You had me at online...

Have you ever found yourself realizing something that should have dawned on you before, but it never did?

That happened to me today as I was walking through the halls of the office and it was shockingly simple...but it never dawned on me before.

I realized that I love online communities and I have for more than 10 years. You say, "Come on Christine - don't talk crazy talk!" That's impossible there were no online communities 10 years ago!

But it's true!

I've been participating in online communities starting in 1999 when I was planning my wedding. I found that Martha Stewart had an online discussion board where brides of all types could gather and discuss all the intimate, nit picky aspects of wedding planning. We could complain to each other about prices of flowers, dress, invitations, whatever. But there was one thing in common - we all were excited about our wedding.

I have a fair amount of self awareness and I realized quite early on that not many people cared about my wedding as much as I did and REALLY did NOT want to hear it. My outlet for my excitement was Martha Stewart's online discussion board. If fact, I just visited it today and it's still alive and well (http://www.marthastewartweddings.com/community).

It was a little piece of heaven for me - my secret outlet for wedding obsession with a lot of other gals who were equally wedding obsessed (not bridezilla's as today - but just girls who were super excited).

By the time I was expecting Leo I was already on Facebook and LinkedIn (not on Twitter though) - and I as I searched the web for a site that could give me the same sense of community I had when I planned my wedding 8 years before, I ended up at the What to Expect website.

What I loved about this site was that I was not only in a large community of pregnant women, but I was in a subset of women who were all due in the same month as me. I mostly lurked on this site because it often got very "interesting" - but I enjoyed having a place to learn and hear from others who had similar questions/issues/concerns.

So, here I am, participating on Twitter and writing a blog and connecting on Facebook and LinkedIn and it has connected me with a lot of very interesting people, from all walks of life, all different career paths - but we all have one thing in common - we are passionate about the meetings industry and association management.

History is repeating itself my friends - and I'm glad I have you to hang out with!

-Christine

Lessons Learned from a Pooch Hotel?!

*Full disclosure right now – my dog, Hippo, is spoiled. Enough said…please continue reading.

As a dog owner who travels a bit for work and pleasure, the decision on where to board your pet while away is a big one. For me, and Hippo, it has a lot to do with the environment the dog will be in while I’m away – how much play time is there with other dogs, will they give medicine each day, will they bathe the dog before I get home – that kind of thing.

So if you’re evaluating boarding facilities – all of them have the basics – a cage for sleeping, a play area for group play and some sort of grooming facility. It’s the ones that go above and beyond that stand out.

It struck me a couple weeks ago when I had to drop Hippo off for a three night stay at Pooch Hotel (in Chicago – www.poochhotel.com) that there are quite a few similarities between the dog hotel and the hotel we stayed in – save for a few.

Pooch Hotel
The online boarding reservation system is a breeze and everything is handled at one time, on one screen – you can make the boarding reservation, you pick size of cage, treats or no treats at bedtime, spa (aka grooming) appt, individual walks to a park, etc.

Human Hotel
At a human hotel once you complete the online reservation, then you have to go back online or call the concierge to make dinner reservations, spa appts., court time/tee-times, etc.

Pooch Hotel
Upon arrival – all the desk staff welcomed Hippo by name without asking me who it was…Their secret? I’m not sure, but I think they take pictures of the dogs and keep them with the dog’s file.

Human Hotel
Travelers have the opportunity to provide profile information about their preferences – but are they taking advantage of it? I know I have a profile at Wyndham and when I stay there I get extra pillows and Diet Coke – I love it.

I encourage, not just the hotel world, but everyone including association professionals to capture and then use the information they have on guests/members to their advantage.

Clearly, Pooch Hotel is exceeding my expectations, and I will return. So, I ask, what are you doing to stand out and exceed your client/customer/guests expectations?

Are you a hotel? What do you provide your guests to keep them coming back?

Are you an association? How do you make your members feel like #1 all the time?

Are you a service provider? What do you do to make your clients feel cared for?

Share your thoughts – I look forward to them!

Don't Forget the Basics - Breathing

Tomorrow I have the privilege of taking my entire PCMA membership team off-site for an entire day of planning. I say privledge because when was the last time you just detached yourself from your computer/phone and thought about stuff, planned instead of reacted?

If you had a year similar to people I know, you were asked to do more, with less...nose to the grindstone with barely enough time to come up for air. For a lot of us that strategy worked last year to a large extent, but that is no way to consistently operate a business/department. It just doesn't work - it will burn out your team members (and you).

Tomorrow is the time for my team to take a deep cleansing breath of fresh air!

I'm so curious to know what you are doing to plan for the year - knowing we need to keep our focus strong, but also be forward looking/thinking. Please share your thoughts with me so we can learn from each other.

Christine

Happiness Project

My new favorite website/blog of the day (thanks to a Tweet by @JeffHurt) - http://www.happiness-project.com/

Gretchen Rubin (@gretchenrubin) has written a book, Happiness Project, which I have not read, but I can tell you that if it's on Kindle, it will be downloaded on my commute home.

Have you read this book/blog? If so, what one great idea have you come up with that brings you more happiness in your day-to-day world?

Here is a sample from today - Ten Reasons Why Using Twitter Will Boost Your Happiness http://ow.ly/17xfn

Christine

Two Cool Tools

Two new tools I just learned about. Have you used them? Did you like one over the other?

http://www.jingproject.com/

http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp

Basically, both tools allow you to record your desktop in a video format. Jing appears to be free for up to a 5 min. video. Camtasia has a free trial.

For more ideas on screencasters - check out this blog by Betsy Weber:
http://visuallounge.techsmith.com/

-Christine

I Heart Twitter!

I love Twitter. Here are the reasons I love it, add yours!

1. It helps me stay connected to members
2. I get to meet new and interesting people who "live" in the association space
3. I get to meet new and interesting people who "live" in the social media space
4. I'm learning how to communicate in 140 or less
5. You can find out cool stuff about interesting people
6. You can find new blogs to read
7. You can keep an eye on the trending topics to stay on top of world issues (even if it's just the latest Lady Gaga gossip)

My favorite hashtags:
1. #pcma (of course!)
2. #eventprofs
3. #assnchat
4. #tradeshows
5. #ec10

My newest follow discovery that I love (at least this today/week): @MemberClicks

What are your favorites?

-CM

The Shoes

So, I was a skeptic. I admit it freely. Everyone told me about these clogs made by Dansko and how my feet and back would NOT hurt after wearing these same shoes for the entire conference.

I didn't believe them. BUT, I bought them because really what's the harm, right?!

It's true - they were the most amazing shoes. My feet didn't hurt once and my back lasted the entire event. It only started hurting after I made the unwise decision to wear my computer bag for 4 hours!

So, if you are in need of tried and true (and tested) shoes for your next event, and you don't mind a slightly ugly shoe to hide under your slacks - try the Dansko clog.

Do you have other shoes you like for events? If so, please share!!!

Christine