Looking at Your Event from All Angles

We have just returned from the Nielsen Consumer 360 Conference at the Westin Diplomat hotel in Hollywood, FL. The point of the meeting is for marketing, media and retail executives to explore how collaboration between partners and consumers can strengthen connections with both. Industry leaders addressed the challenges of connecting in today’s digital environment comprised of diverse consumers. Through better collaboration, better solutions can evolve. Or, more literally, to look at consumers from all angles: 360-degree perspective. This Nielsen event is always one of my favorites to produce. Nielsen is an innovative partner and there’s always something new and exciting at their conferences.

At Consumer 360, we produced an event that matched Nielsen’s intention to look at the audience from all angles and with them, rethought how we, as event planners and producers, approach our audience. Do we approach them at all angles, or do we generally focus on the ballroom? Like the old phrase, do we put ourselves in the audiences’ shoes? Do we look at the audience in different and unique ways? So as we planned this major event, we focused on how we could use the entire meeting space most effectively. No space was underutilized or underappreciated. Yes, there were big time general sessions featuring industry leaders like Malcolm Gladwell, but even the breakout sessions were special, and renamed insight sessions and redesigned in look and feel . The subtle change in the terminology for the sessions indicated an important change in the perception. The smaller sessions weren’t about breaking out and away from a more important one, rather a chance to gain insight into a more focused topic.

Nielsen’s Marketing Team, expressed to make as many elements as possible digital, and not just in the primary room where the general session would be held, but in every possible space throughout the conference.

So, we turned our attention to the foyer, the place where everyone congregates when the bigger sessions empty out. In the foyer there was a huge exhibit called Innovation Expo, which was probably the central focus of the event. The expo was where you could find “a real-life, interactive depiction of how Nielsen is using technology and research to advance consumer insights at your home, your office, and in the store.” People could see firsthand the application of these advances with the guidance of a Nielsen expert.

In the foyer, there was also a large social media wall that displayed streaming tweets, blog posts, and Nielsen videos. Not only does the attendee feel like he or she is getting more value out of the event, but they also walk away with the feeling that Nielsen understood that their time is valuable and they worked to make the most of that time for their audience.

Nielsen 360 also featured a Networking Café in the foyer where conference attendees could connect with Nielsen experts and also each other. The live chat feature was immensely popular with people who had questions for the experts.

Lastly, one great addition to this conference is the streaming video for Nielsen employees around the globe. Also being “TED”-like, the live streaming of the general session was projected on plasma screens in the foyer so that attendees could grab a cup of coffee and network with a new friend, while watching the current speakers.

Nielsen set a great example for meeting planners to think outside of what they typically do and all areas of the hotel as a useful way to keep audience members engaged in every moment that you have them in your hotel. Downtime and break time doesn’t mean that it’s not another opportunity to inform and connect.