etc.

If you’re wondering what, exactly, I keep in that handy little AVGirl kit…here’s a video of me explaining my supplies to the lovely Kristi Casey Sanders of PlanYourMeetings.com, a really useful site where I write a monthly column.

Alternatively, here’s a link to a transcript of the video on the site; you can check out their awesome resources while you’re there!

There is one thing I missed though that I would suggest you add. That is the Kensington wireless slide controller. It is affordable, versatile and durable. And it could save up to $50 in rental fees onsite.

So in the next few weeks I have a few events that I’m really excited to be a part of and thought some of you might find them interesting. They are, in order of date:

Replay of the Virtual Edge Summit 2012 - What makes this event so special is that it’s a virtual event based on the content captured at the Virtual Edge Summit, a face-to-face event that was co-located in San Diego with PCMA’s Annual Conference. This is one of my favorite types of content re-usage and creating an experience around educational content, even if it’s not being presented live. When a hybrid meeting (including streaming video content to a remote audience and creating conversation and an experience around the content) is not feasible, this can be a strategy for an economical, manageable alternative. Using a virtual host such as Glenn Thayer to generate an event experience is a fantastic way to stimulate conversation and help viewers be more connected to the content being presented. This improves results desired from attendees, such as a better brand familiarity, product knowledge or educational achievement.
Details: Free, 1/26/2012, 7am-2pm PT. Register here.

Elite Meetings Alliance – These events are held approximately three or four times a year. I first began attending the EMA’s a few years ago as a speaker. What struck me immediately was the quality of experience. I felt like I was attending a family reunion/getaway rather than a serious business meeting. Full of unique social opportunities, incredible gourmet dining and interesting speakers and technology, I thought I had dropped into some kind of fantasy getaway. However, this perception was abruptly rerouted when it came time for the hosted buyer appointments. Turns out, most of these meeting professionals do not have the time or financial resources to attend many larger association conferences. Attending the EMA’s means they are there to buy from the suppliers in attendance, learn from the educational sessions and perform site visits while on the property. There was never a feeling of planners v. suppliers, and the hosted buyer experience has always been impeccable and fruitful.What makes the event even more exciting is that Elite Meetings has partnered with our company and Sonic Foundry to create a hyrbid meeting experience for the last two events. I will be speaking about how we integrated the two audiences and then maximized the value of the content over the course of the year.
Details: Free for qualified buyers. 1/29-1/31, Rancho Las Palmas Resort, Rancho Mirage, CA. You can get more information here.

Geoteaming at the MPI Northern California Chapter Educational Conference – So, some of you might have watched my interview with John Chen a few months ago. John is the CEO and Big Kid of Geoteaming, as well as being the author of the upcoming book, 50 Digital Team Building Games. I am speaking on Strategic CSR at the upcoming Education Day for the MPINCC, so I was THRILLED to see that he is offering an opportunity to try one of his famous geoteaming events the day before at Golden Gate Park!! This is going to be one super fun event and I can’t wait to report back on my experience trying out one of the most innovative, effective team building activities around. Stay tuned friends, I’ll be sure to post pictures and stories to all the usual social networks…
Details: $146, discount available if you contact John Chen. 2/15, 12:30-4:30 pm PT. If you’re in the area on 2/15, why not register and try it with us? Register here.

It’s not the first time I’ve blogged about how much I adore Clean the World, and I hope it won’t be the last. But, this Thanksgiving holiday, as I look at my healthy, beautiful children I can’t help but feel so grateful and wish that every parent could feel this sense of joy and fortune.

The reason why I love Clean the World so much is that they solve two problems at once – waste (planet) and sickness (people). Lightly used toiletries from hotels are sanitized and recycled for shipping to countries where soap is an absolute luxury. I’ve seen criticism of this type of charity, but when I think about if it was me watching my children suffer (and possibly die) of a sickness that could be prevented with soap, I simply just don’t buy into the pontification!!

I recorded this video last year with Shawn Seipler, CEO and Founder at CTW. Enjoy, be grateful and be sure to catch some of their super cool videos about how they recycle the soaps and how you can be a part of it!

As most of you know, I am a sustainability passionista. Despite my newbie status and intimidation by peers, I believed so strongly that we could change our practices to be more green in the AV staging world that I spent a year writing the simple “Best Practices for Sustainability in the AV Industry” and open sourced them to our industry. That was in 2007. Since then quite a bit has happened, including a sophisticated set of peer-developed, ASTM standards that delineate what it takes to implement sustainability for your technical production.

Despite these accomplishments, I still find myself doing a lot of soul searching about what matters to the society we live in and how I can continue to effect positive change via my own business practices. I know we’re doing our best to mitigate our environmental impacts, but I have a clear vision that we must enact a more holistic approach to ultimately make a change.

So, feeling the pull of needing to be connected to the leaders in the world who are working steadily but feverishly to overhaul the systems we’ve grown to lazily live with, I discovered the Mashable/UN Foundation’s Social Good Summit.
Well, holy toledo, am I excited!! Between Ted Turner (I’m a HUGE fan, have read two biographies about him) opening the conference to representatives from the Gates Foundation, I think it might feel like coming home. What is beautiful about the Mashable/UNF relationship is the recognition that it’s not the bleeding hearts who are going to make the greatest impact on our society, but anyone who has a passion for innovation and better results. As a matter of fact, I was even able to pull in Jessica Levin, my partner at Seven Degrees. Jessica has never really been known for any “green” or “CSR” driven content (although she did implement green practices at her association’s meetings), but she is a social media expert and event re-imaginer. I think this is precisely the kind of diversity we’re lacking when it comes to rethinking our systems and procedures.

Some people may not make the connection between a small business owner who provides technical equipment for meetings and conferences attending a conference about the intersection of social entrepreneurship and social technologies. But I am convinced that this is how I will grow and cultivate that continued pull I feel to bring more efficiency, innovation and freshness to my industry. It might appear to be a distraction or irrelevant, but I’m convinced that only by thinking about how we can innovate to achieve our small scale successes will we tackle the hulking challenges shadowing our global society.

Stay tuned to my twitter stream for the next few days as I provide social reporting onsite and reconnect to that inspiration of innovation for good. You can also register for virtual participation and watch for free.

Knowing that an event like the upcoming World Education Congress in Orlando, FL is just full of awesomeness, I thought I’d poll some veteran attendees (plus one or two newbies) to put together a list of what they consider to be the “can’t-miss” happenings at WEC. This was mostly inspired by me trying to help my mentees/WEC 1st-timers with learning about what will rock!!

According to @SamuelJSmith, he can’t wait to reconnect with his “Digital Event Friends” and his many European MPI friends. One of the great things about WEC is that there are people from ALL over the world to meet and/or reconnect with. I’m with Sam on this one! Sam is a WEC veteran and longtime MPI member and thought leader.

Amanda Gourgue, @mtgrevolution, is really excited to see Adrian Segar’s presentation on audience participation techniques. Agree, it should be cool! He’s always kind to his audience. Here’s a link to his video explaining the session.

The ever-handsome @GregRuby is looking forward to “Coca Cola: Evolving Corporate Client Expectations. A CSR program that combines two of my favorite things – Coca Cola & Olympics! A win-win!” Agree Greg, love the context for learning about CSR and you simply CANNOT lose with the indomitable Fiona Pelham of Positive Impact. Should be cool!

A brilliant European friend, @RuudWJanssen, will kick off the event with Simon Sinek‘s keynote, “Understand your WHY”.  He is also working in the MPI Solutions Room on Monday morning. I am notorious for never sitting through an entire keynote (exception: Tony Hsieh of Zappos, a must-see), but I believe that Simon might actually capture my attention. V excited!! Also, try out the Solutions Room. I contributed to the one for MPI’s European Meetings and Events Congress and it was AWESOME. I’m sure Ruud has plans to improve it even more!

Conferences That Work author, Adrian Segar/@ASegar, is psyched to attend one of my most favorite people in the whole world, Paul Salinger’s, session, “Next Practices, When Getting Bigger Means Going Smaller.” Me too Adrian Adrian is also going to the Meetup on Monday, sponsored by meetingspodcast.com More info here.

One of the most beautiful and intelligent women I know, Katherine Manfredi/@KManfredi, says that Elizabeth Henderson’s session, “Decarbonating Your Events” will be a fun, hands-on science experiment while learning about greening events. Oooo, count me in Katherine, that sounds fantastic!! Elizabeth Henderson never fails to deliver an outstanding session.

@RogerRickard boldly claims that his session, “Call for Action: Advocating Meetings” is the can’t-miss. He’s also speaking with one of the smarties in the hospitality industry, Michael Dominguez of Loews Hotels. If Michael speaks, you should listen. To clarify, I know Roger and I know he’s not saying this because of an ego thing. It’s because he believes so strongly in the message and education we all need in order to become better advocates for the industry we work in! The talk show format is intriguing to me also.

The brains behind the MPI mobile apps, @TrevorRoald, of Quickmobile, couldn’t settle on any one thing. He gave me a loooong list:

• Sessions: FutureWatch 2011 session, hosted buyer sessions, the MarketSquare networking pods, High-Impact Storytelling for High-Impact Presentations
• People: Maarten Vanneste (FRESH Conference), Paul Salinger (GMIC and Oracle Open World), Corbin Ball
• Events: The technology HIVE, puppy cuddling

GREAT list Trevor. I would second the High-Impact Storytelling session. @SpeakerSue is one of the best speakers out there!!

Current UK Chapter President, SammeAllen/@MrsBarbican, weighs in with another international viewpoint. She declares that the Chapter Leadership Forum is crucial to her role as President. Being a leader of an international chapter, “Meeting other chapter leaders from across the globe not only is great for learning but it’s a fab community!”

Lovely Vanessa Laclair/@VLaclair also found it impossible to narrow down the list to one thing. She mentioned the F2F v. Technology debate (sorry, but are we still having that debate? oh, sidetrack) and meeting @EmilieBarta on her list. She also was sure to mention the fantastic tradition of BREAKFAST IN BED by Visit Montreal. Tres Bien Vanessa, Emilie Barta was my “Ms. Congeniality” of Twitter 2010 and that breakfast can’t be beat!

In typical Emilie Barta sweet-natured, kind-hearted, fashion, she says “My one can’t miss event for #WEC11 is reconnecting with old friends and making new ones! ” Oh, sweet Emilie. Make sure you say hi if you see her, she won’t disappoint!

Also struggling to make one choice, @HeatherHartland advises “Can’t miss flash point. Excited 4 LMG “field trip” Biggest can’t miss: cnxtns to industry greats irl” Hmmm, I’d love to hear who makes this Colorado Blue Bear girl’s list of industry greats! Sounds interesting, right?

Fellow SoCal girl, @ElizabethGlau, a social media consultant (and apparently informal mentee), is banking on the HIVE as well. Sounds like this will be a big draw!!

And, finally, the man, the myth, the legend whose session has topped the list of most, Paul Salinger/@PSalinger, says his can’t miss is simply seeing all the Green Meeting Industry Council members and #eventprofs community. Off the record, he also said he’s curious to see how all of the attempts at innovation play out at the event. I agree, and think we should all participate to support the spirit of experimentation.

So, that about wraps up the picks for the World Education Congress. Oh, me, my picks? How nice of you to ask. I’m excited about:

• The Daily Downloads giving you a chance to share what you thought was the best of the best each day – and vote on what sessions should be repeated!
• Hold the Mayo: Technology’s Role in the Generational Sandwich
• The Secret to Learning: Four Questions That Must be Answered THIS WILL BE GOOD, it’s about 4MAT for learning design. Nuff said.
• Um, it wouldn’t be me if I didn’t also mention that I can’t wait to present two sessions with the wonderful, fantastic, presenter, @JessicaLevin (Social Gaming for Events and Hands-on Tech Lab…that’s one of my FAVORITE sessions to present!)

Of course, those of you that know me also know I’m a social animal. I’ll be kicking it off with a place in the fundraising event, the golf tournament, and hitting each and every possible reception/special event, from the Big Deal to Rendezvous. I encourage all the noobs to leave your reservations behind…open your mind and heart to possibilities and focus on making new business friends. You won’t be disappointed.

If you need a new business friend and don’t know where to find one, PLEASE connect with me. I love, love, love meeting new people and making connections for them. I’ll never, ever snub anyone or treat you like you’re not important enough. Just hit me up!!

<3, the AVGirl

If you recall last January, I served as a social reporter to the Virtual Edge Summit, held in Las Vegas, NV.
Well, this week I am pleased to report (I know, I know) that I will be repeating these duties, this time on behalf of MPI for their World Education Congress, #wec11.

I’m really impressed with how my association is empowering and organizing the massive corps of people already doing significant amounts of sharing onsite from their events. By giving them access to “scooped” material and actually deeming them a form of press, they should manage to take advantage of the social nature of their communications and develop a much more engaged method of pushing out interesting information about their events.
Here’s my take on what a social reporter actually does.

After MPI I will be sure to share the steps to creating a social reporting corps, but be sure to stay tuned to my updates from the event in the meantime! Use #wec11 to follow the conversation on Twitter.

Yesterday I gave you some introduction to the power of gaming at your events. Today, I share an interview conducted with John Chen, the brilliant and fun mind behind Playtime Inc, and Geoteaming. John discusses the business value of games, explains Geoteaming and also shares his #1 tip for how to get started with gaming at your events.
Part 1

Video not playing? See it here.
Part 2

Video not playing? See it here.
John’s Favorite Gaming Resources (lots of game examples)
Association for Experiential Education (AEE)
American Society for Training and Development (ASTD)
Thiagi.com (hundreds of games here!)
Karl Rhonke Silver Bullets: A Guide to Initiative Problems, Adventure Games and Trust Activities

Midori’s Favorite Gaming Resources (more theory-based)
Games for Change (games impacting social change)
“Reality is Broken” by Jane McGonigal
“Total Engagement” by Byron Reeves and J. Leighton Read
“Gamestorming” by Dave Gray
Anything by James Paul Gee

If you’ve been hearing the words, “gaming” or “gamification” lately, you’re not alone. It seems like everywhere we turn there is discussion about social gaming – including the millions and millions of people spending countless hours building fictional farms with their Facebook friends.

Hopefully by now we’ve all reached the conclusion that generating engagement with our event attendees is crucial. Without a sense of connection and personal investment, attendees can feel bored, frustrated or lonely and isolated. So, if you’re dismissing games as child’s play or a diversion from serious business, then you might want to think again. Whether your goal is learning or networking, gaming for events is one of the most effective ways to get people connected to an experience and/or absorbing knowledge.

According to games expert, James Paul Gee, “We know from considerable research on the human brain that people learn more deeply when there is an emotional attachment to their learning and problem solving, when something is at stake for them personally.”
When we play games, we are fully committed. We forget that we are actually working towards a “business goal” and we develop that emotional attachment which helps to reach maximum learning and problem solving.

If networking is a consideration, then think about the power of teaming. As I’ve mentioned before, when I arrive to an event I’m actually quite shy and lonely. If I haven’t had time to make friends via social media ahead of time, I’m usually not the type to walk up to just anyone and start talking.
However, when we are contacted before an event by a team leader, or simply know at registration there will be at least one person we know and can engage with, some of that feeling of isolation is immediately eliminated. We can attend an event with the confidence that we will have a team of associates to connect with.

I encourage you to explore the case study of the annual meeting of the Green Meeting Industry Council. It is a comprehensive look at how a game design was woven into the entire fabric of an event. Even without the complexity of this type of game (which used iPads and a custom mobile app), think about how and where you could fit in games to your event design.
Additionally, Jessica Levin and I will be presenting a session on Social Gaming for Events at MPI’s World Education Congress this coming week. I will be sure to post some of the resources as well as a copy of our presentation after next week.

Come back tomorrow for a video interview of John Chen, aka “The Big Kid”, a true veteran of the event gaming industry!!

This week, I had the pleasure of coming across the “Meet the Geek” concept to be introduced at the annual conference of the Florida Society of Association Executives. Striving to deliver more value to exhibitors and attendees alike, FSAE is re-engineering a traditional tradeshow format to create a very targeted learning and buying experience.

Really curious to learn more about the idea and how it came to be, I was lucky enough to catch up with a VERY busy Teri Carden, Director of Marketing & Technology for FSAE (@TeriTally as she is known on Twitter – definitely worth the follow!). Here’s what she shared with me:

1. What gave you this idea? What is the unique benefit of this format?
The idea came from the ever-growing interest that our association executives have in regards to technology and the companies that aide in implementing the most innovative ideas. I am contacted almost daily by our members asking questions on everything from social media to AMS and LMS solutions.
The unique format of this particular opportunity is that it is an extension of our social media lounge (an area where members can network, learn about I am FSAE (our private social network), send paper tweets, check their email, and just chill in between sessions or as a break. Meet the Geeks is exclusive for technology suppliers that offer solutions specifically to non-profits and associations.
2.Why did you choose technology as the designated theme?
It just seems to be the topic our members continue telling us is important to them. Implementing the right technologies gives an association tools to be more efficient, accurate, and usually aids in member retention. FSAE is the bellwether for associations in the state of Florida. Our annual conference is the perfect place for association executives to learn more on the most cutting edge solutions.
3. Will you be using a traditional booth/exhibit setting? Or are you mixing that up too?
The Meet the Geeks area is a setup of 4 sided booths; it’s intimate space for just 20 vendors. The booths are an extension of the Social Media Lounge and although there is exclusive time on the agenda for MTG, FSAE is really encouraging MTG vendors to be sure to venture outside the walls of the Social Media Lounge too. FSAE’s conference is a very interactive conference and doesn’t have any other element of an exhibit or tradeshow. We offer our members valuable networking time through interactive sessions and events like the VIP Connection, Meals of Hope, and nightly receptions at amazing places.
4. What are you looking forward to the most?
Weekly FSAE brings technology vendors together with association executives in some virtual manner (via email, twitter, phone, Skype, etc.) It will be so neat to watch talented vendors and inquisitive executives form relationships in a f2f format. Secretly, my real favorite part is going to be the geek glasses that Meet the Geek visitors will receive! How much fun will those photo opps be?
I don’t know about you, but I’m really impressed! To learn more about the conference, visit the FSAE site. Maybe this is an idea you could translate to your own meeting or conference. Now is a great time to mix it up and see what you can do to keep delegates excited about attending your events!