The school year is approaching, and as an event professional, you’re past the boring lectures and all-nighters (on second thought, nevermind). Your days have evolved into anything but the typical 9-5 schedule, so professional development can be difficult to incorporate on a regular basis. But even with your packed calendar, you’re expected to continually stay ahead of industry trends and up your event planning and management game. So what are the most valuable resources at your disposal? We rounded up 10 of the best resources to help you stay on ahead of the industry and become more efficient and effective at your job:
Let’s start with a staple in every event professional’s reading rotation. Julius Solaris started the Event Manager Blog back in 2007, covering everything from event industry trends and ideas to event technology and how-to's. Aside from its blog posts and webinars, free eBooks like The Event App Bible and The Good Event Registration Guide are chock-full of valuable information to help you keep up with the latest and greatest in the industry.
2. Convene
Published by the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) in 1986, Convene magazine provides a user-friendly experience that makes it convenient for event organizers to find both educational and professional development content. The comprehensive magazine covers topics like event technology, event venues, logistics, attendee engagement, event marketing, and more.
3. Cvent
Cvent offers a variety of blog topics to cater to the various needs and interests of event planners and hoteliers alike. Event topics include event planning, mobile event apps, strategic meetings, survey, and hoteliers can find valuable information in the Hospitality section, which helps venues expand and enhance their group business sales and marketing strategies/. Whatever your venue selection, event budgeting, strategic meetings management, social media, event registration, or attendee engagement needs are, we have plenty of content to boost your next event and industry knowledge base.
The team at the event production agency, Endless Entertainment, has built an easy-to-read blog that provides event planning tips and tricks that can be easily incorporated. In their #EventIcons webinar series, Endless Entertainment interviews heavy-hitters in the industry to provide a new perspective on engaging and informative content.
5. Capterra
Capterra is a popular service that helps businesses find the right software, from legal and marketing software to event planning software. Focused on technology, the Capterra Event Management Software Blog offers approachable and digestible content for event planners.
Successful Meetings was created for meeting planners across all industries and covers topics including meeting strategies, technology, and management. We especially love their How-To section with quick tips on everything from improving event supplier relationships to finding new marketing channels. You can find content in whatever format suits you best, whether it's blog posts, videos, webcasts, or in-person events.
7. MeetingsNet
MeetingsNet is one of the leading resources for information on planning meetings and events. A notable difference from other sites is their focus on content in five key areas: association, corporate and incentives, medical, religious, and financial and insurance meetings. So, if any of those areas are in your wheelhouse, you’ll discover particularly relevant content.
8. Gallus Events
The event consultants over at Gallus Events stay progressive by sharing their thoughts and opinions on a range of event management topics. They even share their own experiences, providing an inside look at and their key takeaways from many popular conferences among event planners.
9. Plan Your Meetings
A part of Meeting Professionals International, Plan Your Meetings (PYM) aims to educate those that have stumbled into event planning, like individuals in administrative roles who end up being tasked with planning their organization’s events. With advice, how-to guides, and best practices, PYM is especially great for those newer to the event industry.
10. Smart Meetings
Smart Meetings is a media company for the meetings, travel, and hospitality industry that publishes daily content on its website and has a monthly magazine. Its content is primarily focused on trends in the industry, destinations and venues, technology, and meeting planning.
What did we miss? What resources do you find valuable?
