How to become a game changer in the event industry

There’s no shortage of advice on how to become a great event manager. Thousands of articles fight for your attention, each promising the ultimate way of achieving success, and you probably love reading articles such as “The Top Eight Tips on How to Be a Successful Planner,” or “Ten Qualities Great Event Managers Should Have.” These articles reassure, more than educate, that you are on the right track and you have everything you need to become the best.

There is no doubt, receiving tips, such as how to develop interpersonal skills, understand your clients, and think like your attendees may help you deliver better event experiences. However, if you truly want to level up your game, this is not enough.

If you wish to exceed the standard level, and become one of the leading professionals in an industry as competitive as event management, you need the mindset of a dedicated and trained athlete.

Do you know the difference between a good tennis player and a great one? Apart from hard work, ambition, and a success-driven attitude, great tennis players obsess over the grip and string tension of their rackets.

Retired professional tennis player and former World No. 1 Andre Agassi confirms in his book Open: An autobiography, “When I pull a fresh racket from my bag and try to serve out a match, the string tension can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.” He continues, saying: “A millimeter difference, near the end of a four-hour match, can feel as irritating and distracting as a pebble in my shoe.”

The same thing works for event professionals.

The “planning equipment” you work with matters. If you want to improve your game and become a great event manager, you’ll have to invest in a good online event platform.

And here’s why:

Keep up with the competition

According to Dr. Rob Davidson, Managing Director of MICE Knowledge, “The meetings and events industry has seen global growth in 2016, with increasing demand for our services and facilities as well as, in many world regions, increased budgets.”

In addition, as mentioned in the 2017 Global Meetings and Events Forecast published by American Express Meetings & Events, “In many ways, 2017 will reflect 2016 meetings and events activity across North America with little change in the number of meetings. This consistency suggests a leveling off after the positive growth of the past two years.”

With so many players, offers, and requirements, the event industry is a complex game to play. To keep up with the competition, attract new clients, and add incredible value to your attendees (who aren’t easily impressed), it’s necessary to find new ways to enhance your event management services. Luckily, the only step is simply, to “equip” yourself with the best event online platform and work on refining how you plan and run events.

Know the difference between imaginary and real solutions

The market of event apps and platforms is constantly growing. Thus, the most important thing is to know how to distinguish between the “another event app” and the more beneficial and constructive solutions you need for the improvement of your game. For example, there are event platforms or applications that just inform attendees about the event. Whilst being helpful, for a high-quality experience, you need to engage your guests a little more during the event. This is possible and efficient, if you have the right tools. Good event platforms or apps provide real solutions, helping you not only to overcome the challenges, but also to improve greatly the quality of your events.

Gain time for creativity and innovation

To be a game changer in the event industry, running unique events to impress your attendees (not to mention clients!), is a must. However, this is made more difficult, if all of your time goes to solving logistic issues, constantly updating spreadsheets, or trying to figure out how to set up a good event webpage.

A powerful online event platform or app will save you a great deal of frustration, eliminating the inconvenient logistic problems. You’ll have more time to be creative and innovative, designing a truly unique event that will add great value to your guests. By doing so, you have full control over the logistics and have plenty of energy to craft the exact event you dream of.

Use the data about your attendees purposefully

According to Issa Jouaneh, Senior Vice President and General Manager, American Express Meetings & Events, “As adoption of meetings management programs increases across all regions, we see continued growth of technology use as well. Meetings management technology remains a central focus as mature organizations look to improve the data collected from their programs and how they use that data to inform program decisions.”

By having the right online event platform, that helps you interpret and wisely use attendee data (and not only measuring the number of registrations), you can deliver memorable and empowering event experiences, positioning yourself as a powerful influence within the industry.

Maintain a sustainable life-work balance

Is there anything more important than finding a positive balance between your professional and personal life? We all know that being an event manager implies a multitude of stressful moments, restless days, and working weekends. Only a good event management platform or app can help you plan a stress-free event and avoid the tiredness of demanding logistic tasks. Subsequently, by assuring quality time for rest, personal interests, and family or friends, you’ll maintain a high-level performance when planning and running your events.

Wrap up

Becoming a game changer in the event industry is not about working even more than you already do. Stop dreaming about 36-hour-long days. This won’t happen. Becoming a great event professional means knowing how to advance your game by investing in a good online event platform or application.
It helps you gain more time to be creative and innovative, access important data about your attendees, keep up with your competition, and maintain a positive life-work balance. To be a game changer, you don’t need the “top eight tips to be a successful event planner.” You need a powerful tool that will enhance your professional skills and make room for REAL improvements.