Thank you to everyone who attended our annual Go Dutch event in Cannes. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did, and that we see you all again in 2018!
To celebrate International Women’s Day, we’ve invited Kathy Basheva, Head of Development at the National Association of Women in Construction and owner of Studio Basheva to share her ’10 commandments of networking’ with us.
1. You shall not judge a book by its cover: You will meet a wide range of people at MIPIM, and not all of them will find networking comfortable. Remember some people need a bit of time to come out of their shell, so be patient. This applies not only to MIPIM, but other events as well.
2. You shall keep eye contact: Eye contact is important, and there’s nothing worse than speaking to someone who’s constantly looking over your shoulder. Pay attention to the person you’re speaking to – you never know who they may introduce you to or what the conversation will lead to!
3. You shall be authentic: If you sell cups, don’t pretend that you sell crystal champagne glasses. You may be found out and you don’t want to lose face, so embrace what you do best. People like authenticity.
4. You shall give and receive: Assist people wherever you can – whether it’s helping someone find the location of their next meeting or recommending a good restaurant, it pays to help each other out. People often remember the small things.
5. You shall keep it simple: Despite the fact that you’ll be rubbing shoulders with your industry peers, don’t assume that everyone will know or understand what you do. Similarly, if you can’t explain what you do to your five year old niece, then practice and simplify your pitch.
6. You shall listen carefully: Not only will you learn something new, but you may find out that the person you’re speaking to is connected to someone you wish to meet, or that you know someone they want to meet!
7. You shall remember the person’s name: It’s professional, it’s polite and people will remember you for it.
8. You shall say something nice about the other person: Be generous and pay a compliment where it’s due. Whether it’s about their skills or delivery of a project, it helps to make the other person feel at ease and can help stimulate further conversation.
9. You shall be accessible: Speak to as many people as possible. Don’t assume that because someone is young or junior that they aren’t worth your time. Their companies selected them to attend Cannes for a reason. Give them your time because they are the rising stars of our industry.
10. You shall smile: Always!
About Kathy: Kathy established her architectural practice, Studio Basheva in London (www.studiobasheva.com) is also the head of Developing of NAWIC London & South East (www.nawic.co.uk). She is an avid networker and a MIPIM veteran and will be sharing her experience from her Twitter (@StudioBasheva) and Instragram (studio_basheva_architecture) throughout MIPIM and @nawicldn.
Guest post: Holly Porter, Founding Director of Surface to Air
MIPIM is a melting pot for the world’s property industry. Once delegates from the UK cross the channel and converge in Cannes, events from the past year get boiled down and conversations – whether with old contacts or new connections – tend to revolve around a few select themes. Here are my predictions for what will be the “hot topics” at this year’s MIPIM:
1) Brexit: the London stand is an established feature at MIPIM, but this will be first time when it will present itself while preparing to depart from the EU. It’s unquestionable that Brexit will feature heavily at MIPIM – both in general conversation and at the various formal talks and panel discussions. We should use it as an opportunity to show that, despite the outlook back home, London and the UK is still attractive to a global market.
2) The housing crisis: With the Housing White Paper only recently published, and the UK in the midst of a serious housing shortage, how we can make meaningful change in this area will certainly be a hot topic at this year’s MIPIM. With developers, financiers, city leaders, agents, local authorities, architects and planners all in one place at one time, MIPIM will provide the perfect platform to get to heart of this issue and hold genuine talks on how to solve it.
3) PRS: The new kid on the block or an old acquaintance that we’ve only recently reconnected with? Rewind to 1917 and the private rented sector accounted for around 90% of all UK homes. A change in mind-set is desperately needed here; the property industry is ahead of curve compared to the average homeowner so discussions about how we reverse misconceptions and instigate a step change in thinking back home should be high priority at MIPIM.
4) The weather: We Brits can’t resist the opportunity to moan about the weather – too hot, too cold, too windy, too rainy. Last year it was so varied we’re still remembering it one year on – who could forget “Wet Wednesday”!? At least if you exhaust all other topics and find a lull in conversation, you can always play up to the stereotype and fall back on this old reliable. Let’s just hope that this year the climate in Cannes gives us little to complain about!
About Holly: Holly is the Founding Director of architecture practice Surface to Air and has over 15 years’ industry experience. She is also the founder of industry networking event, Chicks with Bricks, which is holding a special MIPIM event while out in Cannes. If you’re available on Thursday evening, she’d love to see you there.
Guest post: Graham Parker, Editor in Chief of MIPIM News
MIPIM can be a confusing place at the best of times. With well over 20,000 people who always seem to have too many meetings in their diaries, too few hotel beds, too few restaurant tables and rapacious taxi drivers it can sometimes be maddeningly frustrating.
But for more than a quarter of a century Europe’s real estate industry has made it the indispensable meeting place. At its best it’s a hotbed of new ideas, of chance meetings, of renewing friendships. It’s as if the spring sunshine of the Cote d’Azur gives everyone an injection of energy.
So how to turn all that into business opportunities? First, you have to let people know you’re there. It’s too easy to meet the same crowd in the same place but property is becoming increasingly fragmented and business can come from unexpected directions. It pays to take a little time out to build your profile with a wider audience.
Regular social media posts and an organised approach to networking are undoubtedly important, but they don’t beat the media when it comes to reaching the whole industry. There will be nearly 500 journalists at MIPIM. Just as you will expect to go home with some new business leads and a stack of business cards to follow up, they expect to go home with copy. So get a couple of press meetings in the diary before you leave for Cannes. Contact details are on the MIPIM website and we don’t bite. Not often, anyway.
And where better than in MIPIM’s own daily paper, MIPIM News? We’re on level 5 of the Palais with a very nice view over the harbour. Come and say Hi.
MIPIM is the ultimate business and pleasure destination, which makes packing your suitcase slightly more difficult.
Preparation is paramount, and lucky for you we’re on hand to advise everyone from the lightest packer to those who push the boundaries of what’s acceptable on an EasyJet flight…
Remember the below essentials and you will survive Cannes whatever the weather:
And if you do find yourself taking more than you planned, whether that’s business cards or marketing materials, as seasoned MIPIM veterans, trust us when we say that it’s possible (and advisable) to courier these things to Cannes in advance. You don’t need to burden yourself with heavy luggage and excess baggage fees.
We hope this has helped you, but if you do find yourself at a loss then come and find our team, and collect one of our ‘in case of an emergency’ MIPIM tins!
Are you stuck for ideas for your MIPIM marketing materials? Are they leaving a lasting impression? If not, don’t worry as we have put together some top tips to get you started and help you stand out from the crowd.
Go digital
If you want to reduce your baggage, then consider going digital. People at MIPIM are busy throughout the day and won’t want to carry around lots of brochures. In last year’s blog post, we recommended using electronic materials such as PowerPoints and PDFs. These are useful as you can store multiple documents, and more importantly tailored documents, on your tablet or smartphone and open them with Keynote or Adobe. It’s perfect for those chance encounters and impromptu meetings, and if time is really tight, you can just email it across to the person you’ve just met so they can read at their leisure. It also gives you a reason to follow up!
Content
What should you include in your marketing materials? The most important piece of advice we can give is to ‘KISS’: keep it simple, stupid!
A brochure that introduces your company, the services you offer and any ‘hero’ projects is one of the easiest ways of introducing yourself to a prospect. As always, your marketing materials need to have a clear purpose so really think about the impression you want to make and support it with concise content that is client benefit focused. If you’re planning to meet a diverse range of prospects working in different sectors, tailor your documents so they appear bespoke to each person you’re meeting with. You don’t want to burden someone with a 20 page document to read through when the only information they need is on page 14.
If you want to bring along hard copies with you, consider all the costs and logistics associated, such as printing, shipping, and any deadlines you need to meet to make sure your marketing materials arrive with you in Cannes. It pays to avoid the last minute rush, so don’t risk it.
Giveaways
Everyone loves a free giveaway. Branded pens, USBs and lanyards are tried and tested, but perhaps for a destination like Cannes, it’s worth trying something new. Consider handbag sized umbrellas in case it rains – even if it doesn’t, most people will take them home with them; or even branded tote bags. We’ve heard from some of last year’s MIPIM delegates that tote bags were one of the most popular and useful of all the giveaways. Just make sure they’re durable and look good enough to carry around.
Let us know if you’ve seen any memorable giveaways at MIPIM, or if you have any advice or tips for delegates currently preparing their marketing materials over on Twitter!
In our industry, everyone has a MIPIM story. Whether you’re a first timer or old timer, we all attend with certain preconceptions and expectations. In this blog, we’re going to set the record straight and debunk a few myths so you can do MIPIM in a way that’s most valuable for you and your business.
It will break you…
We’re going to put it out there: MIPIM will not break you. While some may say it’s just a big jolly in the Med, we say it’s one of the biggest events in the property calendar and an amazing opportunity to meet new prospects, rekindle old ones, and spend quality time with existing clients. The beauty of MIPIM is that, for the most part, you’re in control. You don’t have to stay up until 3am and you can drink in moderation or not at all! It doesn’t have to be hard work if you plan ahead and invest your time where it’s needed in a way that will benefit your business once you’re home, while still having some fun.
Managing your time
Managing your diary at MIPIM can prove challenging. Given the cost and the short period of time you’re there, you want to get as much out of it as possible. Book as many quality meetings with prospects as you can, but leave some time spare. With so many parties, receptions and events happening there is ample opportunity for chance encounters. To ease you in, we recommend attending Derry Long’s pre-MIPIM networking event, Yes Oui Cannes Reception, which will be held at The Drift near Heron Tower on Wednesday 1 March. It’s a friendly environment to connect with other MIPIM delegates before heading to Cannes. For the full line up of events while you’re there, check out The Tough Guide to MIPIM.
Find your comfort zone – and step out of it!
MIPIM only happens once a year so make the most of it and step outside your comfort zone. We recommend exploring the stands – this is where you’re likely to pick up new contacts and find out what’s happening in the industry. Keep an eye out for new and upcoming areas with growth and investment opportunities. We often forget how educational MIPIM can be in terms of learning, knowledge sharing and hearing first-hand from political leaders and key decision makers, so learn something new that will benefit your business and take it home with you.
It doesn’t lead to business
We know that it does. The trick is to record who you’ve spoken to, what you’ve promised to do or send them, and follow-up when you get home. MIPIM is about initiating contacts and useful relationships – your job when you return is to nurture and sustain them.
Now the delegate list has been released and is being updated weekly, you can really start thinking about who you want to meet at MIPIM.
Where to start?
Register and review the list to see who you would like to meet. Don’t hold back – no one expects a wallflower at MIPIM, and you’re actively encouraged to network your socks off so don’t worry about approaching people who are attending. It can be a lot harder to secure these meetings back home than it is in Cannes, so grab the opportunity while you can.
Market yourself
While you don’t want to be hauling marketing collateral down the Croisette, it’s worth taking a summary about you and your business for your prospects to see on an iPad or take away with them. It’s important to tailor your marketing pitch so it can be easily modified for different prospects.
Think about what you can bring to the conversation that is different and makes you stand out from the crowd. MIPIM can be a crazy place – meetings are swift and the clock ticks quickly. You need to capture a prospect’s attention, so think about what you want to get out of the meeting and how it might also benefit them. Remember that they wouldn’t be meeting you if it wasn’t mutually beneficial, so focus on that and think about what the end result might look like.
Don’t overdo it
MIPIM is an investment, so it might seem to make sense to cram in as many meetings as possible while you’re out there. However, step back and take stock of that decision before you go any further. Sometimes the best meetings are the ones you weren’t expecting, so give yourself a bit of leeway in the afternoons and evenings. For those moments of spontaneity, remember to write down a short note on the back or front of the person’s business card to remind you about the conversation and especially anything you promised to send. They will prove to be very useful when you get home and need to jog your memory.
Finally, if you would like to ease your way into MIPIM and meet some brilliant people (including some of our own team) then come along to our annual ‘Go Dutch’ dinner. Places are limited so please contact us at: mipim@holisticgroup.co.uk to enquire. You never know who you might meet!
Our good friends over at London at MIPIM have coined a new saying: FOMM (Fear of Missing MIPIM) and we couldn’t agree more. With a new website, theme and session formats, there is plenty to get excited about as we ramp up to MIPIM 2017.
Here’s what you need to know:
The Theme
The theme for 2017 is ‘A New Deal for Real Estate’, which addresses the impact of the geo-political and economic challenges facing the real estate industry today and creating new sources of growth. According to the MIPIM website, this means stakeholders need to adapt and rethink their strategies by collaborating with new players and creating new forms of business.
This marks a forward-looking theme after a somewhat tumultuous year, with a focus on collaboration, partnership and welcoming new players to the industry. It’s a yes from us.
New and improved sessions
As well as the usual events and networking parties, a series of new sessions have also been announced. These include: the predictive scenario, in which three different scenarios on a current issue are presented by an expert and/or CEO to the audience; the masterclass, a lecture by a leading player in the industry on a topic related to their area of expertise so the audience can pick up some useful tips along the way; and finally, the creative workshop – interactive sessions for delegates to apply design techniques and frameworks to generate their own ideas and watch them come to life.
So now we have a taste of the new look MIPIM, what next? With 23,000 delegates from across 90 countries, 2,600 exhibitors, and more than 100 conferences, we think this will be the best year yet, and one you definitely don’t want to miss. We certainly won’t!
MAXIMISING MIPIM 