Thursday Buzz: North America Loves Its Meetings

Canada’s already done it for 20 years, and now the meetings love is heading down south.

This year, the United States and Mexico are joining in on the newly christened North American Meetings Industry Day (NAMID)  (opens in a new tab).

Meetings Mean Business (MMB), an industry advocacy group, is joining the Convention Industry Council (CIC) and other groups in pushing the new industry event  (opens in a new tab), which they hope is the first of many to come.

“Across the continent we are demonstrating how meetings build personal relationships, drive positive outcomes, and support strong communities,” said MMB Co-Chair Michael Dominguez, who is also senior vice president of corporate sales for MGM Resorts International.

The 65 events scheduled today  (opens in a new tab) cover wide geographic ground—from educational sessions in Wisconsin to social media efforts in New York City to a press rally in Las Vegas—as well as a broad range of subject matter.

Oh, yeah: If you find yourself in NYC today, you might spot a NAMID ad in Times Square, funded by NYC & Company.

Today is #NAMID  (opens in a new tab). First time #Mexico  (opens in a new tab) participates. Meetings generate vital contribution to GDP, enhance economic, social & tourism relevance

— Rodrigo Esponda Cascajares (@Responda) April 16, 2015  (opens in a new tab)

Outside of the the United States, Canada—which inspired the new event—and Mexico are also showing off their meeting prowess.

“Today is not just about executing an event. It is about raising awareness of the power of meetings in shaping local communities; economically, environmentally, socially and intellectually,” Stuart Taylor, business manager for Canada’s chapter of Meeting Professionals International, said in a statement.

Taylor cited  (opens in a new tab) a statistic showing that organized meetings added $27.5 billion to the country’s GDP in 2012.

“We are excited to be involved in such a meaningful day that unites our industry not only across the United States, but also across Canada and Mexico, communicating the critical role in connecting people and driving positive business results through face-to-face interaction,” Dominguez said.

https://twitter.com/csoverall/status/588701960825659393

250 people at #iaccamericas15  (opens in a new tab) in Florida today support #NAMID  (opens in a new tab) #NAMID15  (opens in a new tab) today!

— IACC (@IACCmeetings) April 16, 2015  (opens in a new tab)

Can’t get to an event today? Don’t fret. There are also a couple of places online to participate. American Express Meetings and Events hosted some morning sessions, with some to come later in the day  (opens in a new tab). And you can get some highlights on Twitter from the #NAMID  (opens in a new tab) and #NAMID15  (opens in a new tab) hashtags.

Blog Starting Points

25 Blog Post Ideas for Your Small-Staff #Association  (opens in a new tab) – http://t.co/te5337ahji  (opens in a new tab) #assnchat  (opens in a new tab) #smassn  (opens in a new tab)

— MemberClicks (@MemberClicks) April 16, 2015  (opens in a new tab)

For small-staff organizations, blogging can be just another item on an already long list of things to accomplish.

While marketing and advertising is a priority in retaining and obtaining members, blogging can often feel like an added stress, particularly for those organizations with an already overburdened staff. Lucky for you, CallieWalker  of MemberClicks has 25 blogging ideas  (opens in a new tab) that small-staff associations can take on themselves.

Among the more notable: “Write about how your association or association chapter got started,” “feature a new member,” and “conduct a poll and post the results on your blog.”

Other Links of Note

In today’s world, making humanizing associations is key, especially since social media and websites can sometimes do the opposite of what they set out to do and make groups look impersonal. At SocialFish, Scott Huntington highlights ways to make  (opens in a new tab) your organization feel human to members.

Had an unproductive day? So what? Kristin Wong at Lifehacker shows a few smart strategies  (opens in a new tab) for successfully tackling a huge workload after a day of binging on Netflix. (Hey, it’s normal, and Daredevil is a good show.)

(iStock/Thinkstock)