Best wishes to Sam Lippman for a successful Lippman Connects #ECEF today in Washington, DC!

The TechDemos are busy at #ECEF2025. Make sure to stop by before we wrap up to find the best solutions for your event(s).

mdg president Kimberly Hardcastle-Geddes and Freeman SVP of Strategy Ken Holsinger take the stage for the final #ECEF2025 session, The Innovator's Edge: The Difference Between Standard and Standout Events.

"Innovators focus not on who is there, but who's NOT coming, who used to come, who used to participate, who used to exhibit," says Holsinger. #ECEF2025

Focus groups showed that many people don't feel empowered to enact change, says Holsinger. And Freeman has set out to empower - through data, resources and community. #ECEF2025

Kimberly Hardcastle-Geddes compares what sets Innovators apart from Conventionalists, from resources used to build future plans to how they use market trends. #ECEF2025

Hardcastle-Geddes and Holsinger share the most innovative ideas they heard from other speakers at #ECEF2025.

Hardcastle and Holsinger emphasize the importance of understanding your audience - attendees and exhibitors! - and the value of continually asking, "Why?" #ECEF2025

Hardcastle urges organizers to ask themselves: how can we lean into the challenge of giving our audiences the same memorable experience that Davos gives theirs? #ECEF2025

Hardcastle and Holsinger noticed a common theme of embracing and optimizing change at #ECEF2025. "Disrupt or be disrupted."

Nicole Hallada, SVP of Exhibitions & Marketing at Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) and Tom Gattuso, VP of Events at SEMA Association, join Hardcastle and Holsinger to share their innovative successes. #ECEF2025

Gattuso shares one of his biggest pet peeves in the events industry - SALY (Same As Last Year). #ECEF2025

Hallada shares how AEM put forth a record amount of effort to understand how to tweak its event to keep and delight attendees through the very last day and hour of the show. #ECEF2025

Gattuso recounts the journey and strategy behind opening SEMA Show up to consumers. #ECEF2025

Hardcastle asks the panelists how their innovative ideas can be implemented by smaller organizations and events. #ECEF2025

"[Being an Innovator] is being able to evolve the vision of what this show is," says Gattuso - and reminds #ECEF2025 attendees to think in shades of grey, not just black and white.

Gattuso and Hallada discuss their innovation budgets and how to encourage creativity and big ideas among their teams. #ECEF2025

A quick innovation tip from Gattuso: "Err on the side of cool." (Holsinger said this would make a great T-shirt slogan.) #ECEF2025

Gattuso describes how SEMA Association hosts Camp SEMA with vendors to keep SEMA Show fresh and innovative, year after year. #ECEF2025

Thank you for joining us at #ECEF2025. See you next year!