--- title: "Friday Buzz: How Do You View Conference Attendees?" id: "41161" type: "post" slug: "friday-buzz-how-do-you-view-conference-attendees" published_at: "2018-01-19T21:59:59+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T21:10:06+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/01/19/friday-buzz-how-do-you-view-conference-attendees/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/01/19/friday-buzz-how-do-you-view-conference-attendees.md" excerpt: "A flashy conference may not be meeting your members’ expectations if they approach conferences as explorers and not tourists. Also: Last holiday season, donors gave more than $1 billion via PayPal." taxonomy_category: - "Meetings / Events" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "attendees" - "conferences" - "Meetings" - "social experiences" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "Director" - "Manager" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Friday Buzz: How Do You View Conference Attendees? Do you think of your meeting attendees as tourists or explorers? That’s the question a [recent Velvet Chainsaw post (opens in a new tab)](https://velvetchainsaw.com/2018/01/19/conferencing-treating-customers-tourists-explorers/) is asking event professionals, and the answer could change the way you think about planning your next meeting. “When conferences view their customers as tourists, they plan and offer slick-professionally-produced OMG wow moments, marquee speakers and headline performers,” writes Jeff Hurt. “They showcase the next shiny tech tool, trendy gimmicky formats and soundbite cookie-cutter solutions to copy.” In contrast, “when conferences view their customers as explorers, they plan and offer rich, multimodal, multidimensional immersive experiences that foster curiosity,” says Hurt. Explorer conference attendees “expect experiences that lead to cognitive shifts that help them think and act differently back on their job.” If your attendees are explorers, your meetings should go above and beyond to provide them with transformational experiences—not just a great show. ### PayPal Donations on the Rise > More than 330,000 charities received donations via [@PayPal (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/PayPal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > this past holiday season, totaling more than $1.16 billion, up 19 percent over 2016 – [https://t.co/bFDkP0GUkr (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/bFDkP0GUkr) > > — NonProfit Times (@NonProfitTimes) [January 16, 2018 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/NonProfitTimes/status/953356417943171072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **As digital donations continue to increase** through a variety of platforms, don’t count out PayPal as a major player in the space. During the 2017 holiday season, [donations via PayPal increased (opens in a new tab)](http://www.thenonprofittimes.com/news-articles/giving-via-paypal-crossed-1-billion/?platform=hootsuite) 19.4 percent compared to 2016, reports *The NonProfit Times*. Users gave more than $1.1 billion via the payment processor. It also shouldn’t come as a surprise that mobile payments are taking up a bigger slice of the pie. In fact, they’re up 14 percent compared to 2016. ### Other Links of Note **Keeping information secure should be a top priority for any organization.** *CMSWire* shares [four infosec trends (opens in a new tab)](https://www.cmswire.com/information-management/4-information-security-trends-for-2018/) that will drive the marketplace in 2018. **Want a great way to get the conversation started at your next meeting?** *Idea Architects* offers up [dozens of conversation catalysts (opens in a new tab)](http://www.ideaarchitects.org/2018/01/simple-questions-as-conversation.html) . **Help your email connect with your members** by following these six content [creation rules from the Movable Ink blog (opens in a new tab)](https://movableink.com/blog/6-rules-for-crafting-email-content-that-connects/) . (skynesher/E+/Getty Images Plus) [Raegan Johnson](https://associationsnow.com/author/raegan-johnson/) Raegan Johnson is a contributor to Associations Now. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/raegan-johnson/) Tags: [#attendees](https://associationsnow.com/tag/attendees/) [#conferences](https://associationsnow.com/tag/conferences/) [#Meetings](https://associationsnow.com/tag/meetings/) [#social experiences](https://associationsnow.com/tag/social-experiences/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition Welcome video for attendeesJuly 20, 2016](https://associationsnow.com/2016/07/20/asae-annual-meeting-exposition-welcome-video-for-attendees/) - [VideoAshley Cobb Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 12, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/12/ashley-cobb-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoJenny Teeson, CHSE Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 12, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/12/jenny-teeson-chse-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoLakisha Woods, CAE Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 12, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/12/lakisha-woods-cae-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2018%2F01%2F19%2Ffriday-buzz-how-do-you-view-conference-attendees%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !