Robin offers tips and best practices that you can apply immediately and effectively to your job. By Don Douloff, August 05, 2010

Robin Paisley

Planning a meeting for meeting planners would seem a fool’s game. After all, you’re organizing an event for the very people who do it for a living (i.e. the World’s Most Critical Audience). Yet for almost 20 years, M&IT has organized the premier meetings-industry conference and trade show, which, in that time, has become Canada’s benchmark, must-attend event.

Each year, through much hard work and resourcefulness, Rogers’ peerless events team rises to the challenge and puts together a show that combines relevant and timely education sessions and a trade floor that, in size and scope, has no equal in the country.

But as we near the end of our second decade, we thought it was time to pull back the curtain, so to speak, and provide a glimpse into the show and the personalities behind it.

IncentiveWorks is unique because it is, at its heart, multiple smaller events (trade show, education, networking, conference, special event [closing gala] and strategic partnerships) rolled into one. The show is also unique in that it engages the entire Canadian industry, while simultaneously engaging its own, unique, ‘comprehensive, all-in-one event’ theme.

With that in mind, Robin Paisley, our director of events, has complied a list of IncentiveWorks Best Practices that you can apply immediately.

Choose your suppliers wisely. The larger the event, the more complicated it is to change your key players. And since you’ll be using these suppliers for years to come, invest the time to research them thoroughly before you hire them. Remember, the best price is rarely the best service. Many suppliers now offer more than a single service, so bundling several service components can work to your advantage.

Make your suppliers part of your team. You want them to know your event as well as you do. They are experts and can always find ways to save you time, resources and money.

Don’t take on too many volunteers. Volunteers are a lot to manage. Interview them (even if it’s over the phone) and choose a small group. We actually bring them in and start them working in our show office for a few hours on tasks we can only complete onsite. Then we brief them. That way, if we see anyone who doesn’t have the right skills for what we have assigned, we can reallocate them before we get rolling.

Keep your registration simple. Don’t off er too many options at too many price points. It can add much more work (and programming costs) that will off set any additional monies you’ll make.

Write it down! No matter how good your memory is, commit everything to paper. Years ago, I started a folder. Every time I had a good idea about one of our events, but it wasn’t the right time in the lifecycle to act on it, I would write it down for the following year. Some
of those ideas have made it into reality — many haven’t — but that file is an excellent way to get the creative juices flowing.

Always offer networking. Your attendees want it and if you don’t carve out time for it, they will create it on their own.

Develop Strategic Partnerships. Think about how other companies and/or associations can benefit from, or provide benefit to, your event. Pick up the phone and call. You never know were it can lead. Sometimes partnership opportunities come up at the wrong time. Don’t be afraid to push it to next year. You are much be er off to do it right, than to push it too early.

Robin Paisley

Spearheading IncentiveWorks is Robin Paisley, M&IT’s director of events. Each year, she does the impossible: manages every aspect of the event, from the trade show and exhibitors, to the networking, education and the closing party.
This year, Robin celebrates her tenth year with the magazine and the show, so we thought we’d give you an up-close-and personal look at this dynamo.

Robin joined M&IT in November, 2000. Prior to that, from 1996 to 2000, she’d worked as a third-party meeting planner at Mosaic Group Inc. (Panorama Conference Management). Initially, Robin was not only the trade show’s promotion and event manager, but also the magazine’s production manager. In time, her role evolved and she was named director of events.

Vital Statistics
Hometown: Ennismore, Ont.

Education: Fleming College, graduate of Convention Management and Tourism and Transportation Programme.

Children: Two – Eric, 5, and Dana, 3.

Mantra: “Yoga is my sanity.”

After Hours: This spring, Robin joined a Learn to Run club, so she can run, this fall, to raise money for the Asperger’s Society of Ontario.

Industry Activities: Memberships: MPI (Meeting Professionals International) Toronto Chapter and CAEM (Canadian Association of Exposition Managers). Currently Volunteers: CAEM 2010 Conference; MPI Special Events
Committee; Education Advisory Board, Fleming College’s Event Management Programme.