A handful of our previous meeting planner tips has a central focus about competition and/or the perception of competition with other meetings.
Check this out:
https://podiatrymeetings.com/2022/08/30/what-are-you-competing-for/
With that in mind, it can really go a long way within the profession to give other meeting planners a heads up when it comes to scheduling your next event. We all know that most meetings run around the same timeframe each year, which is helpful, but here and there we see the meeting collision and someone ends up getting “miffed.”
Last year we had a colleague alert us about an upcoming event so we could add it to our comprehensive calendar. Immediately we noticed that it was the same date as another meeting that we had just become aware of. Instead of holding this information “close to the chest,” we said, “Hey; not sure if you have already started promoting this date, but if you haven’t you may want to consider a different date because there is already an online event that is looking like it’s going to be well-attended; we would hate to see you lose participation because DPMs would have to choose one or the other.”
Result – the date was changed and both events went off with a solid amount of attendees and everyone wins.
So here’s another quick reminder. Use our calendar and extend a professional courtesy when planning your meetings. Call your colleagues to give them a heads up. Submit your meetings to us so we can add them to our calendar and everyone stays informed.
-Sarah Breymeier & Ann Dosen