The Association Industry Wants to Change How Conventions Drive New Business
Photo Credit: A rendering of the expansion at Gaylord National Resort in Washington, DC, which will host the inaugural Xperience Design Project. Gaylord Hotels
Skift Take
The trade association sector needs something like the Xperience Design Project to pivot how organizations develop new business and engage their members better at industry events.
Trade associations need to rework how they design their conventions to engage their membership base better in the 21st century, by developing more collaborative education and networking environments.
ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership, representing 21,000 association executives, is attempting to provide a model showing how to do just that. The organization announced last week during its annual Springtime Expo that it's scrapping that event after 40 years, which brings together destinations, hotels, association executives, and association meeting planners.
In its place, the new Xperience Design Project (XDP) conference kicks off in May 2017 in Washington, DC. ASAE is promising a redesigned user experience based on the success of today's growing stable of interdisciplinary business, tech, and creative industry events like South by Southwest, C2 Montreal, and Web Summit.
“The meeting planning industry has changed dramatically since the launch of Springtime in
