Connections Newsletter

The Connections Newsletter, published several times per year, offers news, trends, case studies, plus strategies and tips for engaging and inspiring audiences at your events. If you'd like to receive this free newsletter, please sign up now!

Current Issue: 2nd Quarter 2006
In this Issue:

Behind the Scenes

metroConnections Opening Chicago Office

The Power of Signs & Displays

River East Art Center, Chicago, IL

Team Interaction is Serious Fun

Get Noticed in a Big Way

Featured Speaker - Vince Poscente

Target Corporation Honors metroConnections

MetroConnections wins "Best in Show" Award

In the Spotlight - Karen Frank-Lopez

Soundbites

Behind the Scenes

Welcome to the Second Quarter 2006 edition of Connections! We’re thrilled to share the news of our regional expansion into the Chicago market. While we operate events throughout the U.S and in select international destinations, we see great opportunity in establishing a permanent sales and service office in Chicago, the #1 business travel destination in the U.S. Now, we’ll be even better equipped to assure your organization’s next Chicago event is a big success!

If you’re attending Springtime ‘06 in Washington D.C. on May 25th, visit us at booth #6024 and learn more about our high-impact Transportation Sponsorship solutions, including bus wraps, headrest covers, onboard video, and aisle and sidewalk graphics. These new services will help you maximize your brand visibility and messaging with the local area public, event attendees and passengers. Call me to discuss how our new Transportation Sponsorship solutions can enhance your next conference or event.

We hope you enjoy reading Connections, which is published quarterly in print, email and at our Web site in HTML and PDF formats. Please share Connections with a friend who might benefit from our industry and service news; better yet, encourage them to subscribe to our free email newsletter. Thanks for connecting.

Sam Thompson

President, metroConnections

metroConnections Opening Chicago Office

Expansion Fueled by Strong Event Market

metroConnections’ owners are pleased to announce the company’s expansion to Chicago, Illinois, in July, 2006. Company headquarters will remain in Minneapolis, where metroConnections has expanded to three locations since its founding in 1984. The Chicago office will be headed by Karen Frank-Lopez and staffed with local industry professionals. Frank-Lopez brings ten years of experience and leadership with metroConnections to the Chicago office. The existing Minneapolis staff will maintain current roles and clients.

“Thirty-five percent of our business is conducted outside Minnesota,” explained Sam Thompson, President of metroConnections. “Of that percentage, the majority of programs are held in the city of Chicago. It was the natural location for our next office.”

The new office, located in the John Hancock Building in downtown Chicago, will offer full destination management services, including conference services with online registration, event production, and transportation & tours with shuttle programs and sightseeing tours. Thompson sees opportunity in Chicago's vast restaurants, meeting and event venues, hotels, major sporting events, arts and culture and the national headquarters for many associations and corporations.

"Prior to our arrival this July, there were no Chicago-area destination management company owners/managers who were ADME certified." Thompson noted. "I am ADME certified, and that sets metroConnections apart from the competition, in addition to the unique combination of services we offer from a single source.”

A national expansion is a natural stepping stone for metroConnections. Clients who use metroConnections for an annual conference in Minneapolis, for example, have discovered they save time, money and resources by hiring metroConnections to produce similar programs the following years in other markets, such as Chicago, San Diego or New York. Thompson added, “Through our experience working in markets across the country, we have developed knowledge and relationships that assure successful conferences, events and transportation programs no matter where your business takes you.”

“We’re really excited about the expansion to Chicago,” said Thompson. “Ultimately, our existing and future clients will benefit.”

As the #1 business travel destination in the U.S., with 13.7 million people visiting every year, Chicago is a natural business event market for metroConnections. Plus, Chicago is home to 310,000 businesses, including over 30 Fortune 500 headquarters.

Some other interesting event-related facts about Chicago:

•In recent years, shows have averaged more than a 9% increase in attendance after moving to Chicago.

•About 12.9 million people live within an easy two-hour drive; approximately 46 million people live within a one-day drive.

•With more than 3,300 flights a day, flying to and from Chicago is easier than any other city in the country.

•Because of Chicago's high volume of flights, air travel to and from Chicago is less expensive than most major U.S. cities.

•Chicago's O'Hare International Airport has been voted Best Airport in North America four years running by readers of "Business Traveler International" magazine.

•Over 30,000 hotel rooms in a highly concentrated downtown area, from five-star boutique hotels to mega-hotels, at all price points; more than 80,000 rooms in the metro area.

•Historic Navy Pier is perfect for mid-size events that have outgrown hotels or are looking for a beautiful, unique venue. Navy Pier features 36 meeting rooms, two exhibition halls and a grand ballroom, all in a dramatic lakefront setting, plus loads of entertainment options.

•At 2.2 million square feet, McCormick Place is North America's largest convention center.

•The McCormick Place West expansion includes nearly 480,000 square feet of exhibit space and 250,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 100,000 square-foot ballroom. McCormick West is scheduled to open in 2008.

Sources: Chicago Tourism Office and Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau.

The Power of Signs & Displays

The Conference Services team at metroConnections creates signage and display programs to most effectively brand your conference, communicate information and make an impact.
“Signage can make or break your conference,” emphasized Kim Zach, Program Management Lead at metroConnections. “You really need agenda and wayfinding signage to give your attendees information on where to go and when events take place. In addition, signage is a great marketing tool. It provides the opportunity to brand a conference and add value promoting sponsors.”

For example, at the Peopleclick Global Client Conference (GCC), metroConnections produced consistently-branded kiosks for the client’s partners and sponsors. The strategically located kiosks allowed partners to display services and software directly to end users via displays and custom graphics, enhancing presentation and allowing focused discussions. Peopleclick also hosted a partner pavilion cocktail hour with designated time for attendees to visit partner stations and discuss their offerings.

At the CIDRAP Business Planning for Pandemic Influenza conference held in Minneapolis in February 2006, metroConnections provided signage for sponsors, sessions and meal functions. The Conference Services team determined the size and number of signs needed to move the group from session to session and placed them in strategic locations within the Minneapolis Convention Center. Large, free-standing signs were used to recognize sponsors.

When planning your next event, consider how signs and displays can enhance the overall attendee experience and your organization’s business objectives with branding and environmental treatments, wayfinding directional guidance and area labels, and sponsor visibility packages.

River East Art Center, Chicago, IL

Chicago has a lot to offer in the way of venue sites. One of its best is the River East Art Center, a place of enrichment, expression and inspiration. With its breathtaking spaces, dazzling views and daring architecture, River East Art Center is the perfect place to hold your next event.

Nestled comfortably on the banks of one of Chicago’s beautiful waterways, River East Art Center treats guests to spectacular views of the city, plus access to art galleries ranging from avant-garde to the internationally renowned.

Let metroConnections add to the artistic ambiance of River East Art Center with creative and unique décor for an indoor or outdoor event. From lighting to dynamic table linen treatments, metroConnections will help create a specialized corporate event for your guests to enjoy. For more information on how metroConnections can work with you on your next event.

Team Interaction is Serious Fun

metroConnections Event Productions staff creates a range of team-building activities and interactive events to help organizations engage and involve their members. These events benefit organizations through increasing participation, inspiring communication, and relationship building - all in a fun atmosphere for employees and guests. Perfect for any company or group, these custom events often include important players and corporate goals into the program, creating a balance between work and play.

Some popular themes include Gangster Dinner Mysteries, Game Shows and Chili Cook Offs. All of these interactive ideas help to liven up your event and inspire new ideas you never thought possible.

Cambria Corporation chose to work with metroConnections when they sought an engaging event to reward their employees and develop enthusiasm around company direction. metroConnections recommended a Garage Wars Event, where employee teams face the task of putting together a bicycle to ride across a finish line. The teams have to answer questions and earn points that will buy them the pieces needed to complete the bike. Teams can rent tools and decide whether or not to purchase the directions. They also have the option to barter with the other teams and combine resources to complete the task. Knowledge, strategy, teamwork and creative thinking all come to play - along with some mechanical ingenuity - to create a fun and memorable competition.

Eaton Corporation partnered with metroConnections as they planned their company-wide meetings. Each evening after the meetings concluded, metroConnections helped Eaton plan and execute team-building and interactive events for their employees. The first evening, Eaton Corporation chose to incorporate a Garage Wars event. The second evening, the interactive event was Clue, taking place in the “home” of world famous talent agent, Colonel Poupon. The employees were invited to hear the Colonel’s official announcement naming his four long-standing performers (present at the event) as the heirs to his estate. Soon after the announcement, the Detective came in with word that the Colonel had been murdered, and the four heirs were prime suspects! The employees were left to solve the mystery and find the perpetrator. In teams, they were sent off to collect evidence from different rooms set up with props throughout the space. Hired actors interacted with the employees throughout the evening as they gathered clues and pr sented their official crime reports. Intrigue and suspense cause teams to cling to clues -and sometimes each other - in an effort to solve the mystery.

For Comcast, metroConnections created a “Comcast Entertainment Complex” where guests had the opportunity to engage in multiple activities throughout the evening and have some serious fun! Guests could relax in a casual, club-style atmosphere and try their hand at a song or two in the Karaoke Lounge. For sports fans, a European Sports Pub offered interactive games such as pool, darts, foosball and a Video NASCAR Racing game. Moving on to the Moroccan Trivia Cafe, guests could try their hand at head-to-head Comcast trivia. Lastly, if the guest was feeling lucky, they could head off to Casino Royale, a Vegas-themed casino offering everything from table games to video horseracing complete with a teller taking bets.

Ready to plan an interactive event with your team or clients? For more information about Team and Interactive events such as these, contact metroConnections Event Productions.

Get Noticed in a Big Way

Transportation Sponsorship is an innovative approach to increase visibility, create buzz and encourage word-of-mouth marketing. metroConnections is pleased to be among the limited number of destination management companies offering this service throughout the United States. This type of marketing is ideally suited for both associations and corporate groups, providing a unique format for localized event-related messages.

Associations frequently generate advertising revenue through bus graphics and other unique transportation media, such as headrest covers, onboard video, and aisle and sidewalk graphics, to subsidize the costs of a shuttle program. With the help of metroConnections, associations can create sponsorship advertising packages targeted to their specific group. “By creating a valuable visibility package for sponsors, an organizing group can recover a portion of event costs,” explained Jeff Hartup, Event Marketing Specialist with Vision International. “Associations can subsidize program costs by selling sponsorships to other companies. By utilizing cost recovery products, a $100,000 conference could end up costing the association only $60,000.”

“First figure out who is attending your meeting, then secure advertisers who would benefit from reaching that group,” Hartup advised.

“Sponsorship packages are created for every convention,” explained Sam Thompson, President of metroConnections and its Transportation & Tours division. “Bus graphics are one more sponsorship opportunity we are able to offer.”

Bus graphics can be a full wrap (the entire bus covered with graphics), or a smaller ribbon (a strip running the length of the bus below the windows and above the cargo holds), or any configuration in between. Other visibility opportunities include headrest covers, sidewalk graphics, bus aisle graphics and onboard videos.

This is a valuable product for potential advertisers targeting specific association members or event attendees. “It’s an opportunity to create high impact memorable impressions with a qualified, captive audience,” explained Thompson.

The value of bus graphics attracts corporate groups as well. Whether introducing a new product, motivating a sales or executive group or reinforcing brand messaging, transportation advertising is a powerful medium because it offers large-format, high impact, high-quality images, creating a buzz and reaching a qualified group of people, as well as the local general population.

metroConnections offers comprehensive event marketing services, including Transportation Sponsorship solutions - bus graphics, banners, headrest covers, sidewalk graphics, video and more - covering all aspects of production, printing, proofing, installation, application removal, product management, and if necessary, graphic design.

Featured Speaker - Vince Poscente

Keynote speaker Vince Poscente may be the answer to your next speaker needs. He is a former Olympic skier with business and academic accreditation. Poscente can help you “Ignite your vision, execute your strategy and eclipse your competition.” He quickly engages the audience with his energy and stories, yet remains focused on the need to provide valid and constructive information to the audience.

Poscente is a renowned business strategist and a master communicator. Customizing for each company and audience, he speaks on his idea of “Do what the competition is not willing to do,” sharing his 5C Strategy to help you transform workplace performance.

Make sure you have the right keynote speaker at your next event. For more information about Vince Poscente or other keynote speakers, contact your metroConnections representative.

Target Corporation Honors metroConnections

Target Corporation recently recognized metroConnections as a Partner of the Year, an honor given to select vendors who exhibit extraordinary passion for performance and commitment to Target’s strategies of Differentiation, Value and Reliability.

metroConnections provided Target with conference website design and registration, name badges, environmental design, event production and decor -- for multiple events throughout the 2005 year. metroConnections’ service and creativity has helped build and strengthen the partnership with Target Corporation over the last few years.

MetroConnections wins "Best in Show" Award

metroConnections wins “Best in Show” award from Minnesota Meetings & Events Magazine for best Meeting Planning & Production Company. Members of the meetings and event industry from a field of top industry talent chose metroConnections for the award. This year’s win marks the fourth consecutive year the company has been recognized.

In the Spotlight - Karen Frank-Lopez

Karen Frank-Lopez has been an integral part of the metroConnections team since June of 1997, contributing to the company’s growth through the planning and management of many event productions. Her experience, dedication and leadership fueled her recent promotion to
Operations Director of our new Chicago office. Karen will work with our local Chicago sales team promoting and managing all elements of metroConnections' service offerings in each of our three divisions.

With background as a talent agent, Karen knows the importance of finding appropriate and talented entertainment unique to each event. Karen has served as metroConnections Director of Entertainment, where she managed all aspects of contract negotiation and talent management with keynote speakers, musicians, dancers, comedians, magicians or character actors.

Karen comments on her new role, “I look forward to working with our new Chicago sales team and sharing with the Chicago market what metroConnections offers - much more than a typical DMC - especially given our online registration services and interactive event specialties.” Karen and her family will relocate to the windy city in June 2006.

Soundbites

"...I just wanted to let you know that we had such a wonderful time. ...the dealers interacted with our people by teaching and having fun."

Greenbriar & Russel, Inc.

Casino Holiday Party 1/21/06

"Thank you so much for a wonderful party. Everything went very smooth due to all your work."

Fidelity Bank

Game Show Holiday Party 1/7/06

"Thank you all for your help in throwing together our event so quickly for Holidazzle. The feedback from customers is absolutely amazing. The venue was definitely a challenge, but with your help, things went great! THANK YOU!"

Starwood Hotels & Resorts

Winter Activities Party 12/8/05

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