Program

The components of the program in this area will develop and grow as ACC works more closely with the club convention leadership. Most of these program areas are specific topics identified by club leadership and convention chairs completing the Convention Survey in late 2003 as areas where they felt clubs needed some assistance. Please refer to the Convention Survey section in this Program for the complete report and analysis of the survey results.

Convention Promotion and Publicity

Promotion and publicity really has several audiences. Obviously, your own club membership is one of the key audiences. You want to get the membership to the convention. Some members will automatically come every year...year after year after year. Others need to be coaxed or convinced that they should attend. But you need these members there if the convention is to be successful. An internal promotion campaign is needed to do the convincing. Use your club publication or newsletter, the website, e-mail messages, direct mailings. Develop some appealing "tools" to help do the job. For example, by shopping around it is amazing how cheap 4-color postcards are - real attention getters. Prepare presentation packets for your club officers and board members so they can help with the sales job.

External promotion and publicity falls into two major areas. If your convention is open to the public - at least portions of it - you need to offer promo tools to the local media in the city where the convention is being held to assist with bringing in "walk-ins." Posters & fliers for local libraries and community centers and other locales may also be appropriate.

If your annual convention is the major event of the year for your club, it needs to be showcased. Releases and features need to be sent out prior to the convention, maybe even during the event, and a follow-up report afterwards. Where should these go? Specialty publications and collector publications are a major outlet. Make sure you utilize the ACC News Service and Resource Bureau as this gets you exposure to all the collecting and specialty publications and far beyond, to daily newspaper columnists, radio and television shows, news websites, wire services and syndicates, and to the overseas media. For more information simply write: NewsService@collectors.org

Networking with Other Club Convention Chairmen

We make the assumption that any club convention chairman checks with past chairmen of that club's conventions to get their counsel ...their suggestions. Likewise, ACC feels by offering a process for club convention chairmen from different clubs to have a dialogue and exchange ideas is very positive in a different way. Although these chairmen are not familiar with your specific convention, they are experts on their own and have stories and experiences to share. Some of them may have had conventions in the same city where you are planning to meet. Others may have already tried something which you plan on considering as a new idea for your convention. Or, they might suggest a slightly different "spin" on one of your traditional program activities which could make it more interesting and less traditional.

New Ideas for Convention Programs and Activities

Many of our collecting clubs are now definitely in an era of maturity, having started in the 1970s or 1980s. As a result, the annual club convention has taken on a definite traditional "feel" of sameness. "What, you say? Today is Thursday...that means a business meeting in the morning, seminars in the afternoon and our annual banquet and boring awards ceremony tonight?" Well, maybe it isn't quite that bad, but then again it may be close.

The club convention survey definitely pointed out the need for both new program ideas and some new activities. Yes, the banquet reception could be replaced by line dancing and replace the punch with dirty martinis, but this isn't really what we're talking about. ACC's "take" on this is that many clubs are looking for some new types of speakers and panels and other presentations for their convention programs. We're going to try to put a directory of such ideas together. Likewise, for activities. We'll try to uncover some activities that other clubs or groups are doing that could be shared.

One quick note: wherever you meet, make sure you check in early with the city's tourist bureau and chamber of commerce and get their suggestions for possible local program ideas and activities in the area.

Balancing Tradition with Creativity and Trying Something New

This, perhaps, is one of the most difficult challenges for the convention chairman. Every chairman really wants to do something new or a little different - to leave their "mark" so to speak.

Obviously there are certain convention traditions that will remain just that - basically untouchable. And this is all right, so long as there are other elements of the convention program or operations which offer something new, something creative.

Probably one of the worst mistakes a convention chairman can make is to come in thinking that they need to change everything just for the sake of change. There are sometimes very good reasons for traditional portions of the convention program to remain exactly the same from year to year. The skill of the successful convention chairman is to identify those areas that can or should be changed and weave them together with the tradition for a balanced program. Trying a special, new "twist" on something traditional can sometimes be a great success. But a word of advise. Don't make it a total surprise - test your idea out on some of the stalwarts in the club and get their opinion and backing.

If you have a great idea for trying something totally new at your convention, perhaps other changes you may want to make in the program should be more subtle or "baby step" changes. This way, the one big change becomes your "signature" change in the history of conventions for your club. Again, it comes down to balance between trying something fun and totally new, and going with tradition.

Attention to "First Timers"

"First Timers," meaning those club members who are attending their first annual convention, should receive special treatment. You want them to have such a good time that they will continue coming back year after year. "First Timer" ribbon ID's for the convention badges and a "First Timer" reception are a beginning. The convention program, throughout, needs to deliberately include ways to bring "First Timers" into the family and make them feel apart. Unfortunately, many conventions have the "old timers" who have been to 20 or more conventions and who know everyone else and can come in and hit the ground running, so to speak. It's very easy for "First Timers" to sense exclusion in such circumstances. Clubs need to be totally aware of this and particularly the club leadership needs to be sensitive to welcoming and involving the "First Timers."

As convention chairman, if you have an established committee to give attention to "First Timers" we would strongly suggest that it be made up primarily of club members who were themselves "First Timers" the year before.

Creative Ways to Boost Convention Attendance

It seems a trend that convention attendance has dipped in recent years for a number of clubs. This came out clearly in the 2003 national convention survey. Those reporting had a variety of contributing reasons they thought might be to blame - everything from the Internet to having "like" conventions year after year with little creativity and change.

Probably the Internet may be to blame to a small degree. Many collectors feel they can do better finding items on the Internet sitting in front of the computer screen in their den or office. But this can also be a "cop out" for bigger problems. A couple of clubs simply reported that their membership was getting older and it was more difficult for them to travel than it used to be. This symptom goes much further than just the convention attendance.

Practically every club indicates that their annual convention is the biggest event of the year - the highlight of the calendar. Well, if that's the case, then the convention better well live up to it in every way, and if this cannot be done then perhaps the conventions should either be done away with or held less frequently.

In discussing conventions with hundreds of different collectors in a wide range of collecting clubs, our sense is that there has not been very much creativity that has gone into the planning of most of them. They are not only traditional by intent, but often traditionally boring.

So how do you build creativity into the convention program? First, we would suggest the process start within hours after the closure of the past convention, while it is still fresh in your mind. Analyze and dissect and critique each and every segment of the convention in the name of creativity. What can you do next year that would be different ...and better?

Perhaps a membership contest would be appropriate in the newsletter following the last convention. Ask "If you could change one segment of the convention that would make it better, what would you change?" And, then ask: "If you could add one creative, new dimension to our convention next year, what would you add?" There could be more questions, but if you got some good solid responses to these two questions, it could point you as convention chairman in a winning direction. Obviously, these questions are meant for those members who are normally convention attendees. Perhaps posing a different question to the members who do not attend might be something like "We are attempting to boost attendance at our annual convention. Be creative. Specifically what can we offer that would make you want to attend next year?"

Probably one of the best ways to find creative ideas to add to your convention operation is by seeking out what other clubs are doing at their conventions - networking and sharing ideas. ACC offers ways for convention chairmen to have such communications.

Getting People to Volunteer

Many clubs report a void in volunteerism when it comes to planning and conducting the annual convention. Probably it is safe to say that anyone who has ever chaired a national convention or other major event can readily attest to the time consumption, detail and negotiating you have to do. And, probably there isn't such a thing as too many volunteers.

It has been suggested that the best way to get volunteers is to establish very direct "position descriptions" for each volunteer role - precisely what is needed and expected, approximately how involved or demanding it may or may not be, and a time frame. When people have a clear idea of what is expected, they are more apt to volunteer.

Another thought is that it doesn't hurt to just ask people directly, "will you do such and such for the convention?" Some people may feel uncomfortable volunteering but would be happy to help, if asked, and will probably do a good job.

Always remember, volunteers are not paid staff. Some people are habitual volunteers who then lack follow through. As convention chairman, you need to seek out information to make sure you are getting a good corps of volunteers who you can count on and who will work together as a team.

An important note. Make sure your volunteers get appropriate recognition and thanks both at the convention and in the club publication or other type of convention report.

Convention Sponsorships

Soliciting sponsors for various portions of your club convention should almost be automatic, yet few clubs have sponsors for their annual event. Conventions offer a great opportunity to "ask" for assistance with a variety of options.

We'll start with the easy ones - the inexpensive options that most anyone could afford to sponsor. Door prizes or raffle items. Table decorations for the annual banquet. Items for the convention auction. Ads in the convention printed program.

Moving up a step - Sponsoring a coffee break or hospitality session. Registration portfolios. Special notepads for the seminar sessions. Gift packets for "first timers" or young collectors.

If your collecting area has dealers and suppliers who make a living from sales to many of your club members, perhaps they would be willing to provide a meal event, or co-sponsor an event. Or, perhaps the rental of a bus for a program tour, or pick-up the expenses for a keynote speaker. Sponsorships for banquet entertainment, costs of plaques for the awards program...these are still other possibilities. We know of no club which is doing this, but what if a vendor or supplier offered 50 $100. travel grants for members most in need of financial help in attending the convention? What would your club do with the grants?

Offering the opportunity to sponsor portions of your convention activities not only allows you to better use your convention budget for other expenditures, but, to put it simply, it "involves" people and makes them feel like they are a part of the convention success.

Frankly, we don't see a negative side to having convention sponsorships. As stated in the beginning, it seems so logical and should be automatic.

Travel and Lodging Discounts

It is surprising the number of clubs which do not offer - or even explore - travel and lodging discounts for the member convention-goers. Granted, if you have a small club convention of under 100 people, it may not be as easy to get discounts, but still not impossible. Let's say your convention will need 40 sleeping rooms. For the facility, if it happens to be during a time when they are not terribly busy, and your convention lasts three days, this means the 40 sleeping rooms turns into 80 or 120 sleeping room nights. You should be able to get a convention rate for your group, particularly if you are also using meeting rooms and having a banquet and perhaps a bourse or auction. It's just like everything else - you have to negotiate the "deal".

When we talk about travel discounts, perhaps you need a slightly larger number for negotiating than for room accommodations, however if you are meeting in a city which is serviced basically by one or two airlines, call them up and see what they can do for you, particularly if most of your attendees will be flying in.

Check with the City Tourism Department or Chamber of Commerce about getting discount package deals for restaurants near your convention hotel and for theaters, museums and other attractions. Even local fast food establishments might offer discount coupons you can place in the convention packets.

Convention Site Selection

Site selection is a tremendously important decision for club leadership. This includes both the geographic location, i.e. city in which the convention is to be held, as well as the facilities for the convention.

Some clubs hold their convention in the same location each year. This has an advantage from the standpoint of familiarity. Members attending feel comfortable with known surroundings. The convention chairman is working with a hotel and/or facility which already knows the club, the convention and the special needs. The reason for clubs meeting in the same locale each year is often based on the type of collecting area - perhaps it is where the parent manufacturer of the collecting items is located. It might also be the area serving most of the membership. Drawbacks to holding your club convention in the same site year after year also exist. The primary one is that it is difficult to really make the convention exciting and "new" if everything is a repeat. While some members might like the routine comfort level of being in the same city and the same hotel year after year, other members might prefer to explore something different.

The majority of clubs move their convention around the country, and sometimes even beyond the borders, particularly to Europe and to Canada. One convention this year is trying a cruise to Alaska. Moving convention around the country makes a lot of sense, but also adds a risk factor, particularly with transportation. Some clubs will only consider a location in a city which is a major air transportation hub. This is of growing importance to national clubs. Clubs need to take a geographic survey of their membership. If 80 percent of their membership resides in the midwestern states, probably their most successful conventions will be those that are held in the midwest. It is always a risk to hold a convention on an "edge" of the country. History shows that national club conventions held in the northwest, in upper New England, in Florida, as examples, often do not command the attendance as do other locales. We are absolutely not saying to disregard such locations, only to plan accordingly. For example, if your normal convention attendance is 800 and you decide to hold the next convention in Key West, Florida, probably the planning and the budget should be geared to a smaller attendance, like 400 people. And, this is all right if the location provides many other pluses. Up the road from Key West, perhaps a convention in Orlando and the many family-oriented attractions the area has to offer, might well be a huge attendance convention.

Site selection and convention program have a lot in common, as well. If your convention is primarily business meetings, seminars and a show/bourse and auction, it is a major, serious convention and could probably be held anywhere. If, however, your convention allows for leisure time and recreation and caters to club members bringing their families, the site chosen needs to accommodate these needs.

The days of the week of your convention can be a real factor with some cities. For example, if you are meeting mid-week, it may be hard to pass up cities like Las Vegas and Atlantic City where the hotel rates during mid-week are extremely low. But if your convention is for 2-3 days over a weekend, you might want to pass on these types of cities as the weekend room rates go up several times what you might be able to negotiate during the week. The same principle applies for areas that have traditional tourist seasons - don't expect any bargains, if you can find accommodations at all. In other words, don't plan your convention in Washington, DC during the Cherry Blossom Festival or in New Orleans during Mardi Gras.

When selecting a city or area for your convention, make sure you consult the local tourist bureau or its equivalent to get all the information they are willing to send you. This is tremendously helpful in determining a hotel site, tours, and other plans and opportunities within the convention city.

When negotiating hotel sites, the hotel convention management will want to know some specifics about your group. How many sleeping room nights can they count on? ...this means, if you have 200 people staying in 120 rooms but the average length of their stay is 3 nights, you are talking about 360 sleeping room nights. Likewise they will be interested in meal events - how many and the attendance at each. If you have a show or bourse, does the hotel have a facility large enough to accommodate it? What about security? Hotel parking - do they have it and if so is it free to guests or is there a daily charge? Meeting and seminar rooms - what are the arrangements? What about audio-visual and other technical equipment? Can it be provided? Is the price within your budget? Are there other areas that could significantly alter your convention budget - like do they allow "outside" beverages & food for your hospitality area or do you have to buy everything from the hotel and it has to be manned by hotel staff? Also, any peculiarities of your convention? Do you traditionally allow "room-hopping" between guest rooms for buying-selling merchandise? Does the hotel allow this, and if so, do they have any rules or regulations? How convenient is it from the guest rooms to the meeting rooms, to the banquet rooms, to the bourse or show? Are their elevators punctual or a "bottleneck"?

You probably will be confirming hotel space 1-3 years in advance. Make sure the hotel won't be in a major renovation project during your convention - or that there isn't some other "surprises" 1-3 years hence. What type of negotiating contract do they offer if your estimates on attendance are either low or high? Can the contract be voided - what are the penalties? What type of liability insurance must your club have? If you have a show or auction, you must make sure your dealers and auctioneer abide by the local reporting and taxing regs. Find out what these are and make sure your club leadership is satisfied that they can be honored. How close are the nearest restaurants? Does the hotel have shuttle service and limo service? Does the hotel offer accommodations for convention operations including faxing, photocopying, etc. or must you go outside the hotel. What other groups will be staying at the hotel during the same period as your convention?

These basic questions are probably only the tip of the iceberg relating to what you may need to actually ask, depending upon your given circumstances. The main thing, is to plan, plan, plan and don't be afraid to ask.

Many clubs have developed their own convention operating manuals. Undoubtedly the hotel negotiations and site selection should be an important section of these manuals.

Liability Insurance for Your Convention

It really doesn't matter where or when you have your convention - you need liability insurance coverage. Some clubs feel because their convention is "closed", i.e. for members only, that liability insurance isn't necessary. Wrong! We cannot honestly think of a reason not to recommend that a club or society be covered. In fact, many hotels, convention centers and other sites require coverage. Check out the ACC Club Liability Insurance Coverage application listed in this program area as one of your options.

Combining conventions with Other Compatible Clubs

ACC is developing a collecting club networking program as one of their major objectives in 2004-2005. One major ingredient will be information and suggestions on how clubs with somewhat "compatible" interests might consider joining forces in combining their conventions or shows. This does not mean the entire event needs to be done in companionship, but parts of it would lend themselves to this type of arrangement. Just the negotiating factor with convention sites, alone, by having double or triple the number of attendees would be a major plus.

While the show or bourse, or even an auction, might be a strong candidate for combined events, certainly the business meeting, awards program and perhaps the traditional annual banquet might be held separately. While the planning process needs to be shared conceptionally, there are segments of the convention plans that could be handled by either one club or the other, relieving the over-burdening of volunteer staff which is a problem with some clubs.

What do we call "compatible" clubs? Certainly all types of ceramic or pottery clubs have some commonality. Likewise for glass clubs. Paper-oriented collectible clubs are another possibility and advertising-related clubs. Kitchen oriented collectibles, country and primitive collectibles, stamps and first day covers, postcards and transportation, coins/tokens/medals, jewelry, dolls and toys, military collectibles...obviously the list can go on and on.

The question is not so much as how "compatible" the clubs are, as it is how "open" to this type of concept is the club leadership? In our opinion, there are few collecting areas, few collecting clubs, that by the general nature of their collecting area, must stand alone. Most of them could find compatible clubs with little difficulty if they choose to do so.

Critiquing Your Convention

Perhaps critiquing is not the right word, however whenever a club has a convention, one of the components should be a way to determine how things went and how they were perceived by all parties involved.

Most definitely the convention chairperson and convention committee heads should provide their appraisal of the event to the club leadership. The club leadership should conduct their own review of the convention. Did it meet the leadership's expectations? Is there agreement on this from the president, the board, the treasurer, others...? The president may think it went great but if bottom line there wasn't enough money to cover expenses, the treasurer may think otherwise.

What did the convention-goers - the club membership - think of the convention? Some clubs issue a check list at the closure of their convention so all those who attended can give their opinions, rate how well they liked or didn't like certain parts of the convention, and make suggestions for the next convention. This is probably a good idea. It should be kept relatively simple; something that can be filled out quickly and returned. If this can be done before the convention-goers leave the premises, its even better.

Make sure you design your convention response form so you can tell how the new members or first-time convention goers respond compared to the members who have been attending the convention annually. We are not saying one groups' responses should be weighted more heavily than the other; only that there should be an analysis of any major differences in response between the two groups.

The convention chairman should sit down with his or her hotel contacts following the convention and go through the various segments of the event. How did the hotel employees function? Did the convention planning mesh with the capabilities of the hotel staff to perform? Does the hotel convention manager have any suggestions for the club's next convention?

Likewise, if the convention has sponsors or donors for various events or segments of the convention, it should be part of the convention chairman's responsibility to contact these important people and make sure they were satisfied with their relationship with the convention...particularly if you want them as a return sponsor next year.

Although a report of the convention is important, both internally to the club leadership or board, and to the membership through the club publication and website, and externally through a release to media outlets, reports do not take the place of a critique.

Developing a Convention Operating Manual

If the operation of your club makes it likely that the convention chairman will be a different person each year, then it becomes almost mandatory that you develop a comprehensive convention operating manual which can be passed on from one convention chair to the next. This operating manual should cover every aspect of the convention operation, along with a timetable and past budget allocations for each segment. Reports of each convention committee chairperson responsible for the various components need to be included. This is only fair to the incoming convention chairperson and their committees.

ACC will attempt to get copies of some of the operating manuals that clubs are now using so examples can be shared. Perhaps a guide to developing a convention operating manual will result.

Convention Finances and Budgeting

Unless your club holds a very traditional convention with exactly the same features each year...and it is held in the same location...this can be a tricky area.

We will go with location first. Selecting a site - both the city and the facility - are tremendously important and have a great influence over the budget. What does the hotel or convention facility offer? ...and what don't they offer? What are their costs and how does this compare to your costs from previous conventions? You can never ask too many questions when selecting your site or facility. Make sure you contact the convention bureau or chamber of commerce initially to answer questions about ease of travel to and from the location, transportation around the city, convenience of tourist attractions, restaurants and shopping, taxing structure (particularly if you have a show or bourse with your convention), and so on. With the facility, what are their charges for banquets, receptions and hospitality rooms? ...for meeting rooms and for the bourse or show? ...can they accommodate your needs for A/V and technical equipment and what are the costs? What is the difference between a sit-down, served banquet compared to a buffet? Is there a sliding scale on some costs based on number of room nights sold? What things will they allow you to bring into the hotel, compared to what you must purchase from the hotel? All of these things may sound rather elementary, but often they are the areas that can totally wreck a budget.

The first thing a convention chairman needs to do is find out from the club leadership exactly what the budget is which has been allocated to the operation of the convention. He or she also needs to find out if there are any convention components which are non-negotiable. For example, if the annual banquet is always a sit-down, served affair and this is tradition and has to be kept that way, then the convention chairman must budget for it regardless of cost. The convention committee needs to plan early on how to best allocate their financial resources, i.e. how much for the program, for banquets and receptions, for door prizes or souvenirs, and so on. Be very careful with the program area in determining the potential demands of the presenters regarding technical equipment and operators. This, too, can completely "blow" a budget.

The convention committee needs to analyze what new things they would like to do for the upcoming convention and what they will cost. And, will this mean that something else may have to "go".

Don't let the budget totally "drive" your decision-making. Plan the type of convention your committee wants to conduct and what it will cost. If you are still relatively "within budget" this is great. If you can see that you will probably go "over budget" then you must decide either to cut some costs or to seek out additional funds. Can the registration fee be increased? What about revenue from the show/bourse or auction? Can you find sponsors for various components of the convention? Creative planning and building a case for budget growth may not be as hard as it sounds. It really depends on what the money is needed for and how you go about seeking it. If your club has dealers and/or suppliers, don't feel uncomfortable in contacting them and explaining your needs and see if there are ways they can help you. There may be member-collectors who would be willing to give to a specific convention need. Remember, its always easier to get people to give donations for a specific need than it is to simply ask for general donations to help fund the convention. People like to know what their donated money is being used for. Also, remember donations of "in kind" services and of items if you are having an auction or raffle or door prizes. All donors or sponsors need to be appropriately recognized at the convention, unless they prefer their giving to be anonymous.

Management of Club Conventions

Almost all collecting clubs operate their annual conventions internally from beginning to end, using club volunteers to plan and conduct the various components of the event. A few very large clubs have a convention coordinator on staff and the annual convention (and sometimes regional conferences and conventions) is basically a full-time job for this person.

There are convention management businesses that have expertise in all facets of operating conventions and other events. Although the thought of contracting with a convention management business is scary to most clubs, it is an option that perhaps more clubs should look at. ACC is beginning to have dialogue with several of these firms in hopes of finding some which can be suggested to collecting clubs operating on a modest budget.