Our April 12th 'Bagels & Banter' roundtables program offered a smorgasbord of idea generating topics to choose from in four session twenty-five minute rotations. Host venue The New Yorker Hotel went well beyond bagels providing substantive breakfast buffet selections including frittata, french toast and various morning accoutrements.

Meeting sponsor Visit Detroit's national sales manager Cheryl Ollila, CASE, opened the program with a video presentation on the transformation of the destination entitled 'Detroit 3.0'. Watch it here.

Each facilitator initiated the discussion among the groups for their topic, providing attendees with take away information that was useful to apply in their professional lives. The remaining time was open for questions that facilitated idea exchanges among participants, and offered some tales and tips of trade from their personal experiences.  

Here's a recap of topics discussed at the meeting:

Strategic Meeting Management- Elizabeth George, CMM, Northeast Regional Sales New Orleans CVB led the discussion on the partnership between planner and supplier - how to streamline processes to be more productive, centralizing how meetings department work so it can be more profitable, and having the ability to analyze the data.

Hotel Negotiations - Ruztique Toscano, Director of Group Sales, Millennium Broadway covered important things to know before starting negotiations, tips for when to hold a meeting, tips for when to book a meeting, and specific suggestions for negotiating.

Hottest F&B Trends - Larry Amato, Director of Catering, Millennium Broadway (formerly of Waldorf Astoria and Marriott Marquis) stressed that planners need to start thinking more 'quality is better than quantity' as attendees become more sophisticated with their food palate. He reviewed new trends in beverage and food service, as well as pre-made, made-on-property and locally sustainable selections.

International Meeting Finance and VAT Recovery - Melissa Brod, Vice President, Meridian Global Services explored Value Added Tax (VAT) that European governments' charge on every stage of meeting production for which the customer bears the cost, but is recoverable. The onus is on travelers and meeting planners to provide documentation for claims, still requiring hard copies.

Inside the Rev Par World - Dean D'Anna, Account Sales Director, Starwood Sales Organization related how hotels manage revenue per available room, review RFPs and evaluate business opportunities.

Social Media Best Practices - Lesley Kyle, CMP, Director, Event Management, Society of Plastics Engineers shared how she used LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter to promote meetings, registration discounts and exclusive events to her members. She advised that companies be thoughtful about how they use the various social media tools, as they are all useful but have to be tailored to one's audience and their likelihood of using each. 

Event Technology: Best Practices for Hybrid Events - Jessica Levin, MBA, CMP, President and Chief Connector Seven Degrees Communications described the types of hybrid meetings and the importance of the production company and venue's capabilities in ensuring the meeting's success.