MeetingsNet's editors name 11 of their favorite meetings industry Web sites
meetingsapps.com
Looking to sort out all the meeting-oriented mobile applications for your smartphone? This site is the first online portal where you can search apps that help with meetings, trade shows, and events. There are more than 25 searchable categories—from meeting management, to languages, to food and beverage.
conventionindustry.org
Check this site for information on the Certified Meeting Professional program, APEX (industry standards and practices, including sustainable meetings), and the Hall of Leaders. Maintained by the Convention Industry Council, an umbrella group of dozens of industry organizations, the site also provides useful research data on the economic impact of meetings and best practices for minimizing attrition.
greenmeetingsinfo.com
The Green Meeting Industry Council is the premier global community dedicated to sustainability in the meetings and events industry. The group’s Web site offers case studies, blogs, multimedia, and a comprehensive links and resources page.
imeet.com
With a free membership, planners can access this social media site, which allows them to participate in discussion boards and join special interest groups online, as well as post job information and search for project work in the events industry. They can also tap into a marketplace with more than 50,000 event-industry suppliers around the world. Through StarCite, the site offers a hotel search engine and RFP tool.
corbinball.com/bookmarks
One of the best things about the Web site maintained by Corbin Ball, a popular speaker on technology trends in the meetings industry, is the page with the comprehensive meeting-technology links. There are more than 1,200 links to products and services of interest to meeting and event planners.
cvent.com
More than a software vendor, Cvent offers a wide range of services for meeting professionals, including many free resources at its Web site. The Cvent Destination Guide features key area facts, maps, meeting promotions, event venues, restaurants with private dining space, transportation information, and other meeting-specific details for more than 150 cities.
meetingjobs.com and mediabistro.com/meetingsnet/joblistings/
Looking for career information or a job search engine specific to the meetings industry? Launched by Dawn Penfold, CMP, longtime guru on careers in the meetings field, this site offers a resource center, webinars, blog, and job listings. Another site, powered by Media Bistro, features jobs in the event and meetings industry.
ceir.org
The Web site of the Center for Exhibition Industry Research contains research and resources for both exhibitors and show managers. The CEIR Index, for example, allows an organizer to compare how its particular show data compares to others in the same industry sector and helps organizers predict trends. There is now a CEIR blog, as well as handy links to other exhibition industry Web sites.
iaaconline.org
Looking for a quality conference center? The International Association of Conference Centers is a group of 300 conference facilities that meet specific standards of excellence established by IACC. IACC’S Web site provides a facility search engine, as well as a hot-dates-and-rates section and IACC member news.
empowermint.com
This Web site from Destination Marketing Association International (the association of convention bureaus or destination management organizations), connects planners and their meetings to convention and visitor bureaus via a robust search engine. More than 800 planners have registered to use the site.
meetingsnet.com
Not to be overlooked, our own Web site is a rich resource for all meeting professionals, with a special focus on meeting planners in the corporate, association, medical, religious, and insurance and financial services sectors. Besides news of the day, there are webinars on issues like risk management, compilations of how-to articles on a range of topics, destination guides, a facilities search engine, a new strategic meetings management portal, plus the industry’s oldest and best blog.
Source: Meetingsnet.com editors