Home> Reservation Times - May 2010
Reservation Times - May 2010
In this edition of the Reservation Times we show you how to save money while learning more about EMS at the upcoming Users Conference, let you behind the scenes at our wildly successful Corporate Summit, shine a light on EMS usage in Worship Facilities and so much more!
Tell us your thoughts on this newsletter – what articles were helpful, what do you want to read in the next addition, what did we miss? – at Feedback@dea.com.
In this issue...
Tips and Tricks: Master Calendar 3.0
EMS Corporate Summit
Regics Reaps Interest A Slew of New Case Studies
Saving $$ at the EMS Users Conference
Industry Spotlight: Worship Facilities Your All Access Pass
Tips and Tricks: Master Calendar 3.0
Sometimes you forget just how much EMS software allows you to do. Here are some too-often-forgotten tools in Master Calendar that you might want to utilize to better connect with your audience.
- Breaking News: Administrators can use the announcement feature of Master Calendar to create short news articles on the front page of their calendar, choosing when to start or stop the announcement.
- Categorize by Color: Choose specific colors to associate with each event type. Administrators add a color to event types, which is displayed in a box next to the event on the calendar. This allows people to easily identify events. Remember, you were able to identify colors before you started reading.
- Reliable Reminders: In addition to calendar subscriptions, sent once a day, users can sign up for reminders on specific events. A reminder email – including changed event details or cancellation notifications – will arrive at the user’s selected time prior to the event. (This requires the Master Calendar notification service to be installed and configured.)
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EMS Corporate Summit a Success
We don’t need to tell you what tools you need to run a successful corporation. In fact, we ask you to tell us. Once a year, we meet with a handful of our corporate clients and pick their brains about what challenges their businesses face and how EMS can help them become even more efficient and successful. Then the tables are turned again, and these Corporate EMS users pick the brains of DEA’s leadership, asking questions, making suggestions and requesting additional software enhancements.
"Corporate customers are a key market for us, and we wanted an opportunity to have dedicated time to discuss how they use our product, best practices and what else EMS can do to help their businesses succeed," said Dean Evans, president and founder of DEA, who attended the April summit in New York City. "There are certainly things about facility scheduling and resource management that we can learn from companies that, in some cases, manage real estate portfolios in the billions of dollars. Then we can use these lessons to enhance our software and better serve our customers."
Corporate EMS users get personal attention from senior staff and also have the opportunity to interact with dozens of other EMS users who are focused on running thriving businesses.
According to attendees, popular aspects of the Corporate Summit included:
- Open discussion formatted for questions, comments and suggestions
- Hearing about and having the opportunity to weigh in on potential software enhancements
- Meeting like-minded individuals to compare notes, techniques and ideas
- Accessibility of DEA Leadership
"I thoroughly enjoy hearing from others within the same business sector to identify best practices in how reservations and services are managed. This gives us not only something to take back, but it also gives us some appreciation for merging our collective strategies to improve the product for all," said a Senior Vice President of Executive Services Operations, who represented a major American financial services group at the Summit. "I really appreciate the commitment to this discussion forum. I think it is a highly beneficial experience."
What started as a focus group four years ago now draws dozens of participants who have the opportunity to voice their needs and ultimately help DEA prioritize its product development goals.
Thank you to everyone who attended and offered their valuable input. We hope to see you next year!
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Regics Reaps Interest
Judging by the popularity of our webinar series, "Introducing EMS Regics™," professionals from a wide variety of organizations are taking an active interest in this new online registration and survey creation software. Learn more here.
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A Slew of New Case Studies
Want to know how others users make the most out of EMS software? Read our new and updated case studies demonstrating how our customers put EMS to use every day. Learn about the variety of ways our facility scheduling, web calendar and event management tools are performing in different organizations. Our most recent examples include:
- A school district made $740,000 last year with the help of EMS
- A service organization opened a museum and successfully schedules events and tours
- A professional society organizes national and small-scale meetings
- A Big Ten University manages its 36 varsity teams’ practices and events
- A library district continues to expand its use of our software after eight years with EMS
- An elite university’s athletic department scheduled 48,614 hours of events last year using EMS
And you can call it navel gazing, but we also crafted two case studies showing how we use our own products internally.
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Saving $$ at the EMS Users Conference
The EMS Users Conference is an investment in your organization, and your increased knowledge of EMS’ capabilities and functions will put you on the path to increased efficiency and better preservation of your resources.
You want the most for your money, right? Check out the proactive, cash saving strategies that are sure to make the EMS Users Conference the most cost-effective professional development opportunity you’ll have all year!
DIA – With 17 commercial airlines, a footprint larger than Boston and the ability to move 50 million passengers a year, Denver International Airport is a major transportation hub. With so many planes coming and going, you shouldn’t have a problem finding a flight from your nearest airport. As you taxi to your gate, you’ll be able to see the beautiful Rockies to your west and Downtown’s skyscrapers, which are just south of the airport – making it convenient to get to your final destination. Once you arrive, getting around town is a snap with the free 16th Street Mall Shuttle just footsteps from your door and the city’s extensive light rail and bus system.
Ridesharing – If you are coming to the conference with co-workers, be sure to coordinate your ground transportation. Going it solo? No problem! Make a wall post on the EMS Users Conference forum to compare flight times and coordinate rides. You can access the forum in the Online Support Center.
Hotel Block – We’ve secured a great, reduced room rate of just $185 a night at the Westin Tabor Center, the location of all sessions and evening functions. This is one of the best rates in the city. Be sure to take advantage and save some cash.
Roommates – For an even greater savings on lodging, consider sharing your room with a roommate. Our room block pricing is the same for single and double rooms; that can be a savings of up to $185!
Food – Your conference registration includes breakfast and lunch on full conference days and also dinner at the Gala Reception on Monday night. In addition, the Westin is located in the heart of the Denver entertainment district, providing plenty of options and price points for the rest of your meals.
This is Entertainment – Discovering Denver’s sights doesn’t have to be expensive. For example, on your "free night," Sept.28, the Colorado Rockies take on the Los Angeles Dodgers at 6:10 p.m. You can purchase your Major League Baseball tickets for as little as $4 a piece– half the price of a movie ticket – from their box office The Westin is only a half-mile walk or pedi-cab ride from Coors Field, home of Denver’s 2008 National League Champions. After the first pitch, enjoy a buffalo bratwurst – a real taste of the West – for just $5.50 or the local fan favorite, a Rocky Dog (a foot-long tube steak with grilled onions, peppers and sauerkraut) for only $5.75.
Not into baseball? Twelve dollars will get you into the Denver Zoo. Prefer ogling objects that stay in one place? You can walk around downtown Denver admiring the city’s collection of public art for less than a penny.
Free WiFi – Explore Denver’s most popular destination, the 16th Street Mall, which is just steps from your hotel – all while staying connected. In addition to offering an array of shopping and dining opportunities along this one-mile corridor, the Mall provides free, wireless access around the clock. Feel like catching up on your email from a cozy coffee shop or writing your next business proposal while sampling a local specialty? Simply open your laptop and search for the Mall’s open network or visit the Downtown Denver Partnership’s website for more detailed instructions.
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Don’t miss out on the discussion! Visit our EMS Users Forum in the Online Support Center today to share ideas about EMS products with other users and staff.
Industry Spotlight: Worship Facilities
Churches, synagogues and other faith-based facilities can act as much more than venues for weekly prayer services. Imagine your worship facility as the heart of the community, bringing people together every day of the year. Dean Evans & Associates has already helped more than 1,700 houses of worship become efficient hubs that host a variety of activities, including: neighborhood meetings, weddings, classes, community events, day care services, volunteering initiatives, mission planning and fundraisers.
To keep up with the pace of your congregation’s activities, you’ll need flexible, easy-to-use software as your guide. Our EMS calendaring and scheduling software gives you the tools to tie your community of faith together.
CALENDAR SOFTWARE
EMS allows instant access to a centralized event calendar. When you – or one of the multiple users you authorize – post an event, you’ll be able to include the date, time, location, directions and any other details you choose. With four separate buildings and multiple EMS users, First Baptist Church of McKinney, Texas, manages its busy schedule with EMS software.
"By having all the information in one place, church employees can still see what’s going on throughout the campus," said Wayne Hardin, the IT manager for First Baptist. "It makes it really easy to have a single tool to oversee all those different facilities and activities."
The church recently acquired Virtual EMS, which will let their congregation of more than 2,500 access a web-based calendar of church events.
Keeping your community of faith informed is the first step to keeping it active. Our calendaring software also offers calendar subscriptions and event reminders that keep everyone on the same page.
"Worship facilities love their calendars," said Derrick Asher, account manager for worship facilities. He added that EMS software sells itself as word of its scheduling and web-based calendaring abilities spreads through religious communities.
HVAC INTEGRATION
Another favorite among our religious customers is an EMS integration that helps their facilities both reduce their bills and be more environmentally friendly. By integrating their heating and cooling systems with EMS, communities of faith are making an investment in their future. Churches and temples control energy costs by more efficiently controlling energy usage. HVAC integration allows you to automatically adjust room temperatures by supplying your thermostat with room occupancy information – exactly what you were using EMS for from the start.
An integrated HVAC system also saves your worship facility manpower. Rather than employees going from room to room, manually adjusting thermostats, or entering event information into a separate HVAC control system, EMS works behind the scenes to ensure comfortable gathering environments. First Baptist is currently exploring using EMS’ integration capabilities to control its 79 thermostats. As Hardin put it, “Why don’t we just let the event management system take care of it?”
Whether your worship facility needs tools to book space, stay connected to employees, members and the community through online calendars or cut costs while being a little more earth-friendly, EMS software has you covered.
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Your All Access Pass
April and May have been busy months for us with EMS team members hitting tradeshows across the country to discuss our software products with users and potential clients. Thank you to everyone who attended! If we missed you, no need to worry; we’re hosting roundtables and webinars, and have a full tradeshow and conference schedule throughout the rest of the year. Check out the Calendar of Events page.
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You Didn’t Hear It From Us
"Every day I'm asked by my clients what room they reserved and what type of A/V support they requested. I like that I can send them a Confirmation that gives them all the details."
Veronica R., Scheduler, National Archives and Records Administration and EMS User
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