Kindle edition of our "Theme Ideas Handbook for Meetings, Conferences and Events" now available on Amazon!

Our popular Theme Ideas Handbook for Meetings, Conferences and Events became available today (October 1) on Amazon in Kindle Edition. It contains more than 600 theme ideas for meetings, conferences and events of all types, as well as helpful information on choosing an effective theme and integrating it into your meeting or conference. Jerry Busche, founder of BizMotivation.com, is the author of this handy resource which has sold more than 7,000 copies.

It's available on these devices:

• Kindle
• Kindle for PC
• Kindle for Mac
• Kindle for iPad
• Kindle for iPhone
• Kindle for Android
• Kindle for Blackberry

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #25: Give them a good time.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Make your meeting an event that is memorable and makes a difference. if you can make them have fun while they're there, you'll hit a major home run.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #24: Give thanks.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Write a thank you to everyone who assisted you in making your meeting successful.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #23: Post-game analysis.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

After every meeting and event, do a post game analysis. Write down what went right, what went wrong, and what you would do differently if you were planning the meeting today.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #22: Break the Rules.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Some people have confessed that they actually dread meetings because they are so boring. Here are a few ways to break the rules from the "same-old, same-old" and unexpectedly delight your people.

• If your budget is limited, hold your meeting at a conference room at your local park district or set up at a local sports bar or popular restaurant.
• Ditch the lectern! Have your speakers stand directly in front of the audience. It will break down any walls and establish a better speaker-to-audience connection. If the speaker has notes, they can use a small table.
• Instead of presenting your awards at the end of the day or evening, try starting the meeting off by recognizing the winners on your sales team. Take a few minutes to congratulate and thank them for meeting goals, closing deals and making money.
• Vote for an MVP and give them an award. Select the person who contributed the best ideas to the rest of the group.
• Here is something that definitely breaks the rules, but gets great results every time. It may not fit in with your company culture, and it definitely will not be appropriate for an on-site meeting, but here goes: – The last hour of the meeting, most people will be watching the clock and waiting to go back to their room, visit the pool, or go the bar and congregate with their friends, right? Right at the last hour, bring in ONE bottle of beer for each participant. Call it a "Beer Break" without the break. You'll see big smiles, and the last hour will seem to fly by. (This works great with construction companies!)
• If you are holding a managers meeting, ask them to leave their titles at the door. Have your biggest executive conduct a "Make it Your Business" session where other leaders will state what they would do it they were the "Top Banana." You'd be amazed at the great ideas you will hear." I once facilitated such a session. The CEO of a major construction company started the meeting wearing a hat. He took off his hat and said, "Okay folks, at our last meeting, you said that I needed to do a better job at communicating. How have I done this past Quarter? Am I doing better?"

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #21: Set rules.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Forbid any problems being raised without a solution. Require that anyone who presents a problem must also have a potential solution. This will help your people understand that they must be solution-oriented. Also, avoid focusing on individual problems. Instead, concentrate on group concerns.

If your meeting is for fifty people or less, make it a rule that everyone has to answer a question or voice their opinion at least once. Also let them know the entire meeting is a no whine zone!

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #20: Fire questions at your team!

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Most people, and especially sales people, love an opportunity to be heard. Fire questions at them and ask for volunteers to answer. Examples might be…

• What's the one things you've done that has brought about a positive result in your sales (managing your department)?
• What are we doing right?
• What's the biggest challenge you've had with a customer?

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #19: Q&A away!

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Recommend a Q&A session between your audience and your executive team. You might expect them to say, "We haven't got time." Or "They'll get into areas I don't want to cover." Or "I may not have all the answers."

A meeting is an ideal place to have questions answered. One way to handle it effectively is to let them know about the Q&A session early in the meeting. Ask them to write their question on a 3X5 card and collect the questions beforehand so your executives have time to answer them.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #18: Remind your leadership team to mix and mingle.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Far too often, executives and managers sit together, leaving others out. Remind your leadership team that they are the secret to the overall success of the meeting. They are there to help their people and promote goodwill, so they should greet, mingle and dine with your members and avoid congregating together.

They should also participate in any group activities such as brainstorming and problem solving, golf or team building. This helps break down the "them vs. us" syndrome.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #17: Music maestro please.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Make sure you have upbeat music playing in the room as participants enter to set the tone of the meeting. If it's a sales meeting, play upbeat music. If it's an upper level management meeting, consider Mozart or New Age music. Play it on the breaks, and crank up the volume when it's time for them to return to their seats.

Use royalty-free music for every introduction and play it as each speaker walks up to the podium.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #16: Environment counts.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Make sure your room environment is stimulating and helps to create the mood for the meeting. You don't have to spend a lot of money. You can decorate the room with inspirational posters or accents with your theme to make sure the room has ambience.

Remember: If the room is long and narrow, do not make the mistake of placing your speaker area on the short wall and expect to get good results.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #15: Name your awards.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

If you have an awards ceremony, give it a name: President's Club, Winner's Circle, Top Performers, Quota Busters!

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #14: Delight people.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Every attendee should receive at least one gift. If your budget will allow for it, give several throughout the meeting. Surprise and delight them with a different gift waiting at their seat after each break.

There are additional ways that you can make your meeting interesting and not “the same old, same old.” Purchase one lottery ticket for every attendee. Have drawings for dinner-for-two, a weekend at a quality hotel, or a $100 bill. Hold these drawings throughout your meeting to keep their attention and make it interesting and fun.

Again, brainstorm ideas with your creative team and give people something they will enjoy. (Honda delighted every Quality Control facilitator with a $250. bonus check after the last break at a meeting. The energy level in the room increased by 100%!)

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #13: Make sure there's room at the Inn.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Double-check your room reservations. Make sure you can get into the meeting room early. Make sure you have the right amount of chairs. Make sure there is proper signage to direct your people to the meeting room. Check the lighting, sound and AV.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #12: It's never too early to promote.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

A meeting is only successful if it is well promoted. Be creative and systematic with your promotion. Get people pumped up prior to the event by promoting it as if they had to make the decision to pay money to attend. Send an e-mail invitation to each attendee. Include graphics with your theme on the invitation.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #11: Appoint a recorder.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Unless you plan on videotaping your entire meeting, appoint a recorder who will take notes throughout the meeting. The role of the recorder is to do just that – record. This is especially important if you will be sharing best practices. After the meeting, have the recorder provide a recap of the conference to all attendees.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #10: Agenda please.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Set your agenda. Make sure you build in plenty of short breaks. Schedule fifteen minute breaks every ninety minutes so people will remain engaged, involved, and physically comfortable. Have your MC announce the break and ask them to be accountable to come back on time.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #9: Look who's talking.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

What makes the difference between a good meeting and a great meeting? The

speakers! Since the speaker or presenter can make or break your meeting, make

sure you choose wisely.

Ask the boss

Here's your first good rule of thumb and a smart choice: Always ask your boss to speak! I don't have to explain why.

Appoint a dynamic Master of Ceremonies
Far too many meetings do not have an MC who can introduce speakers and keep the group engaged throughout. If your boss is a boring public speaker, that's all the more reason you need a great MC. Sales managers are usually outgoing and do a good job. (If you are a sales manager, by all means, you should be the M.C.!)

Feature one of your employees
Pick out a bright junior staff person who to invite to the meeting and give a five-minute opportunity to speak at the lectern. This boosts morale throughout the company.

Give a spot to a CSR

Invite your customer service manager and, budget-permitting, ask them to select a CSR to come also. Their job will be to give a five minute presentation on:

- What the CSR team is doing right

- How the CSR team can assist the sales team in their efforts to win more business and establish higher levels of customer loyalty

Invite up to three sales reps to share a successful war story

War stories must be a part of your meeting. It is a great technique for showing a strong problem-solution situation in a positive corporate light. Again, involve individual team members. Ask them to relate the following.

• How the initial contact was made
• Who was the competitor
• What they specifically did to win the business
• What lessons they learned.

Sales success stories are inspiring to listen to, keep people's attention, and emphasize your common goals.

Encourage team involvement

Get the sales team directly involved by having team members present product demonstrations or sales tips at each meeting. Presenters should be given plenty of time in advance to prepare. Have them share information and ideas that will help the team make more money.

Give a spot to your IT specialist
In the past, technology was viewed as a useful tool to help people to communicate and perform their job more effectively. Today, technology is viewed as a critical strategic investment for overall business success.

Invite your IT specialist to speak for five minutes on technology updates. Ask them to make themselves available before, during and after your meeting to answer any questions your group may have, or identify any challenges they are facing.

Book a professional

If you are considering the services of a professional speaker, remember that while people love motivational speakers, what they really want and need is information and ideas. Engage the services of a professional speaker who will learn as much about your company prior to their program so your people know they've done their homework and have come prepared. Your people will get turned off immediately if they feel they are receiving a "canned" presentation.

Seek an experienced professional who can deliver a dynamic business presentation or training seminar with the right blend of valuable information, ideas, skills, audience participation, humor and inspiration. Most importantly, select one who is a master at audience participation and obtaining audience participation.

That's a tall order, but the best speakers can deliver all of these and more. When you hire your speaker tell them the results you want from the overall meeting and from their presentation.

If you are considering a speaker for an after-dinner presentation, book a humorist or stand-up comic for that slot. No one wants to listen to a business presentation after dinner.

Don't save the best for the last

Often companies take their people to a fancy resort for a several day meeting. They have booked a great motivational business speaker to end the meeting and send their people back to work pumped up and creatively charged.

You will get more value for your money if you schedule the speaker the first day or second day instead of the last. At the end of the conference, your people will be tired, anxious to get home and worried about making the plane. Their attention will not be focused on the program.

Open up your circle

Bring in people from the real world. Have a customer attend your meeting and explain why he or she buys from you and, most important, what they want, need and expect by doing business with you. This is a highly effective method of helping your people to truly understand customer needs and listen to "The Voice of the Customer."

Another idea would be to videotape a few of your customers prior to your program. Let them know you want to tape them for use at a meeting to learn how you can better serve them. Ask them to answer this question. –

“What do you need, want, and expect from your provider?"

After you play the tape, facilitate a discussion on how well you deliver what your customers want, need, and expect and what you can do to exceed their expectations.

Present more ideas

Do more than just show new product promos. Show your sales reps what it took to create them:

• Schedule a presentation by your ad agency
• Review outtakes from your commercials
• Show planning for print or point-of-purchase promotions.

If your meeting is at headquarters and you are a manufacturer, take them in the back room to show them what R&D is doing. This is especially important, as whatever you are doing, their sales are paying for it. Unless it's top secret, your sales people can start talking it up immediately after the meeting.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #8: Don't let them eat cake. (Lasagna's out too.)

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

One of the worst things is serving food high in carbohydrates. If you do, you and your people will be fending off sleep. Order a light fare for breakfast and lunch—protein, fruit and vegetables.

For dinner, serve them whatever they will love. And then, they can eat cake. (Who cares if they are sleepy afterwards?) Again, play it safe. Arrange for a "food tasting" prior to the program during your initial visit.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #7: Closeness provides participation.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Theatre seating is best for keynote sessions. If possible, place the chairs in a semi-circle. Round tables are best for interaction and working in teams. Ask for "Half-Moon Style Set Up with Rounds."

If you want a classroom setting

style."

The night before a distributor meeting with an important client, I walked into a classroom set up with straight rows for 350 people. I immediately requested that the hotel crew change it. The manager said they had always used straight setup for their annual meetings, but he would see that the change was made. It made such a difference in creating intimacy and encouraging audience participation that it is now common practice.

Another important rule of thumb is to always place your platform and podium on the long wall. If you put it on the short wall, you will impede the speaker/audience connection.

never set the rows straight across. If you do, you will interfere with a sense of closeness you want for communication. A wide middle row with narrow aisles and two angled rows on both sides would be best. This is often referred to as "Chevron

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #6: Play it safe.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Visit the site prior to the meeting. Make sure the hotel can accommodate the number of attendants and that the room you select is the right size. Do not book a room that has support posts that can block the view of the platform or audiovisual presentations. Ask your hotel or conference contact to assist you in this area.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #5: Location. Location. Location.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

If you will be holding your meeting at a local off-site venue, choose one your people will enjoy. Select a hotel conference room, a restaurant or other meeting space. Before you select a venue, consider your objectives, the length of your meeting and, of course, your budget.

If your location is out-of-town to conduct a special meeting, the costs will be much higher. These meetings are usually several days long so you will have many more details to handle. If your budget will allow it, consider a resort. (Who wouldn't want to stay at a resort?) Most resorts offer enjoyable relaxation options such as swimming, golf, and other activities your employees would enjoy.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #4: Call it what you will.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

To theme or not to theme--that is the question. Many companies do not use a theme. Some use their company slogan. If you want to use a theme, choose one that is exciting, e.g. Racing for Success, Unleashing the Power of People, Powering Up for Success, a New Brand of Busines, Mission Possible. You can obtain resources for meeting themes plus many additional ideas at www.bizmotivation.com/themes.htm.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP #3: Brainstorm with creative people.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

In the early stages of your planning, gather key people who will be involved in the meeting. Also include the most creative people on your sales, management or employee teams. You might also include someone who represents your average member of the audience to help you stay focused on their needs. Share the feedback you've received from your surveys. Brainstorm ideas and select the best.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP # 2:Go straight to the source.

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Prior to your meeting, survey some of the attendees. Find out what they like and dislike, want and don’t want. There may be particular issues they want to discuss, topics they would like to learn more about, or speakers they've been wanting to hear. This will give you some great insight into how they have received your past meetings. Use this feedback as a guide for your decision-making.

Making Any Meeting Memorable: TIP # 1: Give Your People What They Want

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

Your goal should be to provide a meeting that delivers what your people not only need to have but also want to know. Before making any decisions, put yourself in their shoes. Today's professionals are working long hours and are under pressure to perform. They have too much to accomplish in too little time. The moment they realize that they will have to attend an upcoming meeting, they begin thinking about what will be waiting for them when it's over—all those phone calls, e-mails, paperwork, critical projects and to-do's.

Busy professionals want and need to receive VALUE from the investment of their time. If you are planning a sales meeting, keep in mind that for decades a sales meeting has been used as a critical link between a company and its sales team. It has been traditionally used to update sales staff on product knowledge, selling skills, sales goals, marketing direction, administrative and service needs, plus the lure of incentives.

A great meeting should also provide an opportunity for:

• An update on company business and product knowledge
• A learning experience that will sharpen their skills and help them to perform their job more effectively--training, information and ideas on how to increase their sales, manage their staff or perform their job more effectively
• Answers to any questions they may have about the company
• Solutions to their problems
• A welcome respite from their day-to-day job functions
• Rewards, awards, gifts and recognition
• An opportunity to participate, interact, share best practices, socialize, network and have fun
• A team-building activity that develops a sense of connectedness and camaraderie

Making Any Meeting Memorable: a Series of 25 Tips

An ongoing series of 25 Tips for Making any Meeting Memorable by Christine Corelli, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Competitive Edge Expert

You can never underestimate the power of a great company meeting.
Unfortunately, a successful meeting doesn't just happen. From planning to execution, a great meeting requires enormous creativity and effort. It's a challenging task that will deliver only a fraction of the results you expect if the meeting is not executed properly. That’s very disappointing for all concerned-- especially in light of the time, energy and resources expended.

What follows in this series of 25 tips are some tried and true tips to help you plan a highly effective and memorable meeting. They will work for you whether you are planning a sales, management, departmental or all-employee meeting. Through all of this, keep your unique company culture in mind and select the tips that best suit your group.

If you begin to feel overwhelmed, consider engaging the services of an experienced meeting planner. Often, they can help you save money and their experience can be invaluable. If you do, ask for a formal presentation, check their qualifications and get references.