Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 13

AV AS A BUSINESS
How to Create Valuable Content for Integrators
Whether it's planning a magazine article or a session at a business conference,
success hinges on understanding your audience's or members' biggest challenges.
By Chuck Wilson
THE EDITORS OF Commercial Integrator already
know this: Planning valuable content
for busy integrators isn't easy.
The fi rst step in content creation should
always be understanding your audience.
However, that's quite diffi cult with an
audience of integrators. The folks who run
integration companies - both CI readers
and NSCA members - are faced with big
challenges. Their industry is evolving through
consolidation; changing customer expectations;
product-availability issues; barriers to
fi nding much-needed talent; and much more.
As such, their biggest business challenges
can sometimes be a moving target.
At NSCA, we take great pride in identifying
those business challenges. Then, we try to understand
our role in providing content to help
our members. The most prolifi c examples
are when NSCA plans content for our annual
Business & Leadership Conference (BLC) and
our Pivot to Profi t business conference.
This month, NSCA is hosting our 24th
annual BLC, and it's a great byproduct of our
content-planning process. We consider the
stakes high due to the reputation that BLC
has earned as a must-attend event in our
industry. Professional speakers, authors and
speakers' bureaus report that our conference
is known for off ering some of the most-desired
speaking engagements around.
BLC's reputation didn't come easily. It took
years of listening, learning and experimenting
with content, scheduling and logistics. We've
tweaked even the smallest elements to create
this attendee experience. It took a planning
committee made up of your industry peers,
a staff of voracious readers, countless hours
watching videos and eff orts to align industry
issues with content " swim lanes. "
These " swim lanes, " as we call them, attach
integrators' leading concerns and opportunities
with the world's top three speakers
on that subject. I'm thankful for the event
sponsors that allow us to attract this caliber of
commercialintegrator.com
presenters - and they're just the beginning.
The phrase " Of course! " has come to be
known by BLC attendees as the fi rst thing
they hear from NSCA team members. In our
evaluations, we receive countless remarks
from attendees about the nature of our staff ,
how they handle themselves, and how they
deal with requests and issues. The secret
of our approach centers on the lessons we
learned from an event team at the Four Seasons
Resort in Las Colinas, Texas. We went
behind the scenes to study their methods
and see how they train. We leſt feeling a
sense of awe - and wanting to match them.
Flawless Execution
Before BLC even begins, the NSCA team
and all parties involved make a simple pact:
It's a clear expectation that NSCA and the
conference facility are in this together. We
act as a team to serve attendees the absolute
best experience possible, without placing
blame. You'll never hear an NSCA staff member
blame the hotel for a problem. Likewise,
you'll never hear the hotel or facility blame
us if we slip up. Issues are simply fi xed -
with an " of course! " That secret has directly
shaped the reputation that we now enjoy.
Networking and relationship building are
perhaps the highest-value elements of BLC.
To put a fi ner point on it, the people who attend
BLC are the reason why the others want
to attend. The very carefully planned sessions,
the " of course! " attitude and the fl awless
execution are just bonuses. NSCA members
who attend the event are simply the best!
Ultimately, a magazine article, an event
session or an overall conference is successful if
it provides value to the audience or membership.
The reader or attendee is the judge.
Chuck Wilson is executive
director of NSCA. To learn more
about your trade association,
visit NSCA.org.
FEBRUARY 2022 Commercial Integrator
13
BLC 2022 Lineup
› Beyond the Pivot: 4 Investments the
Best Teams Use to Build the New
Future, " by Jon Acuff
› " The Fusion Formula: Brand + Culture
= Results, " by Denise Yohn
› Healthy Buildings: How Indoor
Spaces Drive Performance & Productivity, "
by Joseph Allen
› " Because Everyone Can Be Great, "
by Calvin Mackie
› " Leading with Emotional Courage, "
by Peter Bregman
› The Collapse of Distinction, " by
Scott McKain
› Economic Outlook 2022 and Beyond, "
by Dr. Chris Kuehl
› Talent Pipelines: Attracting, Recruiting,
and Retaining "
› How the Best Teams Overcome
Overthinking to Navigate Change,
Increase Productivity and Win
Consistently "
› Improve Predictable Labor Resource
Modeling "
› " Understand Contracts and Intellectual
Capital "
› " Playbook for Brand-Culture
Fusion "
› " Change without Resistance "
› What Customers Really Want "
› Culture Renovation: Rebuild or
Reinforce? "
Join NSCA and its media partner,
Commercial Integrator, at BLC 2022,
Feb. 23-25 in Dallas. Register at
NSCA.org/blc.
http://www.NSCA.org/blc http://www.NSCA.org http://www.commercialintegrator.com
Commercial Integrator February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Integrator February 2022
