·          Call for Papers/Presentations:  50 10-page papers submitted, 5 review copies each: 2500 sheets
·          Save the Date Post Cards: 2000 cards, 4 to a sheet: 500 sheets
·          Conference Invitations: 3 pages, 2000 copies: 6000 sheets
·          Conference Materials: 10 presenters, 12 pages per presenter, 200 copies: 24,000 sheets
·          Total: 33,000 sheets of paper.

Paper is a significant line item in your budget.  If it cost $0.25 per sheet to copy/print those 33,000 pages, that’s over $8,000.  And that doesn’t account for the cost of mailing or shipping.   Reducing the amount of paper used is not just good for the environment; it is also good for your bottom line.  And that’s why we see more and more meeting planners looking for ways to “Go Green”.

If you are interested in adopting a “Go Green” strategy for your conferences and meetings, what can you do to move towards a paperless event?

·          Invite potential speakers to submit their proposals electronically and distribute them to reviewers electronically.  Saves 7%
·          Use electronic marketing to get the word out about your event. Saves 20%
·          Require that your speakers upload their bios, presentations, hand-outs etc. to a central repository.  Saves 70%

What are some of the technology options to explore?

·          Marketing: Create a compelling event website and use electronic invitations.  Even for closed or invite-only events, you can market effectively online.
·          Registration: Online registration for speakers, as well as attendees, using a system that allows them to upload documents for you, and/or your attendees, to download.
·          Memory Sticks: Here’s where you can get a huge paper savings.  Provide document kiosks in the registration area where attendees can download, onto a memory stick, all of the conference materials, organized by speaker or session.  For more information on MeetMax Conference Software and how we can help you implement a green meetings strategy, go to www.meetmax.com

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 12th, 2010 at 12:15 pm and is filed under Conferences, Green Meetings, Event Registration, Event Marketing, Incentive Trips, Meeting Technology, Corporate Meetings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.