What’s Next: Trends to Bet On in 2011
8:30-9:15 a.m.

Do you know the difference between a trend and a fad? It’s an important question for event planners: Create an experience that’s attached to passing fads and you risk being out of date before the year is over. Create an experience that’s too traditional, and your guests will associate you with being out of touch. In this session, learn how to find the sweet spot between the two, and what trends are worth investing in.

Speaker: Andre Shahrdar, Vice President, Barkley Kalpak Associates

Spicing it Up: Getting Creative with Catering
11:00-11:45 a.m.

Learn the latest in catering trends and food presentation, from the use of multiple tasting stations to the rising popularity of comfort food combined with more sophisticated fare. Plus, find out how to make smart choices that work with your particular venue, how to leverage food to enhance guest interaction, and get tips on how to make the most of the client/caterer relationship.

Speakers: Jon Riley, Executive Chef, Capers Catering
                  Kristen O’Conner, Event Planner, Capers Catering

Green Event Production and Sustainable Choices
11:50 a.m.-12:35 p.m.

“Eco-friendly” isn’t just a buzzword—it’s becoming an event imperative. Get a rundown of the latest green event trends, hear advice for greening your own programs and walk away with a hit list of earth-friendly tips. Plus, learn how one green event planner is integrating sustainable choices into new event partnerships one element at a time.

Maximizing Event Performance in Times of Change
2:00-2:45 p.m.

If the rules of events and meetings are being rewritten, you’d better master the new playbook. Take a look at best practices, trends and case studies that will help you maximize it all—your budget, your events, your attendees’ experiences—in any economic environment.

Leveraging Sponsorship Opportunities
3:15-4:00 p.m.

With budgets leaner than ever, knowing how to land sponsors who can help offset the cost of your event has become a crucial aspect of the planning process. Now is the time to become appealing to potential partners. In this session you’ll learn about the event elements that sponsors find valuable, how to frame the value of what your event has to offer and how to create winning partnerships.

Speaker: Christina Pappas, Founder, Open the Door

Understanding Budgets: A Primer on Conversations with C-Level Execs
8:30-9:15 a.m.

More than ever, planners are being asked to talk budget with their higher-ups. But you can’t have that conversation without the right vocabulary. In this session you’ll learn how to present the right information in the right language to effectively present (and prove) the value of your meetings and events to c-level executives.

Planning the Low-Key, High-Value Recognition Event
11:00-11:45 a.m.

Managing the perception factor when executing a lavish event continues to be a priority for planners—discretion remains key, no matter the budget. How, then, to entertain guests and please clients without appearing too extravagant or excessive? This session will explore ways to fly under-the-radar, while keeping VIP clients and incentive winners happy.

Hotel and Venue Contracts: Negotiating F&B Clauses and Food Donation
11:50 a.m.-12:35 p.m.

Knowledge is power—particularly when it comes to negotiating venue contracts. In this session, planners will learn the ins and outs of negotiating F&B clauses with venues and hotels, including a primer on how to ensure that certain sustainable practices, such as food donation, don’t get left by the wayside.

Gearing Up for a Dynamite Product Launch
2:00-2:45 p.m.

As brands grow, so do their product offerings. How do you engage and inspire customers, and present each season’s newest products with a fresh perspective? In this session you’ll learn how to make events a critical part of the go-to-market strategy, turn your internal sales meetings into marketing opportunities and create a new approach to showcasing multiple product offerings under one event umbrella.

Pulling it Together: Creating an Integrated Program Design
3:15-4:00 p.m.

Creating consistency across your event portfolio is critical to saving money, eliminating costly redundancies and giving attendees an experience that’s 100-percent on-brand. Learn how to create an integrated theme across your event programs while maximizing brand awareness at every touch point. You’ll learn the benefits of hiring local professionals, plus do-it-yourself planning tips, from collateral to environment to F&B and beyond.

Speakers: Erica Jordan and Gayle Gilberto, Event Producers, Art of the Event

Social Media-driven Events: How to Drive Attendance with Analytics
8:30-9:15 a.m.

Attendee marketing has evolved from a simple outreach process to an artform—and in many cases, a science. This session will discuss how to develop realistic and measureable objectives for your social media tactics, implement a closed loop-marketing plan and unveil the analytic techniques needed to make social media-driven events a success.

The Virtual Toolbox: How to Execute Virtual Events
11:00-11:45 a.m.

New virtual event platforms are revolutionizing the industry, so you best be familiar with what’s out there—and what’s to come. In this session, we break it down step by step. Planners will learn how to plan and execute events in the virtual space using the latest technologies and how to leverage live events with virtual ones for maximum effect.

Leveraging the Power of Social Networking
11:50 a.m.-12:35 p.m.

Twitter. Facebook. YouTube. Nowadays, if you’re not integrating them into your events, you’re way behind the curve. But, how do you get started? What are the best ways to tap into these word-of-mouth goldmines? Fear not—in this session, an expert in the field will take you through the basics and provide easy tips to make social networking work for your events.

Speaker: Pat O’Malley, President, 617-PATRICK Social Media Consulting

Small Business Planning Tips for the Event Planner
2:00-2:45 p.m.

Event planners are well known for their unique combination of creativity and  project management skills. But many still lack the business and marketing know-how required to take their careers and events to the next level. Time to find and connect the missing links. This mini-MBA session is jam packed with simple key questions and practical tips geared especially for the planner on the move.

2011 Event Technology Review: Top Gadgets, Devices and High-Tech Tools
3:15-4:00 p.m.

Today’s high-tech devices can streamline registration, boost engagement among attendees and give age-old standbys—like name tags and badges—a seriously cool upgrade that’s not only functional, but fun for attendees, too. In this session, you’ll get the lowdown on what’s hot and what you need to know about the handhelds and gadgets that are changing the way attendees experience events.

Speaker: Jessica Heasley, Executive Editor, Best Events Magazine