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IMEX

Exclusively Corporate at IMEX Frankfurt 2019: Corporate event planners discuss innovation, online and offline events, destination selection criteria and measuring ROI

Back in May, I attended Exclusively Corporate at IMEX Frankfurt. Exclusively Corporate is a conference specifically designed for the needs of corporate event managers. It offers a full day of education and networking during EduMonday, which takes place one day prior to the exhibition—this year EduMonday was held on 20 May 2019. In July, I shared with you a recap of a session delivered by Gerd De Bruycker, Marketing Director, Northern Europe at Cisco Systems regarding ‘Connecting events with your overall marketing mix.’ This time, I want to discuss a summary of the panel session regarding innovation, online and offline events, destination selection criteria and measuring ROI. The panellists were Bob Bejan, General Manager Global Events at Microsoft, Gerd De Bruycker, Marketing Director, Northern Europe at Cisco Systems, Danielle Purfey, Executive Director, Events & Meetings at KPMG US and Nicola Wedge, Head of Events at Barclays UK. The session was moderated by Pádraic Gilligan and Patrick M. Delaney, managing partners at Soolnua. 

Exclusively Corporate @IMEX 2019: How Cisco implements a successful online and offline events strategy worldwide—a talk by Gerd De Bruycker, Marketing Director, Northern Europe at Cisco System

Exclusively Corporate is a conference specifically designed for the needs of corporate event managers. It offers a full day of education and networking during EduMonday, which takes place one day prior to IMEX Frankfurt, this year on 20 May 2019.

There were six sessions this year, each approximately 20 minutes in length, dedicated to various topics that can help corporate planners improve their daily processes, become informed about the latest trends and also facilitate knowledge exchange. 

One session that I found particularly interesting for my business was by Gerd De Bruycker, Marketing Director, Northern Europe at Cisco Systems regarding ‘Connecting events with your overall marketing mix.’ He began the session by asking who actually knows what Cisco does? The IT giant provides back-end support and software for the Internet—to put it simply, if you’ve sent an email today, you’ve most probably used one of Cisco’s products. Not everyone knows what Cisco does, but in fact, they are one of the largest IT companies, generating 50 billion dollars in revenue and with 70,000 employees worldwide. And, they have a global event team. 

How to put the WOW factor into corporate events

Exclusively Corporate is a conference specifically designed for the needs of corporate event planners. It offers a full day of education and networking at IMEX Frankfurt and takes place as part of EduMonday. This year it took place on 14 May.

One of the morning sessions that I attended was about how to put the WOW factor into events. It was an innovation panel with speakers from two technology giants: Rena Lindell, Head of Sponsorships at LinkedIn and Amy Brown Head of Creative Strategy at Google. The session was moderated by Patrick M. Delaney and Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partners at Sool Nua.

The danger for any tech company is using tech for tech’s sake. Therefore, these companies need to find ways to bring tech to life in ways that make their companies more human and connect with the customers on a personal level. And this they can achieve by hosting live events, and making the customers leave the event knowing that they are better off.

In-house teams work with multiple agencies on a regular basis, employing several agencies for different projects at the same time not to give them too much workload. Alternatively, when the companies are involved as sponsors, they have less decision making power and control over the final event outcome.

How venues can support car launch events

car launch events1

With stunning backdrops and grand architecture France is a popular destination for car launch events. France is one of seven destinations known for product launch events related to the automotive industry, and some events can attract as much as 20,000+ people. In past years there were multiple grand venue openings in France. Some of the venues have significantly important architecture features, and these features can sometimes compliment a desired storytelling element and increase audience engagement. One such building is the recently opened (2016) Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris.

To get a further look into this interesting subject, Atout France hosted an expert session at their stand during IMEX Frankfurt 2017 entitled “Future architecture projects in France & automobile events” and invited two industry leaders to share their insights on the use of architecturally significant venues, both old and new, for automotive events. The event explored how these venues and their features can be used to create maximum impact at a car launch event. Kevin Jackson, CEO of Experience is The Marketing, interviewed Christian Seidenstücker, CEO at JOKE Event AG.

How start-ups can improve the MICE experience

authentic MICE experience2

Over the past few years the French start-up scene has seen a fresh growth. To get further insights into this area, Atout France invited key industry players in the French start-up scene to share, with the international audience at IMEX Frankfurt 2017, the latest developments and how the MICE industry can benefit from working with start-ups. Entitled “how start-ups can improve the MICE experience”, the aim of this session was to showcase how the MICE industry can work closely with start-ups in the tourism space to deliver more authentic MICE experience for attendees.

The session was moderated by Hans Jürgen Heinrich, Publisher, Events-Magazin and speakers were Violaine Terreaux, Chef de Pôle Tech & Services, Business France, Christelle Larché, Business Developer, VizEat and Florian Benejean, ‎Founder & CTO, My Jomo.