Technical Production

Yvon Douran

Exciting new technologies like interactive computer use, live video enhancement of speakers, and teleconferencing can be utilized but the associated cost of these new technologies can be steep. The type of AV support you will need for your meeting or event may be simple or more complex. Be sure to review all your options and plan ahead:

• Get a list of all speakers’ needs well in advance of your meeting date and schedule a rehearsal.

• Allow for rehearsal and set-up time in your meeting rooms.

• Give speakers a chance to rehearse with equipment they will be using.

• Test equipment immediately prior to the beginning of the event. Check acoustics

Clap your hands sharply… talk loudly… listen carefully

Check to see if there are any echo’s or dead spots.

Do drapes or acoustic panels need to be added.?

Plug-in and test the audio.

Is the public address system working?

Is there any feedback at working level?

Are the speakers correctly placed?

Are there enough microphones, cords, stands?

Have spare bulks and extension cords on hand.

If you are taping, is the tape recorder microphone working? Check to see if you have to erect a stand or move a table

Is the audiovisual the right distance from the screen, rigid and level?

Know the location of circuit breakers and fuses

Have spare fuses and standby circuits ready

Test the intercom system.

Is the emergency work light ready?

• Having a technician available to attend to your needs throughout the meeting may be your best insurance policy.

• If the facility where you are holding your meeting has AV equipment available check to make sure it is in good working order.

• Remember that poor-quality AV equipment can ruin a meeting.

To maximize your audio visual budget, try the following:

• If using an outside vendor, choose a reputable company and reserve equipment early. If you have never worked with the supplier before, ask for references and check them.

• Negotiate all costs. Package deals are good for you and the rental companies. If they know your needs and have your timelines, it will be more cost effective.

• Make sure all agreements are in writing. If one company is not able to meet your needs, look at other companies until your needs are met.

• Provide clear instructions in writing. Include agendas and room layouts so your vendors know exactly what you expect.

• If you need help, find experienced production managers and technicians to oversee the AV portions of your event. Introduce yourself to the technicians who will be working your event, and find out how to contact them should the need arise.

• Barter goods and services with your rental companies. They may want to advertise in your publications, exhibit at your trade show, or acquire leads from your attendees.

• Guaranteed performance is often a policy of AV companies. They will compensate clients for rental costs in the event of equipment failure. Even better, many will provide on-site back-up.

Check the audio-visual equipment that is available at the meeting facility you are using. Many facilities have their own in-house audio department. Ask if any audio-visual equipment is included in your room charge? Be sure to check out the quality and age of the equipment provided.

Most facilities only provide a podium and microphone, so you will need to rent additional equipment from a qualified local audio-visual rental company. The facility where you are holding your meeting or the local Convention and Visitors Bureau can provide recommendations.

Yolanda Nash

A very popular idea to use at a wedding these days is having a slideshow for the guest’s entertainment. Of course the slideshow is focused on the couple to be married. It is a sentimental gesture that is sure to leave everyone who is attending your wedding in stitches and in tears.

More than likely you will have to rent a projector for the show. You can find these at any audio/video store. They shouldn’t be too expensive to rent and you can have the salesclerk give you a lesson on how to work it so the presentation goes smoothly.

Your best bet is to ask a younger guest in their teens if they would like to work the projector. Often the younger set knows how to manipulate audio/video equipment better than their adult counterparts.

What to Include in Your Slideshow Presentation at Your Wedding

The slideshow is going to be about the bride and groom, so including pictures of them when they were little, innocent children is vital. You can include funny pictures of food on faces, happy birthdays with toys and cakes as well as a host of other possibilities. You might want to decide beforehand if you are going for laughs from your guests or a more sentimental approach.

You can include pictures of the bride and groom spending time with family and friends before they met. You can also include pictures of the wedding party as well as both the bride and groom’s families. A nice idea is to gather recent pictures of the couple and include them as well.

The Music Means Everything

Another aspect to be considered is the music you will play to accompany the slideshow. Just as choosing the music for your wedding ceremony and reception was an important part of creating the mood, so will it be with the slideshow. Picking the ideal music to accompany the many different photos you will show is key to the success of the venture.

You might choose romantic love songs; you might decide that more contemporary songs with a happy beat are what you want as an accompaniment to the wedding slideshow. You might ask the parents and the attendants what their favorite songs are and include them. A really romantic gesture is to end the slideshow with the song the bride and groom chose to dance their first dance to along with beautiful pictures of the happy couple smiling into the camera.

Michelle Issing

The conference that you have spent months planning went off without a hitch – your attendees, sponsors and exhibitors all left happy and the goals of the conference were accomplished. But now what? To get the most out of your conference start thinking about it not as just a three or four day event, but as a year-long event – continually engaging your audience. Here are some great ways you can utilize technology to easily and effectively communicate with your attendees, potential attendees, exhibitors and sponsors to keep your conference going year-round.

Podcasting

Podcasting is fast becoming one of the most popular ways to distribute electronic media. Any form of electronic recording (video or audio) can be turned into a podcast for distribution over the Internet and can be replayed on a computer or MP3 player.

Conference sessions can be recorded and offered as downloads from the conference website. This can be a valuable resource to attendees and a great way to let those that did not attend the conference see what they missed. Try “releasing” one session podcast a month or take one of the longer keynote presentations and break it up into smaller sections to create a podcast series.

Other podcasting ideas include recording conference attendee testimonials or “teasers” for next year’s conference. If you already have speakers confirmed for next years event have them record a short segment about what they plan to speak on. As a sponsor benefit, offer sponsorships of podcasts to increase sponsor visibility throughout the year.

Online Communities

One of the most beneficial parts of attending a conference is networking and sharing ideas – so why limit that experience to just the conference? There are several technology tools that you can easily set up to give this experience to your attendees year-round. The newest and most robust is a blog – the next generation of online discussion forums.

A conference blog offers a central location for interested parties to post messages that become on-going online conversations on many different topics. Individual discussion threads can be categorized by topic and date. Blog topics can parallel conference development activities such as venue selection, conference schedule, general session speakers as well as breakout session topics. This makes for a tremendous vehicle to attract interested individuals to your organization and conference.

Targeted eNewsletters

eNewlsetters are a great way to market an upcoming conference to your potential attendees, but why should everyone get the same one? If you have been able to track session attendance during past conferences or capture demographic information about an attendee during registration, you already have a goldmine of information. Use that information to create a segmented mailing list and create specific eNewletters just for them. This can be articles of interest, current events or even just a list of the upcoming conference sessions that they may be interested in.

Need help with any of the items above or developing a 12-month marketing plan? Contact Designing Events at info@designingevents.com or 866-867-1933.

Michelle Issing

For many meeting planners, technology is all about helping us perform our jobs more efficiently – from online registration systems, printing name badges, tracking attendees and managing budgets. Sometimes it may be easy to forget that technology plays a very important role in an attendee’s experience. Below are some ways technology can improve that experience.

Wow – That Was a Great Presentation!
In today’s world of instant information, near constant Internet access and ever-changing technology, attendees are beginning to expect more than just a single speaker reading off of PowerPoint slides. Technology makes it easy to really jazz up your presentations and begin to truly engage your audience. PowerPoint can easily be combined with Flash animations, embedded audio and video and other cool features that can really enhance a presentation.

Wait – Don’t Go!
It does not matter how great the presentations are if the attendees don’t attend. Keeping attendees in the meeting environment is always a challenge for planners, especially with the distraction of PDAs and cell phones. Setting up an Internet café outside of meeting rooms that provides Internet access between sessions will encourage attendees to stick around.

Giveaways – Yes Please!
With the PhRMA code and the new California Marketing Compliance Law (CMCL) restricting what giveaways are appropriate, wowing attendees with expensive giveaways are a thing of the past. One giveaway that has recently become popular is a USB flash drive imprinted with a company or conference logo. Information about the company or conference can be saved on the drive for attendees to access later. Attendees can easily use the drive for other purposes.

That Would Have Been Cool…
Technology is wonderful when it works, but if something goes wrong it can leave a bad impression of the presenter and the conference. Every failure can’t be avoided, but you should take steps to ensure that they are few and far between. Be sure that you have full IT support throughout the entire conference in the meeting spaces, Internet cafes and the exhibit hall.

The Next Best Thing
Technology is always changing and attendees will not always be impressed with technology that was new yesterday. Don’t wait until you have seen something at several conferences before trying it. To keep your conference fresh and innovative – push the envelope!