The Minneapolis Convention Center is going to be the center of activity in downtown Minneapolis this summer, with more than 25,000 visitors attending three upcoming conventions, starting at the end of June. The National Education Association (NEA) will hold its Annual Meeting and Representative Assembly beginning June 30, followed by the American Legion’s 100th National Convention starting August 23, and culminating with the National Baptist Convention, USA, starting Labor Day weekend.

Cumulatively, these three conventions represent 65,000 room nights for local hotels this summer, bringing additional money and tax revenue to the local economy. These events add to what is shaping up to be a banner year for the Minneapolis Convention Center (MCC). As of June 30, the MCC will have hosted 195 events for the year including Super Bowl-related events, and is currently on pace to exceed its goal of securing $20 million in revenue for the year.

By the Numbers:

National Education Association’s Annual Meeting and Representative Assembly
•June 30 – July 5
•Expecting more than 7,500 attendees and exhibitors
•More than 40,000 room nights in the greater Minneapolis area

American Legion 2018 National Convention
•August 23 – August 29
•More than 9,500 attendees and exhibitors expected
•Approximately 15,000 room nights in Minneapolis

National Baptist Convention USA, Inc.
•September 2 – September 7
•An estimated 8,000 attendees and exhibitors
•More than 10,000 room nights in Minneapolis

“Those outside of our industry might have anticipated a letdown in our business levels after Super Bowl LII. Nothing could be further from the truth,” said Meet Minneapolis President and CEO, Melvin Tennant. “Thanks to the sales and marketing groundwork laid by our team and our community partners, we have a bevy of diverse events set for the rest of 2018 that will allow us to sustain our strong start to the year. That’s good news for our local economy and the more than 36,000 individuals working in the travel and hospitality industry in Minneapolis.”

Another highlight for 2018 will be in the fourth quarter when the MCC hosts nearly 6,000 women engineers for the Society of Women Engineers’ 2018 Annual Conference in October. In all, Meet Minneapolis will bring well over 600 events to the city and region this year, including more than 300 events to the MCC.

Voting is now open and will remain so through July 12, 2018. The complete slate including biographical information and photos can now be viewed through the ballot site as well as on the IAVM web site.

All voting members should have received an email titled “2018-2019 IAVM Board of Directors Election-login information below”. The email contains a generated user name and password to use when logging in to submit votes.  If you haven’t received the email, please contact Rosanne Duke via email or by calling 972.538.1025.

Once again, the ballot is available through Survey & Ballot Systems allowing complete confidentiality and security to our members.

The results of the voting will be posted following the closing of the ballot on July 12.  However, join us in Toronto for VenueConnect, July 22 – 25 and have the opportunity to meet the new board members in person.  Every minute of this year’s program is exceptional, offering new dynamic sessions, topic roundtables, boot camps, and the largest industry trade show and networking events only possible at VenueConnect! 

We have all heard about Google’s new guidelines for ticketing, but what does it mean for our venues, patrons, fans and customers? Expert speakers in Michal Lorenc, head of industry – ticketing, sports and live events, Google, and Jane Kleinberger, founder, Paciolan, will help attendees learn about best practices and consumer protections that venues can employ to drive customers to primary ticket sites, manage multi-channel distribution sources, and put more tickets into the hands of the fans, when they present a session called Putting Our Customers First: New Consumer Protections, at VenueConnect in Toronto.

Lorenc is currently attending World Cup in Russia and will share some of his thoughts on the session upon his return. In the meanwhile, industry veteran and IAVM friend Jane Kleinberger offered her thoughts on the subject matter and more.

Why should attendees want to come to this session?

Protecting patrons is top priority when it comes to live events and Google is taking a bold step forward to lead the charge. Mike Lorenc will talk about these protections and its importance to our live events industry. Discussion will involve registration best practices, the concept of the official ticket source, and the new guidelines Google is implementing that will transform the way fans see search results.

What is a takeaway or two you would like attendees to return home having in their toolkit?

You will directly learn how Google and your industry partners can most effectively work with your digital teams to manage your paid search campaigns and search marketing. You will also gain insights on where ticketing is going and how to best work with world-class partners as you tackle the new world of multi-channel distribution.

What are the current hot topics presenting themselves in the ticketing and venue world?

Safety and security of fans, patrons, and their data is always top of mind. We’re also seeing an expansion of open distribution channels, giving greater reach for organizations to connect with their fans. Lastly, the ongoing efforts of mitigating fraud, data and ticketing site security, and consumer confidence.

One of the live entertainment industry’s biggest professional events, the 39th Annual Event & Arena Marketing Conference, was held recently in Las Vegas, and the SMG staff at Van Andel Arena® in Grand Rapids, Michigan, did not come home empty handed as their “Thank You Cards for the Troops” campaign was named the Publicity Campaign of the Year.

Venue marketers, promoters and publicists from across North America submitted entries in four different categories prior to the conference to be judged by industry experts in hopes of being recognized at the EAMC Awards held at the conference. This is the first time that SMG Grand Rapids has been honored with an EAMC Award and the second time being named as a finalist.

In November of last year, Van Andel Arena asked fans to drop off “thank you” cards at each of their events throughout the month for a chance to win two tickets to Trans-Siberian Orchestra in December. Using email marketing, social media, and mobile app push notifications as well as on-air messaging on 94.5 NASH FM to generate awareness of the campaign, the arena was able to collect over 450 cards from fans to send to the troops. They also collected cards from visitors of the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum and Grand Rapids Civic Theatre. Additionally, they collected cards from local elementary schools, some of which used the opportunity to teach students about the military.

The campaign was inspired by NASH FM’s nationally syndicated Ty, Kelly & Chuck Mornings, which responded with a hand-written “thank you” card. The show also kicked off the arena’s on-sale for Sugarland on August 10 by producing a city-specific video and running a ticket giveaway on air.

SMG employees named in the award submission were Director of Marketing Hilarie Szarowicz, Marketing Manager Alison Goodyke, Promotions and Special Events Manager Rebecca Chesnut, and Digital Marketing Coordinator Mike Klompstra. Szarowicz and Goodyke were in Las Vegas to accept the award.

“We’re so honored in Grand Rapids to be recognized with this industry-wide award. It is an excellent representation of the hard work Hilarie and her team, as well as the rest of the SMG staff in Grand Rapids, put in day in and day out,” said SMG Regional General Manager at Van Andel Arena Richard MacKeigan. “This is not just a reflection of our marketing department and staff here; it is a reflection of the support from the Grand Rapids-Kent County Convention/Arena Authority, SMG corporate, and the West Michigan community that spent the time and effort making the cards, as well as the enthusiasm from NASH’s Ty, Kelly and Chuck. This is not just our achievement, it is their achievement as well. Congratulations to everyone!”