Open Forum

 View Only

  • 1.  Ways to streamline your SMM program

    Posted 07-14-2021 11:29
    Hello everyone! I am excited to share the next edition of Tip of the Week focusing on ways to streamline your SMM program. My organization is honored to be a finalist for the SMMP Sensation category of this year's Excellence Awards at Cvent CONNECT. We hope you will tune in and cheer us on! 

    Below are 4 key ways my organization has streamlined our SMM program:

    • Reduced Risk and Increased Compliance: Created a Global Hotel Addendum used by everyone at Mastercard contracting with a hotel. As a result of the Pandemic ensure your addendum has enhanced Forced Majeure and Cancellation clauses.
    • Centralized Sourcing: Centralize your hotel sourcing to an internal team or to one agency to enable consistent and accurate tracking of savings, commissions and rebook credits available.
    • Reduce Cost and Reliance on Agencies: Take advantage of free training available through Cvent to upskill your Planners and Coordinators to start creating simple registrations sites and/or hotel sourcing on your instance of Cvent to reduce reliance on and spend with third parties.
    • Enhanced Data & Analytics: With cross event reporting and the Cvent API create Tableau dashboards that provide data (updated real time) with key data points and insights for Management.

    Questions for You:

    • How have you used Cvent to streamline your own SMM program? 

    I look forward to hearing your experiences below! #CventTip​
    #ExecutingStrategicMeetingsManagement

    ------------------------------
    Stacy Iffrig
    Manager, Meeting and Travel Services
    Mastercard International Incorporated
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Ways to streamline your SMM program

    Posted 07-20-2021 13:48
        • How have you used Cvent to streamline your own SMM program? 
            I would love to streamline both my virtual and in-person events into Cvent but having some challanges with cost compared to other meeting technology providers.


    ------------------------------
    Scott Sward
    Global Travel and Events Manager
    Viewpoint, Inc.
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Ways to streamline your SMM program

    Posted 07-21-2021 08:39
    Hi Stacy,
    These are great tips, and we have found the same thing as you - adding additional clauses to protect ourselves is a new one for us. Thankfully, all but one venue we were contracted with did the right thing and refunded our money or canceled our contract with no penalty. The venue that did not... perhaps we don't use them in the future. However, I certainly understand the hit that the hospitality industry took!

    I can't speak enough about just simply training yourself with all the free training that Cvent provides. They give you all the tools to do in-house sourcing efficiently and effectively. 

    I am curious about the cross event reporting - what key data points are you pulling in, and who did you use to do the programming for the API?

    ------------------------------
    Lori Wildman
    Senior Marketing Manager
    DuCharme, McMillen & Associates, Inc.
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Ways to streamline your SMM program

    Posted 07-22-2021 13:45
    Cvent's meeting request form helped us centralize all the meetings across our organization and set up policies for different types of meetings.

    Event Management helped us to have consistent branding across Zones for our events. 

    Having our own employees certify in Cvent Event Management and Mobile App allowed us to save a lot of money while keeping execution quality high and ensuring data flow into one streamlined back-end reporting system.

    Using tools that are integrated means no "cut off registration on X date, upload static data to mobile app," and have mobile app and other data be incorrect if we had late changes.

    Cvent allows cross-event reporting, so deciding what Event Types we had and adding an account level event field helped us set up reports to compare "like" events, i.e. apples to apples. 

    And the budget modules kept us on track in each category, or helped us understand where we were overspending so that we could course-correct.

    ------------------------------
    Brenda Ainsburg
    Channel Program Manager
    brenda.ainsburg@siemens.com
    Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    United States
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Ways to streamline your SMM program

    Posted 07-23-2021 08:28
    • How have you used Cvent to streamline your own SMM program?  It helps us to lay out in detail what we need to know from the customer and helps the customer visualize in detail the program. It gives us a huge advantage to building events in Cvent.


    ------------------------------
    Mary Ann Hall
    Event Specialist
    Federal Reserve System
    ------------------------------

    Original Message