--- title: "Daily Buzz: Mistakes to Avoid in 2019" id: "45213" type: "post" slug: "daily-buzz-mistakes-to-avoid-in-2019" published_at: "2019-01-04T22:24:28+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T23:24:11+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2019/01/04/daily-buzz-mistakes-to-avoid-in-2019/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2019/01/04/daily-buzz-mistakes-to-avoid-in-2019.md" excerpt: "In order for your organization to achieve greater success this year, you have to avoid the activities that held you back in 2018. Also: developing a physical security strategy at events." taxonomy_category: - "Meetings / Events" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "Business" - "event planning" - "event security" - "Safety" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "Director" - "Executive Team" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Daily Buzz: Mistakes to Avoid in 2019 Come the beginning of a new year, many resolutions are made to be better and achieve greater success. But it’s hard to do that without looking back to the strategies, activities, and behaviors that didn’t work the year prior. Callie Walker from the MemberClicks blog outlines [mistakes from 2018 associations should avoid (opens in a new tab)](https://blog.memberclicks.com/6-association-mistakes-to-avoid-in-2018) in new year initiatives, including: **Hopping on the bandwagon of every new trend.** Not every trend will align with your association’s goals—and you might not have the bandwidth to explore it anyway. **Not trying anything new, period.** “While it’s important to avoid that ‘shiny object syndrome,’ it’s also important to avoid not trying anything new at all,” Walker says. “Now you don’t have to make major changes, per se. But do try one or two new things per quarter—even if they’re minor. You’ll start to see what your members like (and don’t like), and you can then make adjustments from there.” **Clumping members together.** “It can be tempting to clump all of your members into one big pool—to send them all the same email, to invite them all to the same event, etc. But long-term, that can actually have a negative impact on engagement and retention,” she says. **Setting unrealistic or vague goals.** Setting unattainable or nondescript goals only sets your organization up for failure. Get specific with what you want to achieve so you and your team have a concrete target to work toward, and then can accurately measure success come 2020. ### How to Keep Your Events Safe > Here are our 4 steps to help get started on building a formalized security plan.[https://t.co/FQSPHHlpe3 (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/FQSPHHlpe3) > > — SmartMeetings (@SmartMeetings) [January 3, 2019 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/SmartMeetings/status/1080964271847211008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **With more than 300 mass shootings** in the U.S. in 2018, security has become one of the biggest issues facing meeting planners today. If you’re re-evaluating your events’ physical security strategies, start with looking at what you already have in place, [says Anil Chitkara in a post on Smart Meetings (opens in a new tab)](https://www.smartmeetings.com/tips-tools/113856/implementing-balanced-security-plan) . “Before developing a formal security strategy, take the time to survey current security measures to get a sense of what is working and what isn’t,” he says. “To start, incorporate feedback from a variety of sources within the venue, such as customer service or guest feedback.” From there, planners will have to look at each meeting individually to best understand security needs. “Event managers can no longer use a one-size-fits-all approach to security,” Chitkara says. “Tailored processes and protocols ensure security is properly deployed throughout an event.” ### Other Links of Note **Content marketing** can drive event awareness and attendance. [Here’s how, (opens in a new tab)](https://www.meetingstoday.com/magazines/article-details/articleid/32974/title/content-marketing-raise-event-awareness-drive-attendance) according to *Meetings Today*. **Social media images** must be shareworthy. [This is how to tell whether they pass the test (opens in a new tab)](https://www.johnhaydon.com/choose-shareworthy-images-for-social-media/) , says nonprofit digital marketing expert John Haydon. **Testing out member location mapping?** [Here are four tips on the technology (opens in a new tab)](https://www.wildapricot.com/blogs/newsblog/2019/01/03/tips-for-member-mapping) , from the Wild Apricot blog. (bieshutterb/iStock/Getty Images Plus) [Jeff Hsin](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) Tags: [#Business](https://associationsnow.com/tag/business/) [#event planning](https://associationsnow.com/tag/event-planning/) [#event security](https://associationsnow.com/tag/event-security/) [#Safety](https://associationsnow.com/tag/safety/) **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 - [PodcastAssociations Now Presents: Beyond the Contract: Building Stronger Destination PartnershipsSeptember 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/24/associations-now-presents-beyond-the-contract-building-stronger-destination-partnerships/) - [VideoMelvin Tennant, CAE, President & CEO of Meet Minneapolis, Welcomes You to Great Ideas 2026September 2, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/02/melvin-tennant-cae-president-ceo-of-meet-minneapolis-welcomes-you-to-great-ideas-2026/) - [VideoASAE TV Daily Recap: Final Day at the 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/08/24/asae-tv-daily-recap-final-day-at-the-2026-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoTerin Bates, MBA, CAE, CX-PRO, Shares Her Experience at the 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 18, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/08/18/terin-bates-mba-cae-cx-pro-shares-her-experience-at-the-2026-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%2F2019%2F01%2F04%2Fdaily-buzz-mistakes-to-avoid-in-2019%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !