Here’s an idea for an outdoor poolside reception: battery-operated floating lamps. Well, it’s an idea, anyway.

To comment on this post, click on “comments” below. To receive a weekly blog update, e-mail Sue.

I just found out about ConferBlog, a new blog by Stephanie Downs of ConferZone, a very cool place for the latest in e-conferencing. And I ran across this post, in which she says that it’s very possible, if not probable, that attendees will wait for the archived version and skip the live event to, in effect, TiVo the experience.

But she says that it doesn’t have to be that way, citing an event by Communicast, which thoughtfully provided a pac-man game to play while waiting for the event to begin.

We are starting to see more and more tools used during events; they are used in compelling ways, to break the ice, to engage us, to make us laugh, to incite debate, to keep us interested.
So, if we miss the original event, we’ll miss playing, engaging, communicating, and more importantly, being part of the experience and the community itself.

I wish we could do the same for live meetings–oh wait, we can. So why don’t we?

To comment on this post, click on “comments” below. To receive a weekly blog update, e-mail Sue.

Forget “out of the box” and “walk the talk” (please forget them, please!). According to Anil Dash, the new phrases you might hear at meetings are more common now among the Sesame Street set:

There’s lots of business books that say we should learn from the wisdom of children, and I completely agree. During meetings, you may find the following two phrases useful.

“Not it!” This is good for shirking responsibility. Sample usage:

Big Boss: “We need to see a report summarizing this quarter’s trends in the follow geographic regions…”

You: “Not it!”

“Shotgun!” Similarly, you may wish to express strong agreement with a sentiment, or that you’re willing to go along with a suggestion that’s been made. You’re along for the ride.

HR Director: “We are strongly advocating that casual Fridays be extended to accommodate employees who elect to go pantsless.”

You: “Shotgun!”

I don’t have kids, so I don’t know what the latest buzzwords are, but I’m going to try these at our next editorial meeting. If I don’t get fired, I’ll let you know how it goes.

To comment on this post, click on “comments” below. To receive a weekly blog update, e-mail Sue.

Someone on the Experiential Forum listserv posted an interesting take on Westin’s branding and selling just about everything in the place. She was turned off on a recent stay at a Westin by everything from the beds and bedding to the spa items to the rooms themselves having pricetags on them (the rooms as time-shares). “Beforehand, I was excited about staying at the Westin. Now I’m inclined to stay away from them,” she said. “The net effect was a bit like vacationing in a shopping mall.” She wasn’t too thrilled with the level of service, either.

Obviously, a disconnect between quality expectations and reality are a big problem for any hotel, and not one that I’ve noticed at any Westin I’ve stayed at in recent years. But I can see her point about having everything for sale, all the time. Even though I lust for a Heavenly Bed, I’m not sure I’d want to have a pricetag on the mattress. What do you think?

To comment on this post, click on “comments” below. To receive a weekly blog update, e-mail Sue.