meeting/event planners: think green! what’s inside · meeting/event planners: think green! by...

Volume 23, Issue 2 • Winter 2008

Worth Your TimeDecember 10 CalSAE Seasonal

Spectacular; MPISSN is co-sponsoring “Social Media Marketing”

February 17 AM Session and Luncheon:Marketing Trends Impacting Meetings & Events with Michele Wierzgac, CMM Location: Sterling Hotel

March 24 MPISSN Tradeshow Location: La Riverage

Watch for details on these upcoming events.

What’s InsidePresident’sMessage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

MPISSNBoardofDirectorsRecommendationsSought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

AnnualGolfTournamentandAnnualEvent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

YourFutureIsShowing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

SocialMediaMarketingtoReachAttendessandMembers . . . . . . . . . . . 9

OurRisingStar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

SponsorSpotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

EnhancedOnlineDirectoryListing . . . . . . . . 15

Meeting/Event Planners: Think Green!

By California Integrated Waste Management Board Staff

SAVE THE DATE!! February 17, 2009 Luncheon ~ Sterling Hotel

Morning Workshop and Luncheon: Marketing Trends Impacting Meetings & Events with Michele Wierzgac, CMM

Continued on page 4

I tseemsasiftheentireworldisgoinggreen .Maybeyou,too,havestartedthinkingaboutwaystouselessandreduceyourenvironmentalfootprint .Thinkaboutitthenexttimeyouplanameetingorevent .Itdoesn’tmatterhowsmallorlargeyour

meetingisbecauseyoucanincorporatethesamebasicwastereductionstrategiesforeither .

Byreducingwasteonthe“frontend,”youwillbekeepingwasteoutoflandfills,providingcleanerairtobreatheandconservingenergyandwater .Thereareeconomicincentivestoo .Reducingwastecandecreaseoperationalexpenses,provideadditionalrevenue,andofferpossibletaxdeductionsfordonateditems .

Wastereductionismorethanjustrecyclingbeveragecansandbottles .It’sawayofthinkingaboutallmaterials,operationsandcontractsthatdirectlyorindirectlyresultinthesolidwastedisposalfeesandotherexpensesnowdrainingrevenuesfromyourenterprise .

Youneednotbeatechnicalexpert;allyouneedtodoisincorporatethebasicstrate-gieslistedbelow .Thesestrategiesarestraightforwardandcomplementgoodbusinesspractices .Makeaplantobeginreducing,reusingandrecyclingtheamountofwastegeneratedduringyourmeetingbeforeitevenstarts .It’scalledawastereductionplanandshouldbebasedonthetypesofwasteyouwillcreateatyourevent .Besuretoincludebasicstrategiestoreducewasteinallpartsandphaseswhenplanningyourevent,alongwithatimelineofwhatneedstobedoneandwhen .

Includelanguageinbidpackets,contracts,oragreementsmandatingparticipa-tioninyourwastereductionplan,oraddadisposalfeewitharebateforbidderswhorecycle .

� • Winter 2008 MPISSN Connects

President’s MessageKaren Leland-Dolce Copeland Printing

MeetingProfessionalsInternationalSacramento/SierraNevadaChaptershapesanddefinesthemeetingandeventindustryinthegreaterSacramento/SierraNevadaregion .

EDITORIAL/GRAPHICDESIGNDebbie Pate-Newberry, CMPCommunications by Designdebbie@commsbydesign .com

ADVERTISINGLauryl Hinerman, CMPPlacer Valley Tourism lhinerman@placertourism .com

PRINTINGKaren Leland-DolceCopeland Printingkaren@copelandprinting .com

STAFFCindy Miglino, CMPChapter AdministratorP .O .Box2338Rocklin,CA95677916-624-2627Fax916-624-2648cindy@mpissn .orgwww .mpissn .org

Next Editorial and Advertising Deadline:Spring2008–February13,2009

Copyright2008byMeetingProfessionalsInternationalSacramento/SierraNevadaChapter .Allrightsreserved .Connectsispublishedquarterly .MPISacramento/SierraNevadaChapterdoesnotendorseanyadvertisementorstatementmadebyadvertisersincludedinthispublication .

I fyouhavenotbeentooneofourmonthlyprograms,you’remissingout!Ourlastseveraleventshavenotonlybeenwell-

attended,butreceivedhighmarksonattendeeevaluations .Theenergyandexcitementhasbeenpalpable,andIinviteandencourageallofyoutobeapartofthegreatthingsMPISSNisaccomplishingthisyear .

Becauseofthehardworkofourcommitteevolunteers,theGREENMeetingseventinSeptemberattracted95registrationsallofwhomhadtheopportunitytohearfromanexperiencedpanelofGREENexperts .IfyoumissedthemeetingorareinterestedinobtainingmoreGREENinformation,checkoutthefrontpagearticleofthisissueofCon-nectsandtheMPISSNWebsitewherewehavepostedhandoutsfromourpanelist .

TheOctoberprogramfocusedontechnologyasitrelatestothemeetingindustry .JimSpellossharedthehottestnewtechnologiesandgadgetsinthemeetingindustry,sharedtipsonproducingpowerfulpowerpointpresentations,andgaveatourofthenewfaceoftheInternet .Forthoseofuswhoaretechnologicallychallenged,hetookthetimetoexplainthingssuchasblogs,wikis,andRSS .Onceagain,themeetingevalu-ationswereoutstanding .Ifyoudidn’thavetheopportunitytohearthisgreatpresenta-tion,checkouttheWebsiteforhisinformativetipsheets .

TheeducationcommitteeheadedupbyBarbara Ambler-ThomasofUCDavisDean’sOffice-CollegeofAgriculturalandEnvironmentalSciencesishardatworkplanningournextfewprograms .DecemberwillbringCrisCanning,CMPbacktoCalSAE’sSeasonalSpectacularonthe10th .CriswillpresentonthetopicofSocial Networking.Lookforherarticleonpage9forapreviewofhersession .OnFebruary17thweareexcitedtohaveMicheleWierzgac,MS,CMMbacktopresentamorningsessiononMarketing Trends Impacting Meetings and Events .Thiseventincludesaluncheon,andIlookforwardtoseeingeverybodythere .Ifyou’reinterestedinmoreinformationaboutthese,andanyfutureevents,goonlineandreadallaboutitatwww.mpissn.org!

Ourchapter’ssuccessisthedirectresultofthecollaborativeeffortofourvolunteersandweweresopleasedtocelebrateafewlong-termmemberswiththeirlongevitypinsduringtheOctoberluncheon .Iwashonoredtoreceivemyfive-yearpinalongwithJessica LewiswiththeCaliforniaScienceTeachersAssociation,Karen DawsonwithAllstateInsurance,Vicki Kirk, CMPwiththeCaliforniaPeaceOfficers’Association,andDenise MorgensternwiththeHyattRegencySacramento .

Evenmoreexciting,Roberta CampbellwiththeCaliforniaFarmBureauFederationreceivedher10-yearpin,andSusan Buntjer, CMPwithRuralCommunitiesAssistanceCorporationwashonoredwitha20-yearpin .

I’msoexcitedaboutthedirectionwe’vetakenandtheprogresswe’vemade .MPISSNisgoingplacesandaccomplishingbigthingsandthisisallbecauseoftheterrificindividu-alswhomakeupourchapter .Thankyoutoallofyouforyourhardworkanddedication

Ican’twaittoseewhatthefuturebrings!

Karen Leland-Dolce

www.mpissn.org Winter 2008 • �

MPISSN Board of Directors Recommendations Sought!

By MaryAnne Bobrow, CAE, CMP, CMM

InaccordancewithMPISSNBylawsandPoliciesandProce-dures,MPISSNisseekingcandidaterecommendationsfor

seatsontheMPISSNBoardofDirectors .Ifyouare,orifyouknowofacandidatewhoiswillingtodevotethetimenecessarytoserveontheBoardofDirectors,pleaseforwardyourrecommen-dationstotheChairoftheNominatingCommitteeonorbeforeDecember 1, 2008 .ThenominatingcommitteewillthendeterminecandidatesfortheballotandsendeachcandidateanofficialnomineeconsentformforcompletionandreturntotheChair .AttheendofFebruary2009,aballotwillbemailedtothemembership .Inmid-March,theNominatingCommitteewillmeettocollect,open,validateandtabulateallvotescast .

Pleasee-mailyourrecommendationstoMaryAnneBobrow,NominatingCommitteeChairatmaryanne@bobrowassociates .com .Afullballot,withmorethanonecandidateforeachofficeisdesirable .

MPISSN’s New Enhanced Online Directory Listings

(seepage15)


Leadership

2008-09 Board of Directors

PresidentKaren Leland-Dolce karen@copelandprinting .com

President-ElectAmanda Flangas aflangas@janugget .com

Immediate Past PresidentMaryAnne Bobrow, CAE, CMP, CMMmaryanne@bobrowassociates .com

Vice President, CommunicationsJoy Florentino, CMP joy .florentino@marriott .com

Vice-President, EducationCarolyn Tienken, CMP carolyny@4arc .com

Vice President, FinanceSusan Crane susan@partysacramento .com

Vice President, MembershipRobin Rinehart rlrinehart@comcast .net

Vice President, Special EventsAnita Shumaker, C.M.T. anitashumaker@aol .com

Go Green continued from page 1

Chooseagreensiteforyoureventsuchasaconventioncenterwithanexistingwastereductionplanoragreenlodging-certifiedhotel .(Visitwww.ciwmb.ca.gov/EPP/greenlodging/tofindmoreinformationontheCaliforniaGreenLodgingpro-grams .)Whenselectingagreenconferencesite,considertransportationalternativessuchascarpooling,publictransportationroutes,andtrainstops,inadditiontorecyclingopportunities .

Ensurethatrecyclingandtrashcontainersareclearlymarkedtoindicatewhatshouldbeplacedinthem(trash,cardboard,cans,paper,etc .) .Besuresignsarereadableinrelationtothetrafficpatterns .Considerbilingualsignstobetterserveyourprogramattendees .Assistattendeesindisposingwasteinthecorrectcontainerbypairingrecy-clingcontainersside-by-sidewithtrashcontainersandmakingthecontainersvisuallydistinct .Placetheminareaswherepeoplearemostlikelytoneedthem,suchasnearexitdoors,restrooms,andotherplaces .

Usevolunteersorstafftomonitorrecyclingandtrashcansandassistattendeesinselectingtheappropriatecanfortheirwaste .Educateemployeesandattendeesonthewheres,whats,andwhysofrecycling .Turnoverisoftenhighintheeventsindustry,soperiodictrainingupdatesareimportant .

Reducetheamountofpaperusedatyourevent .Thinkingaheadoftimeaboutthenumberofhandoutsneededtoavoidexcesscopiesthussavingyoumoney .Wheneverpossible,avoiddate-orevent-specificinformationonbrochuresandpromotionalmate-rialssoleftoversfromoneeventcanbeusedforanother .Don’tpre-stuffmeetingpackets .Setoutthematerialandletattendeespickthehandoutstheythinktheywilluse .

Usedouble-sidedcopyingwhenproducingwrittenmaterials .Removeduplicatenamesandout-of-dateentriesfrommailinglist .Postagendasorprograminformationonyourwebsiteoronbillboardsinmeetingrooms .Ifyouareusingnametags,selectreusabletags,collectthemattheendoftheevent,andreusethematafutureevent .

Reducefoodwaste .Askpotentialcaterersaboutwhattheydotoreducetheamountoffoodthatisthrownaway(foodscraps) .Selectthecatererwiththebestwastereduc-tionpractices .Plantoservefoodinawaythatminimizeswaste .Donateexcessfoodtoareafoodbanksorrescueorganizations .Youcanfindlocalfoodbanksatwww.ciwmb.ca.gov/FoodWaste/Donation/#Program .

Contactfoodbankspriortoyoureventsoyouknowhowtoproperlystorefoodbe-foredonation .Foodscrapsmaybecompostableincertainareas .Thelocalgovernmentrecyclingcoordinatorisanexcellentcontactpersonforcompostingandotherrecyclingresources .Findlocalcontactsatwww.ciwmb.ca.gov/ola/Contacts.asp .

Publicizeyoureffortsbyadvertisingyoureventasa“green”event .Itisessentialtopromotewastereductionandrecyclingaspartoftheeventandprovidecleardirec-tionstoattendeesonwhatparttheyplayinmakingreducingwasteatyoureventsuccessful .

Aftertheeventyoucanpublicizetothelocalmediaandtradepublicationstheamountandtypesofwastethatwerekeptoutofthelandfilland/ordonatedtocharity .Thisshowsthatyourorganizationisenvironmentallymindedandaresponsiblemem-berofthecommunity .

Nowitisuptoyoutoincorporatethebasicwastereductionstrategieswhenplan-ningyournextmeeting .Rememberbyactingnow,youwillkeepwasteoutoflandfills,providecleanerairtobreathe,andconserveenergyandwater .

For additional resources go to:CaliforniaIntegratedWasteManagementBoard-www.ciwmb.ca.gov/venues orwww.ciwmb.ca.gov/bizwaste/factsheets/meetings.htmTheGreenMeetingsIndustryCouncil(www .greenmeetings .info)


Leadership2008-09 Committee Chairs

Advertising, ChairLauryl Hinerman, CMP lhinerman@placertourism .com

Annual Event, ChairJill VandenHeuvel jillv@sonomacounty .com

Audit, ChairTerri Schrader, CMP terri .schrader@marriott .com

Awards & Recognition, ChairCici Trino cicit@aosinc .biz

Community Services, ChairsLitza Coughlin, MAS litzac@graphic-promotions .com

Educational Programs, ChairBarbara Ambler-Thomas ambler@caes .ucdavis .edu

Golf Tournament, ChairRoberta Campbellrcampbell@cfbf .com

Member Service, ChairJoAnn Chadwick joann@beyondtravel .com

Professional Development, ChairLaura Bohannon, CMPlaura@bohannon .biz

Public Relations, ChairKatherine Winans, CMP jkw@gbis .com

Publications, ChairDebbie Pate-Newberry, CMP debbie@commsbydesign .com

Strategic Alliance, ChairTamalon Littlefield tamalon@coavision .org

Trade Show, ChairJan Vicale jvicale@boothcreek .com

Website, ChairTeresa Fungtf .traveler@gmail .com

MPISSN’s 10th Annual Golf Tournament

— SAVE THE DATE —

Wednesday, June 3 promises to be a fun-filled networking event for MPI members. From beginner to scratch golfer, all levels of play are welcome and encouraged at MPISSN’s 10th Annual Golf Tournament. This is a must-attend highly-rated annual event enjoyed by the players, sponsors and volunteers. Non-golfers invited to participateThis year, MPISSN would like to assist those non-golfers who want to join in on the day of fun. A beginner’s golf session will be added to the event mid-morning and end just before the scheduled luncheon. The group lesson will be coordinated for those who want to learn basic skills so they may participate in the 2010 golf tournament. What you should do nowMark your calendar for Wednesday, June 3 to attend MPISSN’s 10th Annual Golf Tournament. Watch for detailed golf course and registration information this spring. Hit your driver and practice your short game!


interestingbutattimesabitmorechallengingformyclientstolocatemydestination’sbooth .AsIstrivetoembracechangeandinnovation,Irealizeitisattimeshardtoteachanolddognewtricks .ButIamreadyandwillingtogiveitanothertry!

Don’tlettheabovephotobelowfoolyou…MaryAnne,KarenandIdidnotspendasingleminuteridingpastRodeoDriveinastretchlimo…justanotherinnovationintroducedtousatMPIWEC–superimposingourfacesontothis“Charlie’sAngels”scene .Wishfulthinkingonourpart!

Towrapitallup,herearethechangesthattheincomingchairmanoftheboardofMPI,LarryLuteranintroducedtotheglobalmeetingsindustryinLasVegas:

• A New MPI Awards Program–MPIRISE(RecognizingIndustrySuccessandExcellenceinwhichthefirstawardwillbepresentedatMPI-WEC2009andfeaturesasimplersubmissionprocessandforthefirsttime,non-memberswillbeeligibleforsomeoftheawards .

• Two New MPI Member Groups–theFutureofMeet-ingsTaskforce,whichwillidentifygoalsformeetingsofthefuture,andtheMeetingsExecutiveAdvisoryCouncil,whichwilladviseMPIleadershiponthedirectionoftheassociation .

• A Community Knowledge Plan–tooutlinesevenmile-stonesforpursuingacareerinthemeetingsindustry .

• A Revamped Global Certification in Meeting Manage-ment Program (CMM)

IhopeyouwillconsiderjoiningmeforMPI’s2009MeetDiffer-ent®conferenceinAtlanta,Georgia,February7-10,2009,wherewecanallgathertoshareourchallengesandco-createinnova-tivesolutionsthatwillbringvaluetoourorganizationsandmomentumforourindustry .

AsPresidentelectforMPISSNthisyear,IwasdeterminedtogetinvolvedandengagedinMPI’sWorldEducation

Congress(WEC)asIneverhadinthepast .Luckily,thisyear’sWorldEducationCongresswasheldinmy“proverbial”sistercitytotheSouth,LasVegas,Nevada(mindyouitisaninehourdrivetoVegasfromRenothroughthehighdesert,butashortonehourflightonSouthwest) .IwasproudtohavethisinternationalConferenceinmyhomestateasIknewthatMandalayBayandLasVegaswould“putonthedog”likenowhereelsecould–andIwascorrect!The2008WEChasbeentoutedasthelargestannualgatheringofmeetingandeventprofessionalsonplanetearth,withover4400attendeesrepresenting33countries!

“YourFutureisShowing”wasthethemeofMPI’s2008WorldEducationConferenceandtranslatedintodozensofeducationalsessionsthattouchedonthemajorchallengesandopportuni-tiesfacingtheglobalmeetingsindustrytoday .Afewoftheseincluded:thepowerofdigitalmediaandonlineinteractiontoreshapeourunderstandingofwhen,whereandhowmeet-ingstakeplace;theurgencyaroundgreenmeetingsandthedrivetowardsustainabilityandcorporatesocialresponsibility(CSR);andtheneedforcreative,flexibleresponsestoadifficulteconomy .

So,whatkeyinsightsdidweseerecurringduringthisconfer-ence?Thefutureisinteractive .Thefutureisintegrative .Thefutureisinnovative .Thefutureisgreen .And,thefutureisglobal .

Speakingofinteractive,integrativeandinnovative,thisyear’stradeshow,MeetingPlacewelcomedustothetradeshowofthefuture .Goneweretherowsuponrowsofpipeanddrapedboothsandinstead,wefoundanewinnovationcalledthe“ConnectionSpot”–afreestandingcirculartower,dividedbysidepanelsintoexhibitquadrants .600exhibitorsdisplayedtheirproductsandservicesinthenewformatwhichcreatedamoreinvitingatmosphereandencouragedgreaterinteractionamongexhibitorsandplanners .Asanexhibitor,Ifoundthenewformat

Your Future Is Showing ... WEC in Las VegasBy Amanda Flangas

Amanda Flangas, Director of Sales at John Ascuaga’s Nugget Hotel in Reno, currently serves as Presi-dent-elect for MPISSN.

MPISSN is proud to co-sponsor a workshop at this year’s

California Society of Association Executive

December 10, 2008 ~ Sacramento Convention Center

You don’t want to miss this event!

Look out bad guys! (l to r) MPISSN President Karen Leland-Dolce, MPISSN Immedi-ate Past President MaryAnne Bobrow, CAE, CMP, CMM and MPISSN President-Elect Amanda Flangas are on the case!


Ontario, California. The center of it all!

www.ontariocc.com888-262-7118

Getting here isthe easy part.The hard part is leaving.


Socialmediaisanewsetoftoolsthatallowyoudirectaccesstocommunitiesofexistingandpotentialmembers,attend-

ees,exhibitorsandsponsorswithoutinterferencefromtraditionalgatekeeperssuchascorporationsandthepress .Therearetwoaspectstosocialmedia:(1)Blogs,podcastsandvideocasts;and(2)applicationssuchasFacebook,YouTube,LinkedIn,andDigg .

Thesetoolsempoweryouto:

• CreatepagesthatthatwilllinkbacktoyourWebsitetogeneratetrafficandlinkpopularity;

• Createpagestoincreaseyoursearchengineranking;

• Postingkeyword-richprofilestoattractattentionandcontactsfromothersitemembers;

• Establishcredibilityandcreateinfluencebydemonstrat-ingexpertise .

Muchhasalreadybeenwrittenaboutblogsandcasting,sowewillexploresomeoftheburgeoningsocialmediaapplicationsavailableforyouruse .

Currently,socialmediasitescanbedividedintosubsetsbytheservicetheyprovideand/orfunctiontheyperform .Theyare:

Social Media Marketing to Reach Attendees and Members

By Cris Canning, CMP who is speaking at the MPISSN co-sponsored session at this year’s Seasonal Spectacular.

• Socialnetworkingsites(MySpace,Facebook,LinkedIn,Plaxo,Friendster)

• Photoandvideosites(Flickr,Photobucket,YouTube,GoogleVideo)

• Socialbookmarking(Del .icio .us,Ma .gnolia,Furl)

• Newsaggregators(Digg,StumbleUpon,Mixx,Reddit,Newsvine)

• Other(SecondLife,Twitter,Squidoo)

Socialnetworkingsitesallowmemberstoconnectwithothermembersinvaryingdegrees .Tomaximizeeffectiveness,profilesshouldbekeyword-richasopposedtojustalistofjobexperi-ences .Mostapplicationshaveadoptedthe“whatamIdoingnow”featurethatpostsyourday-to-dayinformationtoeveryoneinyournetwork .Groupsareawonderfulwaytoconnectwithinonenetwork,andyoucaninitiateyourownassociationgroup .

• MySpaceledthewayinthisarenaandisstillthedomi-nantforce,fornow .Knownbothpositivelyandnegativelyfortheinvolvementof“tweens”andteens,almosthalfofthepurported100millionMySpacemembersareover35 .

continued on page 11

10 • Winter 2008 MPISSN Connects

Monterey’s premier waterfront hotel

is also Monterey’s Premier Meeting Hotel.

Few places in the world compare to the Monterey Peninsula for a meeting, especially at thePortola Hotel & Spa, an easy walk to popular attractions such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, historicFisherman’s Wharf, Cannery Row, and adjoining full-service spa and Monterey Conference Center,attendees will remember their conference at the Portola Hotel & Spa long after the agenda is forgotten.

(866) 711-1538 | PortolaHotel.com

25 meeting rooms | 50,000 sq. ft. meeting space | 500-seat steinbeck forum | spa on the plaza | jacks restaurant & lounge | peter b’s microbrewery

PPH-481 Conference Ad MPI Sac 8/28/08 3:44 PM Page 1

www.mpissn.org Winter 2008 • 11

• Facebookbeganassoftwaretoconnectcollegestu-dentsonaparticularcampusbuthasgrownandagedasitsearlyadoptershave .Thefastestgrowingofallsocialmedia,industryexpertsclaimthatFacebookwillovertakeMySpacebytheendofthisyearastheindustrygiant .MorethanhalfofFacebookusersgototheWebsitedailyandthemajorityofusersspendatleast20minutesatasession .ThefastestgrowingFacebookdemographicisover25yearsofage .

• LinkedInhaspositioneditselfastheplacetonetworkwithbusinessprofessionalsandassuchisdoingwell .Amongits17millionusersisBillGates,whohasmovedhisprofileoverfromFacebook,allegedlytogetawayfromclutter .

Pictureandvideositesgivememberstheopportunitytocre-ateapagethatcancontainonlytheirphotosorvideos .Individualandorganizationscancreatepagesthatthenallowthemtoshareimages .

• FlickrhasexpandedfromjustphotostoincludevideohostingcapabilityforpremiummembersnowthatitispartofYahoo .

• NowapartoftheGooglefamily,YouTubeenablesavideotobeembeddedintoaWebsiteorblogwithouttheownerincurringthecostsofincreasedbandwidth .Manyassociationshavecreatedachanneloruser'spagethatcontainsauser'sprofileinformation,videos,favorites,etc .

SocialbookmarkingsitesoffertheopportunitycollectyourbookmarksontheWebandthereforehaveaccesstothembeyondjustyourowncomputer .Thebenefitisinthesharingofthosebookmarkswhichallowyoutobecomearesourceandexpertwithinasubject .

• Del.icio.us keepslinkstofavoritearticles,blogs,music,reviews,recipesandmore .Whensearchingaparticularsubjectwithinthesite,youcanalsoseewhat“tags”orkeywordsusersareassigningtothesubject .Thenyoucanwidenthesearchandincorporatethosekeywordsinarticlesyouoriginate .

Newsaggregatorscallonthe“wisdomofthecrowds”todefinewhatstorieshaveinterest .Mostemploysomekindofvotingmechanismtoestablishpopularity .ThisisagoodplacetopostarticlesandWebsitesforwiderdistribution .

• Diggisthemostwidelyknowninthiscategoryandthemostpopularamongthetechnologycrowd .

• WhatDiggistoarticles,StumbleUponistoWebsites .Withawiderdemographicbase,StumbleUpon’stoolbarwillenableyoutoseesitesthathavebeenpositivelyratedwhilewithinasearchengineviathesite’slogointhemargin .

Othermorespecializedsitesarealsoavailable .

• Second Lifeisavirtualworldthatcansaveandgeneratereal-worldrevenuebyhostingconferencesandoffices .

• Squidooisasitedevotedtopromotingexpertise .Theusercreatesa“lens”onaparticularsubjectandpostsit

tothisquasi-referencesource .ThebeautyisthatthelenscontainsallthecontactinformationontheauthorwithlinksbacktoblogsandWebsites .

• Twitteristhenewkidontheblockgettingallthebuzz .Thistechnologytakesinstantmessagingmobileasuserscangenerateupto140charactermessagesthatarere-ceivedby“followers”ontheircomputersormobilephones .Thiscanbeawonderfultoolduringaconferencetoalertattendeestochangesinscheduleornewopportunities .

Onetruebenefitinparticipatinginsocialmediamarketingisincreasedexposure,sincealloftheapplicationsincludetheircontentinsearchengines .Therefore,aprofilebyoneofyourboardmembersthatlistsyourorganizationwillshowupinasearchforyourassociationaswellasprovidingincreasedlinkpowerforyourWebsite .Anarticlepostedonasitereferencingyourassociation,itsservicesorconferencewillreceivewiderdis-tributionthatitevercouldonyourWebsitealoneorsolelywithinyournormaldistribution .Andyourfieldofinterestcanbetoutedwithinalensorgroupofbookmarksorvideostherebyestablish-ingexpertise .

Keepingupwithemergingtrendscanseemdaunting,butsocialmediamarketingisonetrendassociationsneedtokeepontheirradar .

Cris Canning CMP© is a prolific speaker, writer and teacher. Via her company Hospitality Ink®, she is dedicated to helping others increase their personal visibility, and the visibility and credibility of their organizations and meetings. She has published four booklets – “199 Networking Tips and Tidbits,” “Coming to Terms - A Primer of Terminology for the Meetings and Conventions Industry,” “Buzz Marketing,,” and “Social Media Tips and Tidbits.” She can be contacted at [email protected].

Social Media Marketing continued from page 9

RESERVE YOUR SPACE

MPISSN’s Membership Directory is an essential business tool used

by meeting planners throughout the year!It’s an effective use of your marketing dollars!

Reserve your space by December 12, 2008. Call Lauryl Hinerman at 916-773-5400.

1� • Winter 2008 MPISSN Connects

“Imagine a meeting experience that will make them forget their cell phones.”

17,000 sq. ft. of meeting space • 15 conference rooms • All-suite accommodations • High-speed Internet accessAward-winning restaurant • Championship golf • Cutting-edge team-building programs • 17 miles of Monterey Bay beachfront

What’s your wish? At Seascape Beach Resort we want to hear

about it. Because we know that the best possible meeting

experience is the one that makes both you and your attendees

feel good. Let the magic of Monterey Bay, our all-suite

accommodations, meeting rooms with views, beach parties,

4-star food, and competitive conference packages, make your

next meeting a breeze. Our sales team will attend to your

every wish, while you sit back and shine.

Peggy Young, Peggy Young & Associates.

800.676.1678 • SeascapeResort.com

SEA-010 ConfAd-SacMPI-BW-F 9/23/08 10:43 AM Page 1

www.mpissn.org Winter 2008 • 1�

DiscoverthewarmthandcharmofSantaBarbara,theAmericanRiviera® .ContactCatherine“Cat”Puccinoatthe

SantaBarbaraConference&VisitorsBureauforcreativeandmemorablemeetingideas .800-676-1266

OPENINGDECEMBER2008—TheonlydowntownboutiqueSacramentohoteloffering20thcenturygraceredefinedby21stcenturyurbanluxury .MomentsfromCalifornia’sStateCapitol .

TheCitizeniswheretheelitecometomeet .

Sponsor Spotlight!Our thanks to the following sponsors for their support:

Our Rising Star...

(far right) MPISSN President Karen Leland-Dolce congratulates Teresa Fung on receiving the Raising Star Award for her dedication to the chapter. Currently Teresa is chair of the Web site.

1� • Winter 2008 MPISSN Connects

www.mpissn.org Winter 2008 • 1�

Sacramento/Sierra Nevada ChapterP.O. Box 2338Rocklin, CA 95677www.mpissn.org

Thank You Key MembersDiamond Level

Emerald Level

Ruby Level

meeting/event planners: think green! what’s inside · meeting/event planners: think green! by...

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