Special Events Archives

This morning I had the pleasure of being the featured speaker at the Central Florida Economic Cooperative's Executive Seminar Series, with my new presentation Becoming a Recognized Leader in Your Industry.

The audience was fantastic! They were very engaged and asked a lot of great questions.

The books I mentioned when asked what I am reading now:

Rescuing Sprite: A Dog Lover's Story of Joy and Anguish by Mark Levin - read that this past weekend. It's an incredible read for anyone who has ever lost a beloved dog (or any pet for that matter). Grab a box of Kleenex before you open the cover. Trust me.

Life's Golden Ticket: An Inspirational Novel by Brendon Burchard - I actually read this earlier this Spring (thanks BB for the autographed copy). It will make you think, and I love those type books (there may even still be time to get in on the gifts if you use this link to purchase the book). Brendon is hosting The Life's Golden Ticket Seminar Sept. 26-28 in LongBeach Shoreline (CA). If I wasn't co-hosting the Small Business Summit in Orlando Sept. 26, I would be there. I'm a huge Brendon fan, which is why I readily agreed to provide a giveaway for his recent sweepstakes promotion.

The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About Itby Michael Gerber, one of our featured speakers at the Small Business Summit on Sept. 26.

The Appeal by John Grisham (I was on vacation; besides, he's one of my fav fiction authors). Thinly veiled as fiction, The Appeal is a scary depiction of politics when you consider how close to reality it actually is.

I didn't mention it this morning, but I also read Honor Thyself by Danielle Steel while I was laying on the beach a few weeks ago. Her writing style has always fascinated me.)

Special note for those who attended this morning: the presentation has been uploaded to my website. If you gave me your card, I'll be emailing you shortly with the specific URL; if you didn't have a card with you, leave a comment (or email me directly) with your email address and I'll get the link to you.

Casey Wohl, the Getaway Girl, is counting down the days 'til Christmas. We launched the 12 Days 'til Christmas online promotion this morning to help girls beat the holiday madness.

Today through Dec. 21, Casey will be randomly selecting a daily winner to receive one of several wonderful gifts provided by businesses featured in her book, Girls Getaway Guide to Orlando: Leave Your Baggage at Home. Gifts include gift certificates to local boutiques, hotel resort packages, spa treatments and more.

Sign up for Casey's monthly newsletter, which features a variety of tips, resources, events and more, and you'll automatically be entered into the daily drawing. You can also stay up-to-date on Casey's activities by visiting her blog.

Happy Holidays!

Wishing Casey Wohl another successful book signing tonight for her just released Girls Getaway Guide to Orlando: Leave your Baggage at Home.

5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Highlands Art League, Inc.
351 W. Center Avenue
Sebring, FL 33870

Order your own copy of the book today.

Wendy's PR Crash Course
January 10-11, 2008
Orlando Marriott Downtown

It's official. After years of friends and clients asking why I produce killer seminars and conferences for other people and organizations but never host my own, I'm going to do so.

I've already lined up some of the top PR and business development experts in my personal database (developed over 20 years of actually working in the corporate world and PR industry, not just reading about them). From launching your own publicity campaign to streamlining your business, you'll hear from some of the best.

This will NOT be a "sit in your chair and listen to one talking head after another drone on about how they got super rich in just a few hours with very little effort" seminar. If you're looking to catch lightening in a bottle and get rich quick, this event is NOT for you.

Wendy's PR Crash Course WILL be a highly interactive, hands-on educational seminar from which you will leave with tangible results. You'll actually implement some of the tips and techniques we teach before you ever leave the event. That way, if you have questions, you'll still be in the room with the instructor and can ask questions RIGHT THEN to make sure you've got it.

Normally, I like to have every little detail finalized before I promote an event, but this is going to be so big, I wanted to let you know NOW so you can save the date and plan to make 2008 your best year ever.

For more details, visit our seminar page and look for Wendy's PR Crash Course

Meet Casey Wohl, author of the newly released Girls Getaway Guide to Orlando: Leave Your Baggage at Home at one or more of the upcoming book signings we have planned:

Thurs., Sept. 20 - 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Urban Think! Bookstore
625 E Central Blvd, Orlando, FL 32801

October 4 - 5:30 - 7:30 PM
Highlands Art League, Inc.
351 W. Center Avenue, Sebring, FL 33870

October 11 - 6:00 – 8:00 PM
Le Bri Boutique
1437 Town Center Drive, Lakeland, FL 33803

Check out the Girls Getaway Guide website for more info or to order the book online.

A friend just passed this quote on to me, author unknown:

"Everything is always okay in the end, if it's not, then it's not the end."

Lots of great events coming up, more details to follow, but mark your calendar now:

April 26, 7:00 p.m.
Journey to a Hate Free Millennium
A Community Conversation and Program
Apopka, Florida

Featuring Brent Scarpo, producer of the multi-award-winning Journey to a Hate Free Millennium documentary and educational program. A former teacher, actor and Hollywood casting director (Shawshank Redemption, Air Force One) Brent has presented the Journey to more than 1,000,000 in all 50 U.S. states and 12 foreign countries over the past eight years.

May 24, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
SMART Awards Luncheon
Hosted by the Association for Corporate Growth Orlando chapter
Downtown Orlando Marriott
Orlando, Florida

Featuring Wally "Famous" Amos, father of the gourmet chocolate chip cookie industry, and recognizing Central Florida companies leading our business community in financial strength, active social and community participation as well as appreciation for the company and its employees.

Nominate a client's, associate's or even your own company.
Register by May 11 to receive early bird pricing.

May 31, 2007 8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
MEGA Book Marketing
A One Day Crash Course in Book Marketing
Hosted by Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul Enterprise
New York, New York
Seating is limited. Register today!

July 26-28, 2007
HDPR: Creating the Clear Picture
PRSA Sunshine District Annual Conference
Disney's Contemporary Resort
Orlando, Florida

Hosted by the Orlando Chapter of PRSA.

Today we kicked off the first leg of the book tour for Mark Victor Hansen and Art Linkletter, promoting their new book How to Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life.

It's been a whirlwind day of private events, speaking engagements with audiences of several hundred people, and a few more media interviews. I've posted a few of the photos online.

We had a fabulous time last night as a silver sponsor at the Grande Masque Ball at the Gaylord Palms. The ball is an annual benefit for Orlando's Peforming Arts and named the "Best Charity Event" in town by Orlando Magazine.

The evening featured great performances by Orlando's Philharmonic Orchestra, Ballet and Opera. In between the five courses of dinner, guests mingled and danced to music by a full orchestra. We rang in the new year to Funhouse with Lisa Z., a dynamic ten-piece dance band featuring the powerhouse vocals of Lisa Compton. What a great way to kick off the new year!

I wish you a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

Are you having a hard time coming up with a theme for your company's annual event? Do you want some fun, trivia-type stuff for your next newsletter? Have you spent way to much time surfing the net in search of special holidays and their origin?

Then you'll want to check out Chases's Calendar of Events.

I stumbled across this phenomenal resource a few years ago while helping a client's staff break out of the "same old, same old" mold on their employee events. After reading through the Calendar I suggested ways in which the group could build themes around some of the more unique days and we developed a really exciting calendar of events and fundraisers for the year, including a clean-out-your-desk day contest and an "I love chocolate" day (they also raised over $10,000 for the employee Christmas party, but I'll post about that at another time).

Until September, I was too cheap to fork out the $65 retail price but a much appreciated gift certificate to Barnes & Noble from a favorite client gave me the perfect excuse. I bought the 2006 edition and have already used it several times. It came with a searchable cd and an installer so I can load the entire Calendar onto my hard drive. Now I can "carry" the Calendar with me wherever I go - now that's going to come in handy during a few client meetings coming up (and makes it worth a lot more than $65).

I just received word that due to Hurricane Wilma, PRSA's Board of Directors has voted to cancel the 2005 International Conference scheduled for this weekend in Miami.

No word yet on whether they will reschedule.

From PRSA this afternoon:

The International PRSA Conference is scheduled for this weekend in Miami Beach. Even though forecasters predict Hurricane Wilma will hit Florida this weekend, the conference is still scheduled to take place as planned. PRSA is keeping a close watch on the storm and advisories. Please visit the national PRSA Web site for updates on any changes that may occur due to weather conditions.

Always have a contingency plan in place when doing special events. I am producing an industry conference that is scheduled to be held November 3. While we dont' anticipate any serious problems from Hurricane Wilma, we have already contacted the hotel confirm a reschedule date is available.

Yesterday I received an email from an entrepreneur (who will remain nameless) promoting an upcoming teleconference he is hosting. Within the body of the email, he notes "next Tuesday evening, July 19 I'm going to hold a tele-conference..." and provides a link to register for the call.

Unfortunately, this entrepreneur has committed a major faux pas: he did not bother to update the landing page for the link.

The headline on the landing page says "Don't miss the [John Smith] Experience Tele-conference calls May 10, May 17, and May 24." The dates are in bold red type.

If he is that careless with his own materials, how careless was he in preparing the info products for sale on his web site? How careless will he be as my consultant if I hire him? These are the questions your prospects will ask before buying your products or hiring you, so why not answer those questions in advance - by making sure your work is proofread, up-to-date, and accurate BEFORE you hit the send button.

Always do a "run-through" before you launch your promotional campaign. Even better, have a couple associates run through it for you. Test the links to make sure they work, proofread your copy (email as well as web pages), and double check your day/date combinations. I had the bad habit of putting the wrong day with a date (for instance, "Friday, July 16" instead of the correct "Saturday, July 16"), but once I enlisted the help of an editor to proofread critical announcements, that habit was broken.

It only takes a moment and the result can be monumental. Skip this critical step and the results can be devastating.

(UPDATE: 7/21/05 9:30 p.m.) When I dialed in to the call, an automatic recording directed me to a new number, which I called about 10 minutes after the published start time (I hate listening to all the pre-call chit chat and the opening sales pitches). I was surprised to hear two women talking about network marketing and one's vacation in Cancun...I held out a few short minutes but at 15 minutes after the hour, the call still had not officially started so I hung up. I don't think this entrepreneur will be building a successful business any time soon if he keeps this up.)

I just added Avery index labels to a conference planning notebook. The notebook is for an industry conference I am producing this fall for a client. The project started with a basic file folder in January but has grown into a three inch, three-ring binder.

Before working at Sprint, I used folders for everything. Then I met Debbie Mason and Alice Alfano. They put everything in three-ring binders. Everything! I thought that was really weird at the time but the longer I worked with them, the more I realized they really did have the whole organization thing down to a science. They are my office organization idols!

The big "aha" came for me when I was promoted to Manager of Special Events. Debbie handed me her notebook from an event. No files, no folders, just one large notebook that contained everything I needed. It turned out to be much easier to go through than folders and I have used binders for my events ever since. They are easily portable. Nothing falls out. I can flip back and forth through pages and sections quickly and easily, unlike papers in folders. I can expand the notebook and add another section by simply adding another divider.

Thanks, Debbie and Alice. Switching from folders to binders has kept me more organized and saved me countless hours and frustration over the years!

I have used Avery labels for years and have them in all kinds of shapes and sizes. They make my life easier. Unfortunately, I am an early adopter and don't always have the right template for the newer labels. Tonight I found the solution: Avery Wizard for Microsoft Word. I downloaded and installed the wizard and printed out dividers for my notebook in less time than it took to type this post (well, that's really because I had to take time to go back and look up the URLs so you would have the links).

My client and I just cancelled our trip to Dallas for the eWomen Publishing Network conference. Flying out of Tallahassee, Florida, on Monday in the midst of what is now a category 4 hurricane just didn't seem like a bright decision to either one of us. We lived through Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne last year. As a result, we take the Governor's and state emergency operations director's warnings much more seriously these days.

Unfortunately, eWomen Publishing Network has a no refunds policy. That means I lose $450 and my client loses more (I'm a member, she is not yet). Fortunately, both the hotel and the airline were extremely sympathetic so we are not out even more money.

Having planned many conferences and events over the years, I understand why the refund policy is in place. Facilities require a guarantee on the number of anticipated attendees so they can ensure adequate space, food and facility staff. Facility charges are based on the guarantee, whether you have that many people or not. I recommend a refund policy be established for any major event; however, I do not agree with a NO refund policy in situations beyond human control (aka Acts of God).

My client contacted eWomen Publishing Network to see if they would refund her registration in light of the hurricane. The email response was "no, but..." (they will still send the audio recordings of the sessions). My client is understandably disappointed and this lack of flexibility will probably deter her from joining eWomen Publishing Network now.

$495 (which included the early-bird discount) is a ridiculously hefty price to pay for a set of audio cds when cancellation was solely due to an act of God. Had we cancelled due to illness, a client crisis or some other "controllable" reason, I would understand eWomen Publishing Network's adherence to the no refunds policy; however, we cancelled because there is a hurricane bearing down on Florida.

What would I do if I were in charge of the conference? First, I would have event insurance that covers this type situation. We're in the midst of hurricane season after all. Aside from that, I would offer to credit the fee toward next year's conference or apply the fee toward an annual membership. At the very least, I would offer a partial refund derived by deducting my hard costs cpu (cost per unit -in this case, the cost per person as charged by the facility).

eWomen Publishing Network is a great organization. I'm sure the response to my client was sent by someone who did not realize the seriousness of the situation, which is understandable if you didn't live through four hurricanes in less than six weeks last year.

I hope that eWomen Publishing Network will reconsider. Time will tell.

Update 8/25/05: Just moments after I responded to the post-conference online survey, Jan King, the Founder and Editorial Director for eWomenPublishing, emailed me with her apology for the situation and her cell phone number (it was nearly midnight!). I called her the next day and received a credit for next year's event. She offered to call the accounting department for me and make sure my $55 credit was processed ASAP (I paid in full but was charged the multi-payment plan fee). The credit appeared on my next credit card statement./em>

Update 10/22/05: I still haven't received the conference cds.