From the Director of Education: Conferences & Continuing Education

By Kristen Dickson, CSEP

January is almost here (can you believe it) which means that The Special Event Conference is just around the corner! As we prepare to jet off (or caravan into) the Big Easy, I've been thinking about my last conference experience, at EventWorld in San Francisco. It was the first conference I've been to since attending The Special Event in Dallas, and I had such a good experience that I now consider myself "a conference junkie."

As Director of Education for the ISES Dallas Chapter, I very strongly believe in Continuing Education as a tool to strengthen my expertise and skill level as an event professional. While in San Francisco, I had several tangible "a-ha!" moments that I have been able to use in my business this fall.

One of the sessions I attended was "Setting Client Expectations," with Dale Harmon from Plants Alive in DC. One of the most interesting things that he does from the very first meeting is to interview the client. He always asks, "Where have you done business before? Have you ever hired a caterer/florist/prop company?" This way, you not only get an idea for their frame of reference and budget level, you also get a gauge from their past vendors on what it is like to work with them as clients. We also talked as a group about how to control communication levels, especially with social clients; one firm has had great success with telling their clients, "We'd like to talk with you each week/month on the phone at this designated time," which not only gives you internal deadlines, but also gives them an opportunity to gather their questions and know exactly when they will be able to reach you. Loved it!

I also attended "5 Things to Know About Event Design" with David Merrell, AOO Events in LA. David is brilliant at creating truly stunning event atmospheres in three major ways: First, he "puts all of his eggs in one basket" by concentrating on focal points, which create maximum impact. The second method is lighting; the events that he creates out of lighting alone are truly spectacular. The third method is by designing to the space and making it look like the décor within was meant to be there-he mentioned that especially with corporate clients, many of them are still willing to spend money, but it can in no way look "over the top" or irresponsible.

One of the other sessions I attended was on Event Insurance, which made me first want to hightail it to the next insurance agent I saw and give him all my money. We learned a lot about how very dangerous our business can be and how easily we can be sued. We learned about occurrence policies, workers comp, property coverage and the difference between general liability and professional liability. If you do not have insurance, I highly, highly recommend that you arrange a meeting with a company who specializes in the special event industry. It is not very expensive and can make a world of difference.

Hope to see yall in January!