WASHINGTON, D. C. — Freeman hosted its Inside Live at ATD event May 19-20 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. The event ran in conjunction with the Association for Talent Development (ATD) International Conference and Expo, offering Inside Live attendees the chance to learn in a conference setting and get behind the scenes tours of a live trade show.
This marks the second year Freeman hosted the event, and it attracted more than 100 event professionals for two days of education, hands-on learning, and information-sharing. The group was comprised of manager and director-level planners, and this year Freeman added a small Gen Z track.
“We knew event planners were hungry for richer, more actionable content—so we built the kind of event we’d want to attend. First, we kick things off with big-picture insights. Then, we drill down into practical ideas and real-world execution. Finally, we bring it all to life with hands-on learning,” said Judy Payne, Vice President, Events & Brand Experience at Freeman. “Attendees leave not just inspired, but ready to turn those ideas into action with their teams.”
Trade Show Executive (TSE) was on the ground at Freeman’s Inside Live at ATD, to capture the big takeaways and trends that are the hot topics of today for association event professionals.
Education Takeaways
Freeman delivered a conference program focused on the attendee journey, allowing professionals to hone in on their own programming to identify areas they can enhance the experience through collaborative brainstorming.
“We don’t guess what attendees want — we ask,” Payne said. “We combine industry trends with attendee feedback and let them choose their session topics during registration. Then we build custom content tailored to their needs and group them with planners running similar types of events. The result? Smart sessions, meaningful conversations, and maximum ROE (return on experience). Everything is curated to make their time with us truly worth it.”
During group sessions, attendees were able to discuss their challenges and successes in a variety of settings including in a ball pit, while making a midday snack and while seated in a Freeman-themed plane activation.
In a series of mentor think tank discussions, organizers were able to hear from different peers on various topics including creating personalized experiences through data, enhancing networking events, keeping shows’ programming fresh, incorporating AI into planning, and budgeting strategies for optimization.
Some notable trends from the discussions were:
- Influencer marketing is of high interest to event producers, but the cost of working with high-profile names is a consideration.
- Programming for first-time attendees needs to be more intentional to keep them coming back year after year.
- Asking the right questions at registration is essential to creating customized experiences like personalized itineraries and better-segmented marketing to generate hype.
- Membership tiers that give participants access to exclusive spaces at an event are hot and effective at incentivizing individuals to increase their spend.
- More events are piloting “grassroots” networking opportunities, like leaving meetups to the show’s ambassadors or sponsors to organize.
- Festivalization continues to be a growing trend, with events looking to inject elements of fun and more experiences into its programming.
- When looking to advocate for change within your organization, it’s important to have the data and trends to back up your asks to leadership.
The program also featured a behind-the-scenes look at the AV operations for ATD’s event, where attendees learned how AV can be used to boost engagement at events.
One such AV feature discussed was using wide screens on the main stage, which can be produced via projections or LED panels, but do require a focus on content to ensure the larger screen is optimized.
Inside Live also allowed attendees to not only check out the impressive general session room and how it’s structured for success, but also to hear a keynote being called live.
“Anyone can talk about event concepts but experiencing them is what brings them to life,” said Mickey Wilson, Chief Marketing Officer at Freeman. “That’s why we created a live lab for event planners to see, feel, and test real ideas they can use. We want our customers to leave our event inspired and ready to create more impactful events of their own.”
Another aspect of the programming was activations on the ATD show floor after hours, where Inside Live attendees played a family feud-
style game about material handling, learned and shared about sustainability initiatives, received hands-on experience with unique show activations, and explored the exhibitor journey at the exhibitor services center. The event also gave attendees the opportunity to create care packages for children in foster care.
“Fun isn’t just fluff — it’s strategy in disguise. At Inside Live at ATD, we use curiosity, creativity, and purposeful play to break down walls, spark fresh thinking, and show planners what immersive, meaningful engagement actually feels like,” Payne said. “Whether it’s jumping into a ball pit, battling it out in a freight game show, or sipping a Dirty Soda in a 50s diner, every activation is a hands-on demo of how to design impactful attendee journeys. When people are relaxed and having fun, they’re more open to new ideas — and more likely to take those ideas back and use them in their own events. So yes, the fun is real — but it’s also deeply intentional.”
Related. New Freeman Trends Report Reveals Commerce Is the Top Reason for Attending In-Person Events
Providing Value to Association Professionals
In a collaborative and hands-on session, groups of attendees worked together to create attendee journey maps of major events to practice thinking big and identifying places to optimize the attendee experience. The exercise encouraged organizers to unburden themselves with thoughts of budgets or approvals and design the ideal attendee journey — with all the stops pulled out.
“We finished the attendee journey mapping activity, and our group did Coachella. We were split into pairs and mapping everything out,” said Olivia Krise, Senior Manager, Trade Show Operations at the International Sign Association. “My colleague and I were paired together, and we were just saying, ‘We need to do this for our event, with our staff, and have Freeman come facilitate it for us.’ It’s really a great conglomeration of all the ideas at the moment … and the energy coming out of events like this and every session has been very good. It’s all been a hit.”
Reimaging the Show Floor and Attendee Journey in Action
The event also paid homage to last year’s event, which was held in conjunction with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Conference on Architecture and Design, by revisiting the reimagination of the show’s expo floor and attendee journey during a session.
TSE connected with Robin R. Preston, CEM, DES, Managing Director, Events at AIA after the event to discuss more about the organization’s focus on the attendee journey and reorganizing the show floor.
“I think the challenges started with just the re-imagination of the show floor itself and what that meant, and then incorporating the changes not just on the show floor but throughout the entire conference to ensure a seamless and cohesive experience for attendees and exhibitors,” said Preston. “Beyond that, we faced the typical challenges around budget constraints, resourcing the right team members, and timing everything perfectly for implementation. But what was really surprising was how successful the activations turned out to be — not just on the show floor but throughout the entire venue. Watching the interactions and genuine excitement from attendees as they experienced these activations was incredible; some met or exceeded our expectations, and some fell short.”
As part of the reimagination, the show also introduced neighborhoods to the floor design, with the goal being to enhance engagement between attendees, exhibitors and sponsors.
“We explained to exhibitors that this new concept will help our attendees navigate the expo more efficiently, curiously and excitedly. We also clarified that this was a 2-3-year plan for everyone to experience and embrace this concept fully,” Preston said. “It took a couple of years for the exhibitors to embrace the concept as we expected, but for those companies who do participate, they’re enjoying the ease of attendees finding them within the specialty zones. We also have plenty of space throughout the expo not associated with zones to allow for flexibility of location geared towards each individual exhibitor’s preference.”
When asked what advice she’d give other organizers considering reimagining their show floor and structure, Preston said to ensure you have the buy-in and support from organizational leadership, both internally and externally, before you start the journey.
“Then gather all stakeholders that will help collaborate on the project — this means working cross-departmentally within your own organization to align teams and objectives, and working closely with your vendor partners to ensure they fully understand the goals of the project and can provide the buy-in needed to help drive success,” Preston said. “Getting everyone on the same page from the start is critical to achieving the goals that were set forth.”
Looking to the Future
After a successful second edition, Freeman is already looking forward to the 2026 event.
“Launching a new event is so exciting and there are so many possibilities. We’d love to take it to new cities, bring in new voices, and maybe even tailor tracks for different experience levels,” Payne said. “But no matter how it grows, the heart of it stays the same: small, intentional, and packed with practical value. As the industry evolves, so will this experience.”
