The past two months have taken me to Kenya, Tanzania, the UK, Australia and several U.S. destinations addressing how
to use technology to improve productivity and make our lives easier. Greetings to the many of you that are new to
my newsletter and welcome back to those of you who have subscribed for a while!
This issue is packed with new information, web sites, news and ideas about how to use technology more efficiently in
your life.
Corbin
IN THIS ISSUE:
New Article: Corbin's Annual Picks for the Top 101+ Web Site Favorites (50 meeting planning sites and 51
others)
New Article: Is Your Web Site Legal? The best review of Web legalities I have read by one of the
industry's top legal minds: John Foster, Esq. CHME
New Article: Online Registration Products - The Third Generation (much more than just a form)
New Article: The Cardinal Communications/Corbin Ball Associates First Annual Meetings
Technology Survey
News: APEX - Accepted Practices Exchange with hopes to revolutionize meetings industry communication
For Fun: I have posted some of the photos and a diary from my Kenya/Tanzania safari - the most amazing trip
my wife and I have ever taken.
--- and more!
SPONSORS
Thanks to the following newsletter sponsors:
Conferon (www.conferon.com):
Now offering clients a comprehensive web-based meeting consolidation tool called
Conferon Meeting Management Solutions (MMS) powered by PlanSoft.
Passkey (www.passkey.com):
Learn how you can become Passkey-enabled.
NEW ARTICLE: Corbin's Top 101+ Web Site Favorites
With 4 billion unique web pages in existence and 2.7 million new pages added daily, how to you find the best
ones? As keeper of one of the meeting industry's largest online favorites files: www.corbinball.com/tips.list.corbinslist.htm,
I am constantly on the prowl for useful sites worth
bookmarking.
This article offers my annual choices for the top 100+ web site favorites for meeting professionals, cataloged by
subject and divided between meeting planning and general reference sites.
Also included are my selection criteria in evaluating the sites.
NEW ARTICLE: Is Your Web Site Legal? Conducting a Web Site Audit
John S. Foster, Esq. CHME
Whether your organization already has a Web site or is planning to create one, it's never too late (or too early)
to conduct a legal audit of the site. As our society shifts more to an Internet based system of e-commerce and
research, failing to keep up and comply with the complex and changing legal rules being created daily can be fatal.
This article, reprinted with permission from the author, is the best review of web-related legal issues that I have
read and John Foster is one of the top lawyers focusing on the meetings, association and hospitality industries.
NEW ARTICLE: Online Registration - The Third Generation
The web is transforming the way meeting professionals do business, especially in the area of meeting registration.
The current batch of registration represents a quantum leap in capability from the days of a basic online registration
form. These products will revolutionize meetings marketing
and promotion and transform customer service. The ability to streamline the registration process is almost just an
added side benefit.
This article covers the evolution of these new features and the features to look for when choosing these products.
NEW ARTICLE: The Cardinal Communications/Corbin Ball Associates Annual
Meetings Technology Survey
How are meeting professionals using technology to help do their jobs better? Do meeting planners have different
expectations than suppliers? What are some of the best ways to get through the sea of emails? These answers to
these questions and more can be found in here.
Method:
The survey was distributed in the March edition of Corbin's TechTalk Newsletter, the Meetings
Industry Mall mailing list, and the IACC (International Association of Conference
Centers) with more than 420 responses.
The results are in! See the raw data as Excel spreadsheets posted online and the analysis in the article linked below.
More article analysis will be added later this week.
The Convention Industry Council (CIC)is a consortium of 26 meeting industry associations with a combined membership of
more than 86,000 individuals.
The CIC has recently launched the Accepted Practices Exchange Initiative (APEX) chaired by PCMA past chair
Mickey Shaefer. The goal is to develop and implement industry-wide accepted practices to create and enhance
efficiencies throughout the meetings industry.
The subcommittees (panels) will concentrate on seven key areas: Terminology; History/Post Event Reports; RFP's;
Resumes and Work Orders; Meeting and Site Profiles; Housing; and Contracts.
Technology will likely have a huge impact in this communication process. I am delighted to be asked to fill
the position of Chair of the APEX Technology Advisory Board with the purpose of providing technology guidance to the
seven panels. This has the potential to have a huge impact in improving what is often a paper-based means of
communication for our industry.
I will be holding the initial meeting of this advisory board mid-June (dates to be announced shortly). I am
soliciting key players from all parts of our industry (meeting planners, technology providers, hotels, and CVBs).
Those interested must have a technology vision, be committed to open standards, and have clout from their
respective constituency to effect change. If your are interested in being included, please send me a brief email
describing your interest and qualifications.
Our journey to Kenya and Tanzania was by far the most exciting trip that my wife, Charlotte, and I have ever
taken. In some ways it was like being transported back in time to when the vast balance of the predator-prey
ecosystem still exists. To a place where one can get a feel for what nomadic tribe life was like a thousand years ago.
This amazing mix of wildlife, cultural diversity, and wild scenic beauty is unsurpassed in the 30+ countries and 5
continents we have visited previously.
This trip resulted as an invitation from the Society of Incentive Travel Executives (SITE) East Africa Chapter for
Corbin for speaking engagements in Nairobi, Mombassa and Arusha.
See photos and the diary from four wildlife reserves and 2 nomadic villages with tips for those considering a similar
journey.
My speaking and consulting travel schedule for May and June include Dallas, San Francisco, Geneva, Vancouver,
Scottsdale, Uncasville, Costa Rica and Cleveland.
SPONSORSHIP:
Are you interested in helping to sponsor Corbin's Tech Talk
Newsletter with more than 3,200 targeted subscribers interested in meetings technology? E-mail me at: corbin@corbinball.com
PRIVACY STATEMENT: We respect your privacy. Your name and e-mail address will never be sold, traded, rented,
bartered, or given away. Nor will it be used for any other purpose than to communicate with you. Period!
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