News

With events, it’s best to expect the unexpected. These how-tos of preparation and onsite protocols for handling emergencies will help meeting professionals be ready for anything.

While associations are sometimes criticized as being slow to embrace change or different ways of working, a new survey shows that a lot of associations are going all in when it comes to hybrid and remote work options, as compared to other industries.

Building rapport with customers is essential in today’s world.

Perhaps now more than ever, we want to build relationships with the brands we’re buying from. Analytical group McKinsey has stated that companies leading with empathy and understanding will be the ones most likely to survive following the 2020 pandemic.

Innovation and discovery will fuel the delegate experience as we return to in-person meetings and events.

The customer journey is easily one of the most important, yet most misunderstood, parts of doing business. One of the reasons for this is that the needs of customers can change. Additionally, not all customers are alike.

Therefore, it can be difficult for many businesses to ensure customers have the best buying experience from the start of their journey through to making their purchase and using the product or service.

Helen Billingham at Enghouse Interactive explores how to successfully scale the peaks of customer service demand.

Many sectors are much busier at particular times in the year. While Christmas is the biggest peak for industries such as retail, every organisation faces surges in demand that they need to meet.

For example, clearing for university places after A-level results are announced in August is the busiest time for higher education institutions, as we explain in this blog post. 

A new report shows associations did a fantastic job communicating with members during multiple crises, but a top challenge remains: How to better sustain member engagement. An association expert offers some ideas for breaking through the noise.

There’s an artful way to brag about yourself without having to condescend, one-up, or put down others. Use these tips to tout your accomplishments with grace.

Associations are doing important, worthy work. So why is it so difficult for some association professionals to talk about their own successes? Well, you’re just not supposed to do that. As the sayings go, “Let your work do the talking,” “It’s just not polite,” and for women in particular, “It’s not ladylike.”

Liz Garman discusses managing the flow of communications to keep members informed—but not overwhelmed.

Association volunteers are more engaged and fulfilled when they’re growing with the organization, not just filling chairs. One model proposes how staff can help them do that.

If you devote any amount of time to the care and feeding of volunteer leaders, eventually you’re going to confront a matrix. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s a good practice for associations to determine which skills it needs from potential volunteers and to codify those needs in a way that’s clear and visible.