MEM 1: What do modern events look like?

Events have changed. It is becoming harder and harder to recruit delegates for big conferences and events—but why?

Your potential audience now has more choices. They no longer have to turn up at big events to be in touch with their peers. Instead they can join open groups where they can participate in ongoing conversations. They have access to social media, and also tools like Meetups to support face-to-face engagement.

Instead of a one-off, events therefore now need to be seen as part of a continuous feed of inspiring information and engagements. 

Events need to support an audience that wants to be part of a community covering their topic of interest. Each of us probably belongs to 10–20 communities of interest, which are slowly replacing physical location-based ‘tribes’ and full-time employers. Try taking music festivals as your model—these are now a culmination of year(s)-long fandom, bringing people together from around the world.