Association Spotlight: Society of Government Meeting Professionals
By Association Adviser staff
SGMP displays the courage to evolve during a tough economic climate.
On Sept. 15, 2008, as the economy was grappling head on with the financial credit crisis, Charles S. Sadler, CGMP, CHSP, CHSC, was appointed as the Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) new executive director and CEO.
By the spring of 2009, Sadler knew he needed to make some changes with his member communication platform and connected with Naylor's John Kilchenstein to create a digital version of the member magazine and launch an online buyers' guide project.
Fast forward to July 2009. Naylor's responsiveness, enthusiasm and deadline-driven results for SGMP's digital media projects were not lost on Sadler. Seeking a change from its existing outsourcing partner, SGMP transferred responsibility for a new and improved version of the Society's print magazine to Naylor as well. Different projects, same results. So, by the fall of 2009, Naylor was overseeing production of print and digital versions of SGMP's National Education Conference Guide and Online Buyers' Guide.
One of the Society's main initiatives for 2009 was a rebranding of SGMP's national identity, which included the following:
- Creating the tagline, “Connect to Government Meetings. Plug into SGMP.”
- Implementing a fresh look for the SGMP logo, with the help of Naylor graphic designers.
- Eliminating SGMP's print directory in favor of an online suppliers guide in partnership with Naylor. The online guide allows meeting planners to search for suppliers (e.g., hotels, CVBs) by category, state and city and, because the information is always up to date online, it is a more valuable tool than a print directory, especially in the hospitality industry where people change jobs frequently.
- Launching with Naylor a new member magazine, Government Connections (with eZine companion), to replace Government Meetings Advantage. Through Government Connections, Naylor helped SGMP develop a consistent design that the Society now uses on many of its marketing materials. The magazine is a more timely, attractive and valuable resource than the previous publication.
- Redesigning SGMP's National Education Conference Guide to make it consistent with the Society's branding. Available at the annual conference in print format and e-mailed to attendees before the event, the guide serves as a more eye-catching, user-friendly resource for attendees. SGMP incorporated the look and style that Naylor created in Government Connections for all of its materials at the SGMP annual conference, which took place last month in Kansas City, Mo.
“With the new branding and redesign, we've been getting great feedback from readers and the advertising community,” said Kilchenstein. “Now that SGMP is partnered with just one company, they're realizing significant economies of scale and cross-platform advertising opportunities for their supplier members.”
Innovation, communication integration and the courage to try new things when so many of your peers were in “hunker down” mode are yielding big dividends for SGMP as we come out of the downturn.
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