Meeting and event audiovisual is one of those things as an attendee you often don’t notice until it blows you away—or blows up a meeting when it doesn’t work. Following are some key observations by meeting planners and AV suppliers on how planners should enter the audiovisual void and negotiate with confidence, with an eye on the bottom line.

Comply365 is an innovative software company headquartered in Beloit, Wis., and holds Connections365, its annual users conference, in the fall. Typically, the company hosted Connections365 in large cities such as Dallas, Chicago and Orlando for its primarily airline-based clients. In 2016, Comply365 decided to change things up and hosted the conference in its hometown of Beloit, welcoming more than 200 attendees from across the country and globe for a two-day event in the Midwest.

The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory delivers a more specialized private party setting for planners.

Just when you thought Cleveland’s Convention Center Campus couldn’t get better, we added new amenities, building additions, Cleveland artwork, and more meeting and event space, making our campus more convenient than ever!

Meeting planners can and should be on the front lines of combatting child trafficking.

Tracy Stuckrath of thrive meetings&events describes the need for safe and inclusive F&B options at meetings and some tips for how to achieve this  goal so all attendees are welcome.

It's been nearly a year since actress Alyssa Milano reignited the #MeToo movement, persuading millions of people to take a stand against sexual harassment. Today, two women are moving the conversation forward in the meetings and events industry, helping planners and organizations fight and address misconduct. Sarah Soliman Daudin, president and CEO of Soliman Productions, and Courtney Stanley, speaker, writer and business consultant at CS Consulting, created #MeetingsToo and launched a presentation, How to Prevent and Manage Sexual Harassment at Events, at the recent 2018 MPI World Education Congress (WEC) in Indianapolis. 

Aerialists hung from the rafters pouring Champagne. Electronic violinists meandered through the crowd on stilts. Benjamin Franklin looked on from his elevated perch inside the museum that bears his name. This was no average cocktail party. It was the opening event for the 2017 RIMS Conference and Exhibition in Philadelphia. These ideas were born nearly a year prior as the Philadelphia CVB assisted RIMS in hosting its INsite Tour, a two-and-half-day-long scouting trip for RIMS meeting planners and their major exhibitors.

With a recent surge of growth, the cities of Southwest Michigan are ready to host more groups and events. New-builds and property restorations are drawing locals and visitors alike back to the downtown neighborhoods. Recently opened hotels have added to room counts, with more properties expected to debut later this year and early next, and convention center and venue projects are adding even more meeting square footage to this region.

Some might say Savannah is about as deep as you can go in the Deep South. But groups can go even deeper by visiting the neighborhoods in and around the city, discovering culture, nature and history while gaining a deeper appreciation for this seaside haven that is not only the state’s oldest city but one of its most photogenic.