Introduction 1 Part I: Been to Any Good Meetings or Events Lately? 5 Chapter 1: Gearing Up for Meetings and Events 7 Chapter 2: Strictly Business: Knowing Your Meeting Type 17 Chapter 3: The ABCs of Meeting Preparation 25 Chapter 4: Mixing Business with Pleasure: Events 43 Chapter 5: Bringing an Event to Life 53 Part II: It's All Show Business 75 Chapter 6: Get Me to the Meeting on Time 77 Chapter 7: Food for Thought 91 Chapter 8: Great Speakers, Great Impressions 107 Chapter 9: It's the Extras That Count 121 Chapter 10: Is the Grass Greener Overseas? 129 Chapter 11: Lights, Camera, Action! 147 Part III: No Guts, No Story 163 Chapter 12: Nuts and Bolts: Negotiating, Contracting, and Ensuring Safety 165 Chapter 13: Working with Vendors 179 Chapter 14: Drinking Champagne on a Beer Budget 189 Part IV: Mission Possible: Building Bridges with Technology 201 Chapter 15: Making Meeting Technology Work for You 203 Chapter 16: This Phone's for You: Teleconferencing 215 Chapter 17: Videoconferencing Made Easy 225 Chapter 18: Holding Meetings Online 237 Part V: Exhibiting at Home and Abroad 245 Chapter 19: Planning for Gold: Exhibiting 101 247 Chapter 20: Strutting Your Stuff: Exhibiting 201 275 Chapter 21: Strutting Your Best Stuff Overseas: Exhibiting 301 285 Part VI: The Part of Tens 297 Chapter 22: Ten Alternatives to Meetings 299 Chapter 23: Ten Common Meeting Mistakes to Avoid 303 Chapter 24: Ten Top Negotiating Tactics 307 Part VII: Appendixes 311 Appendix A: Online Resources for Meeting and Event Planners 313 Appendix B: Checklist Heaven 331 Index 345.