Ready with Supporting Materials

The best speakers have all their supporting materials readily available: Undoubtedly, before your scheduled event, you'll need a biography, an introduction, a write-up of the presentation, and perhaps a photo of the speaker. The seasoned pro has such items and others readily available. These aren't things he or she has to go round up; most professional speakers offer such elements on the Internet so that you can examine them at will.

When these materials are not readily available, it may a sign that something is amiss -- a speaker without a portfolio is like a firefighter without a hose.

The Special Event 2007

The Special events industry comes into its own: Barbara Scofidio writing for MeetingsNet.com observes “If there was a common theme at The Special Event 2007, held last week in Los Angeles, it was that this industry, which started out as a cottage industry or a ‘garage industry,’ as insiders like to describe it has finally evolved into a profession.”

Non-Hotel Meeting Sites

Unique Venues is celebrating 20 years as “The Voice” for Non-Traditional Event Venues.”

From their website: “Searching for a unique event or party venue, meeting facilities or conference centers? Whether you're a professional meeting planner or a volunteer planning a party, wedding, family reunion or event for your company or church, Unique Venues can help you find the perfect function room, meeting facility or conference center. Search our vast database of 7,000+ non-traditional event venues, meeting facilities and function rooms in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom: colleges, museums, mansions, theaters, conference centers, event venues, cruises, restaurants, business centers and more.

Event Based Websites

www.MeetingsNet.com
www.RentalManagementMag.com
www.SpecialEvents.com

www.BizBash.com
www.Event-Solutions.com
www.ISES.com

Theme Ideas Handbook

Jerry Busche has assembled a resource of themes for your futures meetings at BizMotivation site where he offers a "Theme Ideas Handbook" available for download. The handbook contains more than 600 theme ideas, adaptable for meetings, conferences, or other events. Here is a brief sampling of some of the ideas:

* Teamwork in Action
* Brown Bag Briefing
* They Said It Couldn’t Be Done
* Delighting the Customer
* Treating Customers Right

An Impressive Program

The Meeting and Event Planning Certificate program at California State University at Dominguez Hills looks very impressive. A smapling of course topics includes:

# Introduction and Fundamentals of Meeting Planning
# Special Event Management
# Negotiations and Contracts
# Site Selection and Inspections
# Marketing and Promotion/ Financial Management
# Food and Beverage Management/Room Set Ups for Adult Learning
# Audio Visual and Technology Today