Clear View Marketing, LLC

Published by Paola Osorio, Guest Blogger for Wttc.com on 2/24/2010

Today was the final day of MPI MeetDifferent 2010. And, it started with keynote speaker, Marty Neumeier, author of The Brand Gap and The Designful Company.

Mr. Neumeier’s mission is to incite business revolution by unleashing the power of design thinking, a creative process based around the “building up” of ideas.

According to Mr. Neumeier, clearness, simplicity and utility are the three cornerstones of success. To improve your business, you have to know, make and do

Branding, says Neumeier, is the biggest barrier for competition. Brand is not a logo or trademark. Neither is brand an identity or a product.

Brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or organization. It’s a gut feeling because people are emotional intuitive beings who make their decisions without much logic. The brand is created in the customer’s mind. A brand is not what “you” say it is. It’s what “they” (people outside the company) say it is. This puts the emphasis on customers who are the driving force behind company’s these days.

Brand is important because people have too many choices and too little time. Most offerings have similar qualities and feature so buying choice is based on trust.

Mr Neumeier also talked about the ways that business needs to change in order to be successful. Following “best practices” is an old idea because they are set-up to follow, which means that someone else has already done it. To be successful, business needs to be good — and different. To really start a business revolution, companies need to be radical. Neumeirer gave as the examples of Apple, FedEx, Virgin, Google, Orbitz and Dell as companies who are successful.

To sum up, businesses can start their own revolution by completing the following statement: My company is the only _________ that _______.

MPI has posted a conversation with Marty Neumeier. You can listen to it here.

Paola Osorio (@HTOMpaola) is a post graduate student at Toronto’s Humber College and a guest blogger for “The Meeting Planner’s Best Resource.”

Published by Paola Osorio, guest blogger for Wttc.com on February 24, 2010

Just back from “E-mail as a Sales Tool: Prospecting and Building Profitable Relationships.” This was my second session of the day and I must say my favorite. Sue Hershkowitz-Coore was the presenter and she provided many good examples on how to use e-mail as a sales tool.

First, the do’s:

* Make it about them. The purpose of the e-mail is to get your clients excited about what you have to offer.
* Be concise. According to a Microsoft Office survey, 52% of e-mail users read only the first three lines of an e-mail message.
* Give your prospects full control of the message. Provide a mobile version and allow for opt-out and forwarding to a friend.
* Encourage trust. Mention how you met them or where you got their e-mail address.
* Respect people’s time.
* Follow-up. Follow-up. Follow-up.
* Always say “thank you”.

Now, the don’ts:

* Don’t use any unnecessary or cliched phrases such as “reaching out”, “reminder”, “touch base”.
* Don’t be too cute…
* Don’t forget to include your name.
* Never use CAPS (it could be construed as shouting).

Most of the attendees at this session were sales people for the lodging-meetings industries and the rest independent event planners.

Paola Osorio (@HTOMpaola) is a post graduate student at Toronto’s Humber College and a guest blogger for “The Meeting Planner’s Best Resource.”

Published by Paola Osorio on February 21, 2010

This afternoon I attended the knowledge session, “This is not your mother’s green meeting! How to make your green meetings fun and inventive”, presented by Cathy Kretz of Travel Portland, Cindy Wallace of the Oregon Convention Center, and Joanna Kysler of Doubletree Hotel Portland.

This session was all about new and innovative ways to incorporate exciting green elements into meetings. From venue selection to recycling programs, the presenters covered the many ways that a meeting could be make more eco-friendly. We were advised to make demands of our suppliers and to let them know that if they wanted our business they would have to develop better practices and be more environmentally friendly.
Continue reading…

Published by Paola Osorio on February 21, 2010

Last evening was the “Welcome Reception” for MPI MeetDifferent 2010. It took place at the Hilton Cancun Golf & Spa Resort and was very exciting.

Attendees were transported from the Moon Palace property to the Hilton in approximately 12 shuttle buses. The weather (of course) was warm, the attendees were excited, and the good vibe was running everywhere.

The theme of the “Welcome Reception” reflected the Mayan culture, which is so much a part of the history of Cancun. The main walkway was dressed with Mayan décor, including Mayan-styled ruins, music and colorful lights. Exiting the walkway there was a beautiful garden with an ocean view, where the reception area was located — white seats surrounded by huge Mayan structures. Very impressive!

The opening remarks were delivered by Bruce MacMillan, President and CEO of MPI. The entertainment that followed included dancers and live music. The costumes were unique, colorful and very impressive as was the staging of the performances, which included Mayan rituals and dances. There was a delicious variety of Mexican appetizers, including guacamole, empanadas, tostaditas de tinga (chicken) as well as a variety of desserts and Mexican beer and wine. Staff and personnel were helpful and courteous at all times.

Overall, the reception rated a “10″ — a wonderful first impression for delegates arriving from across Canada and the United States.

Paola Osorio (@HTOMpaola) is a post graduate student at Toronto’s Humber College and a guest blogger for “The Meeting Planner’s Best Resource.”

Published by Paola Osorio on February 18, 2010

Hello. My name is Paola and I’m a post graduate student at Humber College in Toronto, Canada. I’ll be attending and covering MPI MeetDifferent 2010 for WTTC.com and look forward to connecting with you either at the event or on Twitter. You can follow me anytime @HTOMpaola.

I have three reasons for attending MeetDifferent 2010. First is the chance to know all about the latest learning going on in the industry. Second, I’m eager to develop as a young professional and the congress is the best place to meet people at all levels in the profession. Finally, the Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) sessions truly inspired me to attend.

One of my “must attend” presentations is Jeremy Gutche’s Day 1 keynote. Jeremy is an innovation expert, author of the #1 book Exploiting Chaos, and the founder of TrendHunter.com and someone I want to meet. One of the areas I’m very interested in is the The Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) segment of tourism. Jeremy has lots of great ideas that can be adapted and applied to developing MICE strategies. Eduardo Chaillo, the Regional Director of the Mexico Tourism Board in USA, is another person I want to meet. I want to ask him about the efforts made in the USA to promote Mexico as a destination for the MICE industry.

As a Mexican, I feel very proud to have a unique country with charming cities, unbelievable cultural heritage, unique biodiversity, beautiful beaches, a delicious cuisine, and people who will always willing to help. Mexico has a real understanding of what the MICE industry needs, and I’m confident that the Moon Palace property will do an amazing job demonstrating why Mexico is one of the Top 10 international destinations in the world.

published by staff.

Paola Osorio, a post graduate student from Toronto’s Humber College, will be our eyes and ears on the ground at MPI’s MeetDifferent 2010, which takes place place February 20 – 23, 2010 in Cancun, Mexico. Paola will be contributing blog posts and tweeting from the event. Follow her here or on Twitter @HTOMpaola.

A native Mexican, Paola studied gastronomy at college and Business Administration (Hospitality and Tourism) at the University of Mexico. After arriving in Canada two years ago, she enrolled in the Hospitality and Tourism Operations Program at Humber College. In addition to her studies, she interns with the Mexico Tourism Board in Toronto.

Paola will be attending several sessions, including:

* Must do strategies to grow small businesses
* Planning international meetings
* Meeting management in Latin America
* CSR unplugged
* This is not your mother’s green meeting: How to make green
meetings fun and inventive
* Software trends for today’s meeting planner
* Mexico’s great diversity of destinations for international meetings

As well, she’ll be taking part in Make a Difference Day – Supporting Save the Children Mexico. MeetDifferent attendees are being asked to sort and organize much needed educational equipment and supplies used in the “Ludotecas” or Playing Centers where girls and boys can go to before and after school. Save the Children Mexico operate 11 Ludotecas in Cancun and the surrounding area, which are attended by more than 1,000 kids.

WTTC-Phoenix/Scottsdale Invites You to Attend: Finding & Keeping Clients in 2010 ..“Harnessing the Power of LinkedIn”. Featuring Raymond “Chip” Lambert, Author of “Making Linkedin.com A Killer Business App”.

Thursday, February 18th, 2010 at the Desert Ridge Corporate Center, 20860 N Tatum Blvd., Ste. 190,Phoenix, AZ 85050. The Seminar begins promptly at 1:00pm. Early Bird Registration Compliments of Wttc.com.

To Register Now go to http://ow.ly/16qHN

published by staff.

There are only 8 days left until MPI’s Meet Different 2010, which is being held, this year, in Cancun, Mexico. The event has always seemed very “left brain” in many respects, promising attendees “… better designs, more efficient practices and return on investment that’s clear and measureable.”

This year, however, the association is shaking off the cobwebs with several sessions that look at the future of the industry. In particular, you may want to check out One+ Magazine writer and editor, Jason Hensel’s take on what the event planner job of the future might look like:

Hologram Specialist —In a few years, let’s say less than 10, there will be a need for hologram specialists, people to work with and on holograms for meetings and events. In fact, there are already patents pending and trials taking place (e.g., Microsoft and Masergy Communications).

Director of Senses —Sense management and how to use it to amplify meetings and ROI will continue to grow in popularity and use.
Continue reading…

published by staff.

Writers and marketing consultants Doug Stern and Jaclyn Landon have compiled a six-point article for Marketing Profs on how to write a great proposal in response to an RFP.

The duo advise not to get too creative but rather remember that you’re getting points for showing how well you color inside the lines — and how well you listen.

Bonus points are given for writing well and paying attention to the look and feel of the proposal. That could mean hiring a graphic designer to design a template and making use of forgotten space — like the back cover.

published by staff:

Many hotels use Twitter to communicate with their customers, but Fairmont has taken it a step further.

The Fairmont Chateau Whistler (@fairmontwhistlr) in British Columbia, Canada, asked their Twitter followers for help in building a winter travel package. A poll was created where people could vote for the top activities they wanted included.

The fans voted and the result was the Twinter Travel package. In addition to nightly accommodation at The Fairmont Chateau Whistler, the package includes a horse drawn sleigh ride for two and a classic fondue dinner.

The Fairmont Chateau Whistler Twinter Travel package is available through March 28, 2010 (based on availability and helped by snowy weather!)