June 2018
Case Study
9
Shining example
“We achieved 51% who had not
attended the conference before”
professionals – not just about those new in
their roles, but reaching professionals who had
not come to the conference before.
“We did this, again working with a group
or professionals on the messaging, and then
sending targeted invites through a variety of
channels,” she said.
“We achieved 51% who had not attended
the conference before and, of that number,
65% have been in their roles for one year or
more, which meant we were engaging with
people who had seen messages about the
conference before, but had not attended.”
Other results from the Birmingham
conference included:
• An overall increase in attendance
• 98% of professionals rating the conference
was very good or good
• 99% would recommend it
• 99% felt part of a valued community
Th e event proved to be Macmillan’s most
successful professional conference to date.
Buying jewellery can be an expensive
commitment and the National
Association of Jewellers (NAJ)
plays a vital role in helping increase
consumer confi dence in the quality
and authenticity of any jewellery UK
consumers buy.
NAJ has 1,800 members working
at various levels of industry.
Th e Institute of Registered
Valuers’ (IRV) Conference is the
biggest event in the NAJ’s calendar
and recently marked its 30th
anniversary.
Th e conference has been run by
Sandra Page from the NAJ for all its
30 years, with 28 of those being held
across various sites at Loughborough
University.
More recently their core venue
choice has become Burleigh Court
Conference Centre, along with
facilities at Holywell Park and the
West Park Teaching Hub.
Th e NAJ’s IRV Annual
Conference has grown to attract now
150 delegates, with many returners
year after year.
Th e three-day event comprises
of a mixture of workshops and
presentations and Page explains:
“As we have such a large variety of
workshops, we need more space to
accommodate them. “While last
year we used Holywell Park and the
Teaching Hub alongside Burleigh
Court, this year we used G-Block
and the James France Building. Th e
timetable is so packed delegates
barely have time to breathe, let alone
spend time off -site! Our two sit-
down dinners are on site, too.”
Page explains why the venue
continuity is important: “I believe
that if something is working, why
change it? ”