Now that the holidays are over and everyone is getting back to their routines. Charisma Productions Network thought that we can help everyone ease into the New Year with a little humor. So this edition is focused on laughter and humor.
Let’s start with company holiday parties. Did you do anything embarrassing at the company Christmas party? Did you play, who was the best and worst dressed? Did you overindulge with food or beverage? We understand, we’ve all attended our share of these. Some are fun, some are boring, some you just want to forget altogether and a few, you just lie and tell people you never attended that one. And do we have stories to tell. But we’ll keep those to ourselves for now, but if you share some of yours, we’ll share some of ours.
So, let’s move on to those vendor gifts. How many vendors sent you the all too familiar popcorn tin? Or did anyone get a fruitcake? Or what about a meat and cheese on a carving board set?
Now think about it, if you’ve received any of the above mentioned gifts, you are either on the bottom of their totem pole or they are frugal. I think we’ve all seen our share of “unique” gifts. Here’s a few funny one’with so much vendor advertisement on it that we couldn’t see the actual days on them, oh by the way, did I tell you we don’t even know who that vendor is? We have never worked with them before.
We want to know what the strangest gifts you’ve received were because we want to share them in our next issue. Or, if you would like, tell us about your embarrassing moment (We promise not to mention your name and company)?
Now the parties are done and the New Year’s resolutions kick in. We know, we know; you have to start your diet or you exercise program or you are giving up cigarettes. What about your work resolutions? How about being more organized? Well, you know? You walk into your office after the New Year and clean your desk and make new files and swear that you will keep up with it for the rest of the year. Then you get bombarded with meetings, emails that need to be read (The Charisma Productions Gazette) or responded to, memos that need to get out, events to plan, RFP’s to send, phone messages that need return calls (within 24 hours, not the usual 4 days later or not at all and hope they call back). Then sticky notes get posted around your computer screen and on your desk and all of a sudden, your desk looks just like it did last year.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
WHERE HAS CUSTOMER SERVICE GONE?
Back in the day you could go almost anywhere and you would find a friendly face to help you find what you needed, they would give you recommendations and suggestions and always had the product information memorized, and if not, would find it for you immediately. What Happened!? Now a days when you go to a service establishment, you either can't find anyone, or they're in a small group chit chatting and planning their next happy hour. Then when you ask for help instead of helpful assistance you get a blank look.
How many times, when you shopped around for service did the representative profess customer service, quality care and let's not forget the "Call me anytime if you have a question?" Then you finally make a choice of a vendor / supplier, sign a contract and all of a sudden the calls, the service and the care disappear.
Have you experienced this recently? all too often, I have found the need to question, what happened to customer service?!
So many times when meeting planners / coordinators choose venues and Audio Visual Production companies, they are romanced and offered the sun, the moon, and the stars, but after the contract is signed, it's a whole different picture. Audio Visual companies tell you they have the "Top of the line" equipment and when it arrives, it's outdated equipment and sometimes does not even work correctly. What happened to those meetings? How does that make the planner / coordinator look, when the sound is not working or the screens are wrinkled and sometimes not matching because the projectors are not the same brand, or one has more lamp hours burned on it.
Here is a perfect example, one of our recent new-hires had this to say during their interview "Recently I worked with an Audio Visual company that told me to just make sure I got the client to sign the contract, then we could add all the extra labor and extra fees afterwards," Basically he told me to reel them in, then we could stick it to them". I was horrified that companies would actually contemplate doing that to a valued client. Having worked in the Customer Service industry all my life and knowing that if you treat a client with respect and follow your word and promise of service, you will probably have that client for many years. I found it appalling and walked out the door. This was against my belief of service and I realized that the owner ran his business in what was in my opinion nothing short of deceptive, which I wanted no part of.
Before hiring on with another company, I researched companies and did my own reference checks. That's when I came to Charisma Productions Network. I found that they not only carried out their professed quality care and customer service but they actually educated their clients and let them know when they were being over charged by a provider or venue, and in some cases actually renegotiated the terms and contracts for venues. Their work ethics, customer service standards, their attention to detail, and most importantly their honesty with the clients was the main decision maker for me.
This situation is not the rule but seems to be the norm in today's world. It's sad to think that as a meeting planer, you're thinking of what a professional event you're going to present and then you cannot even get your service providers on the phone when situations begin to pop up and changes need to be made. This is when panic begins to take effect. It seems everyone is doing it, hotels, meeting facilities, AV companies even production companies.
Some hotels tell you that it is mandatory to use their in-house audio visual company (which normally ends up costing you more money than using an outside vendor). Also, you need to read the VERY FINE print on those venue contracts. That's where they sometimes put down room space and not actual room names, which sometimes ends up with you not having use of the rooms that you were promised, and also restrict you from a reasonable time to set up you special event. Even minor changes can turn into major problems and major expense, when in reality, it should not have happened in the first place.
As a corporate planner, when the events are not 100% of what you had anticipated you look bad in front of your client or boss. Your reputation is in jeopardy of being attacked because you are the one who will have to explain the WHY? things did not run as smoothly as you had promised your client or boss, and you also end up explaining all those extra charges that were not on the contract.
When you talk about planning a meetings, conference, product launch, or corporate tours you should always get at least 3 bids, from production or audio visual companies, and see what each has to offer. Then before making your final decision, ask for references, check their websites, and look for testimonials. Referrals from other meeting planners are also very helpful. If the company you are considering is not willing to provide you with this information, you should be very cautious. Planners need to be savvy in who's who in the meeting industry. Not all who profess to have the quality care and service actually bring it to full term.
E-mail me your opinions at info@cpnevents.com
Share Your Comments On Our Blog
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Don’t Believe the Snow Job the Facilities Give You!
Back-end hidden fees
Mandatory usage of in-house AV
Charisma Productions Network
Have you ever put together an event or meeting and used a facility? Did you need AV for your event? Did the facility tell you that is was mandatory to use their in-house AV? Well, guess what? That’s a “snow job” the facilities use to make even more money from unknowing planners. Most facilities use private inhouse AV companies that have negotiated with the facility to provide service. What does this mean? Basically it means that the AV company provides an estimate of all the equipment that you request and labor needed to complete the task.
When your company sends the facility an RFP they have to make a profit on AV equipment and labor as well. In order for them to make their profit, an extra 40% - 60% is added to your cost on top of the equipment and labor rates. Let’s face it, they’re in business, like everybody else to make a profit.
In-house AV services charge you 40%-60% more than a production company. Why? Because they have contracted with facilities and they have to pay the facility to be there. So, for example, a power surge protector that you need in a conference room, can cost up as much as $50 per day compared to a using an outside AV production company which usually includes power strips and A/C cables at no charge. What a difference!
After making numerous calls in the past months and hearing companies say that the facility they are utilizing has told them that it is mandatory that they use their in-house AV, I found the need to inform planners that this is not true! You don’t need to utilize in-house AV. As a matter of fact, by doing so, you will have a MUCH higher AV bill than utilizing a production company. Not only will you get a much lower AV bill, but you will also get more personalized service.
Also, by utilizing an outside production company you get a project manager that only works on your event. Whereas using the in-house company, they are there for the whole facility and the response time is very slow. On average the response time for an in-house AV service is 7 minutes as compared to an outside production company, working only for your company, of 1.25 minutes.
When you give an RFP to a facility, they may come within your budget, but if you’re not careful and don’t read the fine print, you may get caught “holding the bag”. Every time you make a change, no matter how small, you will be charged extra. At the end of the event, when you get your final bill you’ll find surprise back-end service charges, local and city taxes, labor charges, that you weren’t expecting.
So the next time you begin planning and choosing your facility, make sure the facility can accommodate the number of your attendees and rooms needed for your meetings. Also be sure they can put this in writing and that they will not do double booking for the same meeting rooms in your allotted time frame, because, you must remember, any changes made, big or small, will be done at your cost.
One important question to ask is if they are a union or non-union facility. This can bring on even more charges because union facilities have higher labor rates.
Most importantly remember always send your RFP with your budget constraints out to bid. Get at least 3 bids, one being your facility, and see who can, not only, stay within the restraints of your budget, but can also provide you with the service that you would like to have. This is not going to cost you extra. Bids on RFP’s are at no charge to you.
Mandatory usage of in-house AV
Charisma Productions Network
Have you ever put together an event or meeting and used a facility? Did you need AV for your event? Did the facility tell you that is was mandatory to use their in-house AV? Well, guess what? That’s a “snow job” the facilities use to make even more money from unknowing planners. Most facilities use private inhouse AV companies that have negotiated with the facility to provide service. What does this mean? Basically it means that the AV company provides an estimate of all the equipment that you request and labor needed to complete the task.
When your company sends the facility an RFP they have to make a profit on AV equipment and labor as well. In order for them to make their profit, an extra 40% - 60% is added to your cost on top of the equipment and labor rates. Let’s face it, they’re in business, like everybody else to make a profit.
In-house AV services charge you 40%-60% more than a production company. Why? Because they have contracted with facilities and they have to pay the facility to be there. So, for example, a power surge protector that you need in a conference room, can cost up as much as $50 per day compared to a using an outside AV production company which usually includes power strips and A/C cables at no charge. What a difference!
After making numerous calls in the past months and hearing companies say that the facility they are utilizing has told them that it is mandatory that they use their in-house AV, I found the need to inform planners that this is not true! You don’t need to utilize in-house AV. As a matter of fact, by doing so, you will have a MUCH higher AV bill than utilizing a production company. Not only will you get a much lower AV bill, but you will also get more personalized service.
Also, by utilizing an outside production company you get a project manager that only works on your event. Whereas using the in-house company, they are there for the whole facility and the response time is very slow. On average the response time for an in-house AV service is 7 minutes as compared to an outside production company, working only for your company, of 1.25 minutes.
When you give an RFP to a facility, they may come within your budget, but if you’re not careful and don’t read the fine print, you may get caught “holding the bag”. Every time you make a change, no matter how small, you will be charged extra. At the end of the event, when you get your final bill you’ll find surprise back-end service charges, local and city taxes, labor charges, that you weren’t expecting.
So the next time you begin planning and choosing your facility, make sure the facility can accommodate the number of your attendees and rooms needed for your meetings. Also be sure they can put this in writing and that they will not do double booking for the same meeting rooms in your allotted time frame, because, you must remember, any changes made, big or small, will be done at your cost.
One important question to ask is if they are a union or non-union facility. This can bring on even more charges because union facilities have higher labor rates.
Most importantly remember always send your RFP with your budget constraints out to bid. Get at least 3 bids, one being your facility, and see who can, not only, stay within the restraints of your budget, but can also provide you with the service that you would like to have. This is not going to cost you extra. Bids on RFP’s are at no charge to you.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Event Marketing Boosts Business During Challenging Times
The economic crisis is taking its toll on nearly every industry, and many companies are slashing their marketing budgets to save on expenses. But if we all turn into penny pinchers and scale back on relationship building, our customers are likely to, well, forget about us. Tough times give companies a great opportunity to step out and get noticed; those who keep building relationships are the ones that can fly ahead of the competition.
Research shows that recessions rarely have an adverse impact on spending overall. In fact, studies in every recession since 1940 show that income – and possibly expenditures – rarely declined more than 2 percent. People are still spending money and event marketing can get your company in front of clients so they remember you, connect with you, and most importantly, turn to you first with their dollars.
If your marketing budget is still fairly small, a strategy that typically generates a high return on investment is planning an event. There are plenty of ways to work around even the tightest marketing budget, and creating meaningful events is essential to your success. Whether you’re sponsoring an event or hosting your own, a special event generates immediate interest from potential clients and positions you as a leader in your industry. The result? Brand awareness and maintaining a ‘top of mind’ status.
Staging an event also offers networking benefits; your company can work with local vendors and develop some co-marketing or co-branding initiatives in the future. One of the biggest benefits of event marketing is the word-of-mouth effect that ensues; when clients are excited about a sensational event or interesting activity, they are more than likely tell friends, family members and business associates about it – and are promoting your business as a result. Simply put, hosting an event can be a powerful marketing strategy.
As an event and marketing professional, I understand the importance of building relationships with vendors and collaborative marketing efforts to get in front of the clients by planning vendor meet and greets, client socials and industry expos. By developing one-of-a-kind experiences for your clients, you’ll naturally increase your ROI and can measure the success of the event with surveys or tracking purchases. Event technology can easily log client activity to determine if purchases were made after the event, and tally survey results within seconds.
I encourage businesses to get in front of your clients by planning events during these turbulent economic times. Here are some helpful tips to get you started on your event:
1. Plan it out. Set attainable goals and expectations for your event and give yourself plenty of time to plan out what you want to achieve by having the event, putting together a budget, and ways to be creative to wow your guests.
2. Collaborate your efforts. This sets the stage for sponsorships and co-marketing ideas by teaming up with vendors. This is a great way to cut costs, build a relationship and rely on each other for referrals as you both grow your business.
3. Hire an event planner or dedicated team member. The last thing you want to do is execute a bad event; you want people raving about the experience, not complaining! If you’re on a very tight budget, consider hiring an event planner only for the day of your event to make sure everything runs smoothly.
4. Promote your business before the event. Plan ahead to create marketing materials and get the publicity you need to promote the event long enough to generate strong interest. Call campaigning is a great strategy to personalize the invites by calling attendees to confirm attendance and provides them with the ‘ultimate’ experience from beginning to end.
5. Be resourceful and fun. Consider hosting an event at a restaurant instead of a hotel to save on room fees; most restaurants don’t charge a room fee for private rooms. Having your event at sites that provide entertainment such as a private charter, upscale venue or cooking school can also help provide a unique experience for your guests.
6. Host a late-afternoon soiree. If you can’t afford to host a luncheon or dinner banquet, consider hosting the event from 2:00 – 4:30 so you can serve lights snacks and non-alcoholic beverages instead.
As John F. Kennedy once said, “When written in Chinese, the word "crisis" is composed of two characters-one represents danger, and the other represents opportunity.”
By building lasting relationships with vendors and clients through event marketing, we can truly see the value in keeping our marketing budgets and seeking opportunity during challenging times.
Research shows that recessions rarely have an adverse impact on spending overall. In fact, studies in every recession since 1940 show that income – and possibly expenditures – rarely declined more than 2 percent. People are still spending money and event marketing can get your company in front of clients so they remember you, connect with you, and most importantly, turn to you first with their dollars.
If your marketing budget is still fairly small, a strategy that typically generates a high return on investment is planning an event. There are plenty of ways to work around even the tightest marketing budget, and creating meaningful events is essential to your success. Whether you’re sponsoring an event or hosting your own, a special event generates immediate interest from potential clients and positions you as a leader in your industry. The result? Brand awareness and maintaining a ‘top of mind’ status.
Staging an event also offers networking benefits; your company can work with local vendors and develop some co-marketing or co-branding initiatives in the future. One of the biggest benefits of event marketing is the word-of-mouth effect that ensues; when clients are excited about a sensational event or interesting activity, they are more than likely tell friends, family members and business associates about it – and are promoting your business as a result. Simply put, hosting an event can be a powerful marketing strategy.
As an event and marketing professional, I understand the importance of building relationships with vendors and collaborative marketing efforts to get in front of the clients by planning vendor meet and greets, client socials and industry expos. By developing one-of-a-kind experiences for your clients, you’ll naturally increase your ROI and can measure the success of the event with surveys or tracking purchases. Event technology can easily log client activity to determine if purchases were made after the event, and tally survey results within seconds.
I encourage businesses to get in front of your clients by planning events during these turbulent economic times. Here are some helpful tips to get you started on your event:
1. Plan it out. Set attainable goals and expectations for your event and give yourself plenty of time to plan out what you want to achieve by having the event, putting together a budget, and ways to be creative to wow your guests.
2. Collaborate your efforts. This sets the stage for sponsorships and co-marketing ideas by teaming up with vendors. This is a great way to cut costs, build a relationship and rely on each other for referrals as you both grow your business.
3. Hire an event planner or dedicated team member. The last thing you want to do is execute a bad event; you want people raving about the experience, not complaining! If you’re on a very tight budget, consider hiring an event planner only for the day of your event to make sure everything runs smoothly.
4. Promote your business before the event. Plan ahead to create marketing materials and get the publicity you need to promote the event long enough to generate strong interest. Call campaigning is a great strategy to personalize the invites by calling attendees to confirm attendance and provides them with the ‘ultimate’ experience from beginning to end.
5. Be resourceful and fun. Consider hosting an event at a restaurant instead of a hotel to save on room fees; most restaurants don’t charge a room fee for private rooms. Having your event at sites that provide entertainment such as a private charter, upscale venue or cooking school can also help provide a unique experience for your guests.
6. Host a late-afternoon soiree. If you can’t afford to host a luncheon or dinner banquet, consider hosting the event from 2:00 – 4:30 so you can serve lights snacks and non-alcoholic beverages instead.
As John F. Kennedy once said, “When written in Chinese, the word "crisis" is composed of two characters-one represents danger, and the other represents opportunity.”
By building lasting relationships with vendors and clients through event marketing, we can truly see the value in keeping our marketing budgets and seeking opportunity during challenging times.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Select Motivational Speakers for Future Events
People are negative and in the economic downturn, motivational speakers are in huge demand. So huge, in fact, that well-known conference centers are booked up quarters in advance, necessitating effective orgainzing to guarantee successful symposiums. But more vital than ideal conference venues are the right motivational speakers. And yet again, if you like the best of the best, you have to select your motivational speakers well in advance.
Motivational speakers come from all industries and segments of life. Some are athletes; others are average people who have broken through impossible hurdles - whether tough personal circumstances, severe illnesses, or difficult careers. But they share one commonality - all have a personal story to share - and audiences can relate to this. Big corporations are utilizing these stories to develop, educate and train their teams.
The drive behind having talks by motivational speakers is to inform and train employees on relevant issues in the marketplace, increase motivation of people, or share best practices to the benefit of the company.
Motivational speakers are in touch with audiences. They facitlitate improvement during conferences. Event planners do careful planning through their spreadsheets before placing motivational speakers. You also need to do your homework well before you choose your motivational speakers and make sure that they are worth the financial investment.
Motivational speakers come from all industries and segments of life. Some are athletes; others are average people who have broken through impossible hurdles - whether tough personal circumstances, severe illnesses, or difficult careers. But they share one commonality - all have a personal story to share - and audiences can relate to this. Big corporations are utilizing these stories to develop, educate and train their teams.
The drive behind having talks by motivational speakers is to inform and train employees on relevant issues in the marketplace, increase motivation of people, or share best practices to the benefit of the company.
Motivational speakers are in touch with audiences. They facitlitate improvement during conferences. Event planners do careful planning through their spreadsheets before placing motivational speakers. You also need to do your homework well before you choose your motivational speakers and make sure that they are worth the financial investment.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Charisma Productions Network is Expanding
Over 25 years ago Charisma Productions Network opened their doors for business, providing a unique service: Live corporate meetings and special event production. Over the years CPN has acquired many dedicated clients.
Facing the tough economic times, business meetings have been getting a lot of bad press. Many companies have cut back budgets for meetings. But there is much added value when you have off-site meetings. In this tough economy, when CPN produces an event it brings temporary jobs to the local economy. Every event that CPN produces, they partner with a corporation which brings funding to the local community they are in by utilizing local talent and services.
Now, after many years, corporations are finding it necessary to hold corporate events and meetings to keep employees motivated and to close the gap in bringing employees closer to the business part of the company, letting them know that they are the foundation of the growth of the company. Meetings are held for many different reasons: to promote new products, to honor employees, to provide continued education in the business, etc. These meetings are such a vital part of the corporate environment; they are designed to have a lasting effect on all attendees. After the meeting is over employees and staff members should be able to take back with them new ideas, become more innovative and efficient. It seems that it is truly an essential business tool. Charisma Productions Network will be there to provide the service they need.
Due to the growing demand by corporations and their understanding of the added value to maintain their employees and keeping clients informed, educated and motivated. Corporations are demanding more sophisticated and technologically oriented presentations. In growing along with corporations and their needs CPN stays a step ahead in forward thinking and technological advances. People are much more receptive to sit in a room with lights, sound and visual effects than to sit in a sterile conference room, looking at a power point presentation with a small hotel note pad, pen and a glass of water in front of them.
Charisma Productions Network has expanded in staff, technology and talent. So why do we do it? There is one big reason: Meetings are stimulating and productive. Meetings with clients help us understand their needs in a way that phone calls, e-mails and web meetings can never quite equal. What sets Charisma Productions Network apart from its competitors is the constant communication with its clients and it’s honesty in pricing. Rarely will a client see any back-end fees.
In September 2009 Charisma Productions Network launched a website (www.charismaproductionsnetwork.com) that is both informative and entertaining. The website displays an array of services that CPN provides as well as clips from recent events produced. CPN is a premier live corporate meeting and event production company with over 25 years industry experience. They have an incredible team of talented individuals worldwide that will make any event completely unforgettable. It will make all attendees talk about it long after the event is over.
Facing the tough economic times, business meetings have been getting a lot of bad press. Many companies have cut back budgets for meetings. But there is much added value when you have off-site meetings. In this tough economy, when CPN produces an event it brings temporary jobs to the local economy. Every event that CPN produces, they partner with a corporation which brings funding to the local community they are in by utilizing local talent and services.
Now, after many years, corporations are finding it necessary to hold corporate events and meetings to keep employees motivated and to close the gap in bringing employees closer to the business part of the company, letting them know that they are the foundation of the growth of the company. Meetings are held for many different reasons: to promote new products, to honor employees, to provide continued education in the business, etc. These meetings are such a vital part of the corporate environment; they are designed to have a lasting effect on all attendees. After the meeting is over employees and staff members should be able to take back with them new ideas, become more innovative and efficient. It seems that it is truly an essential business tool. Charisma Productions Network will be there to provide the service they need.
Due to the growing demand by corporations and their understanding of the added value to maintain their employees and keeping clients informed, educated and motivated. Corporations are demanding more sophisticated and technologically oriented presentations. In growing along with corporations and their needs CPN stays a step ahead in forward thinking and technological advances. People are much more receptive to sit in a room with lights, sound and visual effects than to sit in a sterile conference room, looking at a power point presentation with a small hotel note pad, pen and a glass of water in front of them.
Charisma Productions Network has expanded in staff, technology and talent. So why do we do it? There is one big reason: Meetings are stimulating and productive. Meetings with clients help us understand their needs in a way that phone calls, e-mails and web meetings can never quite equal. What sets Charisma Productions Network apart from its competitors is the constant communication with its clients and it’s honesty in pricing. Rarely will a client see any back-end fees.
In September 2009 Charisma Productions Network launched a website (www.charismaproductionsnetwork.com) that is both informative and entertaining. The website displays an array of services that CPN provides as well as clips from recent events produced. CPN is a premier live corporate meeting and event production company with over 25 years industry experience. They have an incredible team of talented individuals worldwide that will make any event completely unforgettable. It will make all attendees talk about it long after the event is over.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Searching all Corporate Event and Meeting Planners
CPN Events is a premier live corporate event production company with over 25 years in industry experience. We have an incredible team of talented individuals nationwide that will make your event completely unforgettable. Your clients and staff members will be talking about it long after the event is over.
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