Association and meetings professionals gather at ASAE events

Last week, nearly 4,500 association and meetings professionals gathered at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington to attend two key ASAE events: the Marketing, Membership and Communications Conference and the Springtime Expo.

The Marketing, Membership and Communications Conference sold out with a record 817 attendees. Based on last year’s feedback and attendance numbers, the event was projected to grow substantially and as a result, was moved to the convention center to accommodate the increase in attendance numbers. The final number of participants included 745 attendees and 72 exhibitors. This year, the event also included an expanded communications component in addition to sessions on marketing and membership.

“The marketing and communications profession is both a dynamic and evolving field,” said Steven Mandurano, director of member communications and marketing at the American Chemistry Council. “As a first time attendee of ASAE’s 2011 MM&C Conference, I was able to interact and network with my peers in the industry, sharing new ideas and discussing both the challenges and opportunities within our field. I was quite impressed with the caliber of speakers and the interactive sessions, and look forward to implementing some of the new ideas that I took away from this event.”

As the 2011 Springtime Expo came to conclusion, a total of 3,545 meetings and industry professionals covered the floor at what is still the largest one-day meeting in the hospitality industry.

The Expo’s total number of participants included 1,779 attendees and 1,766 exhibitors who represented 494 exhibiting companies, which occupied 580 booths.

“ASAE again created an atmosphere where both planners and suppliers shared valuable information and could discuss our industry,” said Jay A. Marsh, director of sales at the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association. “Our CVB and hotel partners made quality contacts and networked with attendees, inevitably translating into future business. At Springtime, we always see our favorite clients, in addition to meeting new clients who are unaware of Indianapolis’ $3 billion in new tourism products recently added online.”

The evening before Springtime, nearly 500 meetings professionals, rising stars and some of the finest vendors in the hospitality industry congregated for the first time at Ibiza Nightclub. The event raised $3,000 toward the Life is Good Kids Foundation and was an upbeat start for local professionals and industry partners to connect before the Expo.

“Every year, Springtime provides all of our hotel sales representatives an excellent opportunity to connect with our customers on the tradeshow floor. This year was another example of how critical face-to-face interaction is with all of our industry partners,” said Brian Sabones, associate director of worldwide accounts at Hyatt. “In addition, everyone is able to benefit from the educational component and the many other events that Springtime has to offer.”