Have you planned your New Year’s resolutions yet? If you work in the events industry then quite possibly not – you’ve probably felt too busy to give it a thought. Luckily, we have five great ones for you to consider. Plus, they’ll give you a definite career advantage in 2018.
- Embrace technology
This one seems obvious. But ask yourself this: How much of the new technology that is becoming available have you actually investigated or tried out? Facebook live videos? Virtual or Artificial Reality? Artificial intelligence tools?
Chances are you have felt too busy to make the time to do this, because it does take time. But there are some serious benefits to being an early adopter of technologies that can improve your business. A good strategy is to set aside a little time each week for it. During this time you can read articles, research best use case studies, set up demos, and start to explore this exciting space – all with a view of finding out how you can best leverage it.
- Keep learning
Just as you need to keep your finger on the pulse of technology, you should keep another one on the pulse of the event industry and what new developments are happening.
Attend association events, like the EXSA, AAXO and SAACI conferences and workshops. The MICE Academy has developed Professional Planner Standards to keep event planners up-to-date on best practice across all key areas of event planning. These will be presented through online Knowledge Updates, as well as Breakfast Briefings and Lunch & Learn gatherings in 2018, and will be rewarded with CPD credits. You can also pick up practical knowledge and skills to operate more sustainably by attending the Event Greening Forum’s workshops.
Read books, blogs, Meetings magazine and white papers. And don’t forget to attend events for ideas and inspiration.
Again, this is tricky if you are hard-pressed for time. But if you make this a priority, you will become more effective in your role, which can save you time in the long term.
- Try new tools
There are so many readily available tools to improve productivity and efficiency – like The Planner’s event planning app, which you can find on apps stores for free. [CHECK] A good way to figure out which ones could help you is to identify your problem areas, and then Google the best tools to help you. Read the customer reviews and see if there are people who seem to share your challenges who have found it useful. Many of apps and online tools have free trials or free basic options that you can play around with.
- Use your data wisely
Big data has been a buzzword in 2017. This is because, when used correctly, data can be incredibly powerful. Every company has data at its disposal – such as what products your clients have bought, who attended your events, or who has liked your Facebook page. Make it a priority to examine this data and look for causal patterns so you can draw conclusions about your business, and find ways to do more of what is working, and less of what isn’t.
Not just that, but set up your work flow processes so that you can capture more data that will be useful to you. Find a way to easily collect it and understand it. By doing this, you will understand your customers better.
- Set your long term goals
Don’t make the mistake of only having short term goals and to do lists. Make sure you have some big, long term goals that you are consistently working towards. These will keep you motivated and help you when making big decisions that are likely to have a long-term impact.
Big goals can seem intimidating, but once you know what you ultimately want, you can break them up into manageable mini goals and find ways to integrate them into your daily life.
Why not use the upcoming holidays to unplug, recharge and get excited about your future and what you want to achieve? If you like the sound of this, read this article next.
