Meeting News - April 12, 2010 - (Page 12)

Meetings Spotlight By Seth Harris NACDS Uses Technology To Heighten Attendee Interaction THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHAIN life easier and have more effective ROI for the reg- ized conferences, such as its legislative-focused DRUG STORES in recent years has reengi- istrant once they register,some people are doing it RxImpact event in Washington, D.C., for about neered some meetings by tailoring programs for as an individual within their company or others 250 attendees. more personal communication between atten- are doing it for multiple people. The technology The NACDS meetings team has managed dees and exhibitors, and interaction with atten- has to allow both to happen.When all is said and nearly all components of the programs for more dees through implementation of new technology, done, the individual is the one who really knows than 15 years, including registration, exhibit sales, including social media. the true accuracy of every- logistics, food and beverage planning, graphic NACDS senior vice president thing out there.” design and speaker contracts. of meetings and conferences Jim In the second half of 2009, Whitman, a lawyer, also oversees meetings and Whitman said the meetings team the NACDS meetings related-services contracts. He has been with the now takes a deep look at attendee department began using association for 33 years. Before overseeing the information, then builds netTwitter to notify followers meetings program,he served on the NACDS govworking events, trade shows or about conference speakers, ernment and regulatory affairs team. education programs to best serve sessions and registration His approach to the current buyer’s market is them. information. Whitman said to run the association’s events “like a business. That close examination led the they are using the tool “judi- There are cycles. One day, you are on one side of association to develop its “Meet ciously to try to see the right the cycle, and the other day, you are on the other the Market”concept meetings, in use of it for everybody.” side. We stake our reputation on consistency, which prior to an event’s start it He added, “It’s a lot of equity and fairness throughout.” matches retailers and buyers with communication going across In negotiations with hotels and meeting venJim Whitman manufacturers and suppliers for the wires out there.You want ues during the economic downturn, the associashort appointments. to make sure that what we’re doing reflects what tion’s meetings team has driven a “hard bargain,” The program began the association’s annual NACDS is about in the messages we are convey- Whitman said, “but we also understand where Marketplace Conference, then continued at its ing, the accuracy of the information and building they are coming from. When everyone underannual Pharmacy & Technology Conference, upon what is happening leading up to and dur- stands what everyone’s needs are, then we can where it was dubbed “Meet the Retailer.” Accord- ing the conference.” find creative solutions.” ss ing to Whitman, the association now is looking For its membership to adapt the matchmaking program so that it can of more than 150 drug be used for all its major events. Whitman said it stores, supermarkets StarCite Scores Meetings Tech Patent enables manufacturers and retailers to focus and mass merchants Meetings management technology supplier StarCite in March show activities and gives the trade show floor a with pharmacies, 900 received a patent for its attendee management platform from the U.S. “jump start.” suppliers and more than Patent and Trademark Office. The meetings team also has worked to 70 international memThe patent gives StarCite exclusive rights to its automated attendee improve its communications to attendees and bers from 24 countries, booking and management platform, a core element of its technology exhibitors in advance of events. Some of those the association annually suite. The platform allows planners to set up customizable registration improvements entailed building enhancements hosts five large meet- pages and transmit information about activities, confirmation and logisto conference websites, including “the kind of rel- ings. Its largest confer- tics to attendees while routing attendee data and preferences to a dataevant information that people want,” better inte- ences tend to be in the base. Prior to the platform, collecting such data required a good deal of gration with online registration tools and 3,300 to 3,500-person manual effort by planners, according to StarCite. enabling users to have more control over their range, Whitman said. Receiving the patent was about a 10-year process for StarCite, said profiles, reducing errors in their personal NACDS also holds a Kevin Iwamoto, StarCite’s vice president of enterprise strategy. “It was information. series of smaller board started thanks to the vision of our founders,” he said. As for using such technology as online regis- and committee meet—Michael B. Baker tration tool integration,Whitman said,“To make ings, and more special- 12 MeetingNews April 12, 2010 www.meetingnews.com http://www.meetingnews.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meeting News - April 12, 2010

Meeting News - April 12, 2010
Contents
Meeting Post
Newsmaker
Meetings Spotlight
Viewpoint
MeetingNews Research
Event Profile
Association Watch
Meeting People
Construction Cites
Theme Parks
MeetingNews Roundtable
Conv. Center Showcase

Meeting News - April 12, 2010