MAST Review 2013

Fri 7 Jun 2013 @ 11:00

Making Introductions, Building Communities

So many features formed this year’s MAST Europe 2013, so summarising the success of the tenth MAST, is a difficult brief: one best done by breaking it down into its component parts.

However, one thing shone throughout: utmost delivery of that rare event organisational commodity, personal service by the MAST family*, furthering MAST’s renowned reputation for doing everything possible to help every delegate, exhibitor, author, visitor or VIP achieve their unique event attendance objectives.

*MAST’s owner, staff, Executive Advisers Board, Technical Conference Committee (TCC), and Exhibition Steering Group

Exhibition – Complete Commitment to Contact

Once again, exhibitors were invited to request meetings with specific participants ahead of the event. Without exception, all responding exhibitors received hosted visits, accompanied by one of MAST’s organisers/TCC. Similarly VIPs that opted to meet, or were selected to meet, specific exhibitors, were personally introduced by one of MAST’s forty TCC members.

With just under 700 attendees (from 40 nations, and every continent) spread over the week, attendance in Gdansk was lower than usual, however with all coffee breaks, delegate and visitor lunches, Happy Hours, iPad draws, and much more, centred around the exhibition hall the ebb and flow meant quality time spent with top quality participants.

Conference – Higher quality content, higher quality delegates

Delegate numbers increased this year, meaning authors met more of their target audiences, more of the time – if not in their own session, in others’, in conference breaks (in the exhibition hall), or at any of the numerous social functions. Sessions were on average better attended than any previous MAST.

Most importantly, presentations were commonly cited as being of the highest quality and information value. This certainly correlated with the number and standard of participants (as confirmed by exhibitors spending more productive meetings with direct decision makers and senior level technologists).

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