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EventsU
Back for 2024, EventsU!
The event rental industry will gather under one roof at EventsU on Saturday, Feb. 17, for a full day of learning during exceptional education sessions.
This program is designed to give attendees the opportunity to exclusively network and learn alongside those in event rental. Hundreds attended EventsU during the 2023 show and we’re excited to bring this unique program back for 2024.
EventsU Schedule
BREAKFAST KEYNOTE
Breakfast Keynote: Energize, Engage, and Build Rock Star Event Rental Teams
8:00 – 9:00 AM
Breakfast begins at 7:30 AM; Keynote begins at 8:00 AM
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Key Takeaways
- How to thrive through change by creating change.
- How to be heard above the noise in an overcrowded industry.
- How to create purpose for your employees so they want to stay.
Summary
It's time to turn up the volume of your business. Achieve peak performance by turning challenges into opportunities. Learn how to consistently perform at a higher level each day just like a rock star in your business and your life by learning the innovation success principles of your favorite rock stars along with easily applied vital business principles! Learn the raw power of unrealistic goals, and how to use Steve Job’s business model (which was The Beatles) for your business success to lead effective event rental teams. All attendees receive ARA-branded drumsticks to help beat the competition and drum up new business.
Speaker
Marvelless Mark
EventsU Education Sessions
(Pick your 9:15 AM session)
Event Rental Recruiting: How to Be the Employer of Choice in Your Market
9:15 – 10:30 AM
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Key Takeaways
- Identify local region opportunities to increase candidates for your business.
- Discover how to leverage ARA’s Workforce Development tools to build a strong rental team.
Summary
Do you need HELP finding HELP? You placed the ads… but you still can’t find enough labor. Join ARA’s Workforce Development team to dive into hiring best practices and 10 crucial areas that you need to be attacking in your local market to turbo charge your recruiting efforts.
Speaker
Erika Singleton
Generate New Rental Bookings With Targeted Facebook and Instagram Ads…on $10 a Day
9:15 – 10:30 AM
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Key Takeaways
- Understand why simply posting on social doesn’t work – the numbers don’t lie.
- Learn what happens when you run ads – the algorithm becomes your ally.
- Avoid the top three rookie mistakes that waste your time and money – learn from my early mistakes.
Summary
If you’ve ever wasted money on event expos, print ads and the big event industry advertising portals…don’t worry. I did, too. In 2015, I created my first Facebook ad because NOTHING else was working for my very niche event rental business. When it yielded four booked weddings, I was hooked. Fast forward to today, second only to word-of-mouth, Facebook and Instagram ads are my top lead generator and they get prospective clients to my website for an average of 73 cents per click.
Watch a live demo of an ad being created from scratch so you’ll know which buttons to push, what boxes to check…and most importantly, WHY.
Speaker
Valerie McCartney
$trategic $pending: Smart Purchasing, Staffing, and Warehousing Decisions to Grow Your TENT Business
9:15 – 10:30 AM
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Key Takeaways
- Common benchmarking metrics to make informed purchasing and hiring decisions.
- Streamlining tenting inventory (and related rental products).
- How to maximize your time at The ARA Show to gain valuable intel to grow your tenting business.
Summary
Are you new to tenting, or currently growing your tenting inventory and unsure of the next steps to take? Join a panel of event rental industry veterans to gain a greater understanding of how to strategically increase your operation’s tenting capacity.
This session will focus on smart purchasing for both tenting inventory and related technology, staffing and expanding your tent install teams, and understanding when it is time to expand your warehouse and yard space to accommodate your growing tenting business.
Speakers
Liz Davis, CERP, Brittany Sherwood, Tarryn Prosper, and Robin Denny, CERP
EventsU Education Sessions
(Pick your 10:45 AM session)
Dealing With Multi-Generational Event Rental Employees
10:45 AM – 12:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Learn about every generation’s potential miscommunications and how to prevent them before they occur.
- Discover the best practices for balancing technology use with day-to-day rental interactions.
Summary
You don’t call employees anymore… you send them a text message! And who checks email? With so many options to choose from when it comes to communicating – texting, calling, emailing, instant messaging, and more – why does it seem like so many messages get lost in translation? This session discusses how to build authentic connections with every team member, across generations. Through stories, statistics, and humor, you will learn to communicate more effectively.
Speaker
Lisa Walden
The Thing That Really Matters is the BOTTOM LINE: Understanding Event Profitability
10:45 AM – 12:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Review the fundamentals of event rental profitability.
- Review ARA’s new Job Costing Profitability Tool.
- Discover how to effectively use job costs to make profitable decisions for your rental business.
Summary
Revenue is UP, but profitability is DOWN, and you’re not sure why. With the cost of labor, operating supplies, and inventory higher than ever before, there is nothing more important than understanding the profitability of each job BEFORE you send a quote to the customer. In this session, you will learn about effective job costing methods and how to use ARA’s new Job Costing Profitability Tool that has been created exclusively for the event rental segment!
Speakers
Kevin Hoffman and Dean Miller, CERP
Say NO to Water Barrels and Ballast Your Tents Safely
10:45 AM – 12:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Understand how to use ARA’s Tent Ballasting Tool for non-engineered tents.
- Learn about safe tenting best practices and the importance of proper ballasting.
Summary
Join industry veterans, Dan Hooks and Nick Deninno, for an open discussion about safe tenting and the proper use of ballasting. ARA’s Tent Ballasting Tool for non-engineered tents will be demonstrated followed by Q&A. Save lives by attending this session and implementing the best tenting practices with ballasting!
Speakers
Dan Hooks, CERP, and Nick Dennino
Lunch
EventsU Lunch
12:15 – 1:30 PM
EventsU Education Sessions
(Pick your 1:45 PM session)
Revitalize Your Work & Life! Burnout for Event Rental Professionals is Real
1:45 – 3:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Learn the principles for a life of success and significance in the rental industry.
- Discover techniques for virtually any situation to make self-care achievable.
Summary
If you have ever been tired, overwhelmed, or stressed and it’s not even lunchtime yet, you will benefit from this high-energy session. You will learn how to achieve uncommon success in your life while managing stress, improving relationships, and creating work-life balance. This session is especially beneficial for family-run businesses.
Speaker
Stephanie Staples
From Wax to Wine: Setting up Your Linen Department RIGHT the First Time
1:45 – 3:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Learn how to set up an efficient event rental linen department.
- Discover how you can improve your process for storing, renting, and cleaning linens.
Summary
Does your linen department need a facelift because you waste too much time looking for inventory that should be in the “right” place? This session will share the wisdom of Kurt Wickiser on how to set up an efficient linen department and keep it that way!
Speaker
Kurt Wickiser
Fire Safety at Events: Live Fire Demonstration
1:45 – 3:00 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Learn the fundamentals and science behind fire and fire safety.
- Understand what to do in the event of a fire emergency.
- Learn the proper operation of a fire extinguisher.
Summary
Calling all pyromaniacs! This session is for you. Learn from a veteran firefighter and ARA’s VP of Education and Risk Management about the “fire triangle” and the different classifications of fire you could encounter at an event rental operation.
Do you know what to do in the event of a fire emergency? Caution: Don’t get too close, as objects in this presentation may be flammable!
Speaker
Kevin Gern
EventsU Education Sessions
(Pick your 3:15 PM session)
Dirty Tents: Get Your Clean On!
3:15 – 4:30 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Understand what chemicals to use for specific stains and mold.
- Understand how to identify and address tent repair issues.
Summary
Learn techniques for how to clean and repair tents. Watch live demonstrations with visual examples for identifying stains, patching holes, and repairing tents in the field. This session will also include Keder Repair, as well as focus on the best methods to extend the life of your valuable tenting assets through maintenance and chemical applications.
Speakers
Chuck Shipp and Bryan Bolt
It’s Not Magic, It’s Science: How to Use Behavioral Analytics to Build a Winning #EventRental Team!
3:15 – 4:30 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Discover how to use behavioral analytics to build the perfect rental team.
- Learn how to find and develop the right people for your event rental company.
Summary
Culture Index expert, Chris Taylor, and veteran event rental operator, Taylor McMullen, discuss powerful success and failure stories about using behavioral analytics to identify key personalities traits for your team to increase productivity and profits. This session will provide valuable takeaways that give you the tools to better align your teams for both short-term and long-term success.
Speakers
Chris Taylor & Taylor McMullen
Ready! Set the Table! Go! 2.0
3:15 – 4:30 PM
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Key Takeaways
- Learn how to put styles, colors, and textures together to create the best design for each event rental theme.
- Find inspiration from other professionals in the event rental industry.
Summary
Need some inspiration? Steve Kemble, the sassiest lifestyle guru, is back to lead attendees in this high-energy, interactive session focusing on table design. Participants will be given an event theme and time limit for creating the perfect tablescape, then Steve Kemble will showcase how each table achieved its goal.
Speaker
Steve Kemble
EventsU Reception
*Advance registration and ticket required
EventsU Reception
5:00 – 7:00 PM
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Generations Hall
Advance registration and ticket required.
Summary
After EventsU concludes at 4:30 PM, take a short walk down the street from the convention center for a relaxing evening with your event rental industry friends. Enjoy hosted bar service, food stations, and Entertainment from Nemesis, a beatbox/violin duo.
Tickets are $75 for EventsU attendees through Oct. 31 or $100 per attendee beginning Nov. 1.
Return transportation following the event will be provided to select hotels between 5:30 – 7:30 PM.
