What Happened in Austin... Will Definitely Fuel Our Next Big Idea
- Velocitymeter
- Aug 11
- 3 min read
I just got back from the Corporate Event Marketing Association (CEMA) Summit 2025 in Austin, and let me tell you this wasn’t just another industry gathering. It was an electric collision of creativity, strategy, friendship, and innovation. My brain is still buzzing, my notebook is overflowing, and I may or may not be thinking about investing in new cowboy boots.
Austin was a VIBE. The city’s energy is artistic, entrepreneurial, proudly weird, and matched the spirit of CEMA perfectly. Every session, every activation, even the tacos, seemed engineered to inspire. This wasn’t just a backdrop; it was a catalyst. To Brian Mason and the team who chose Austin for this year’s summit… bravo. You raised the bar for Summit again!
There’s something irreplaceable about being in the same room with the most experienced event minds in the business. You can’t replicate the side conversations, the impromptu brainstorms, or that feeling when someone casually drops a nugget of wisdom that re-frames how you’ve been thinking about audience engagement.
Yes, we’re all busy. But showing up matters because when you’re surrounded by so much brainpower, you don’t just leave inspired. You leave sharper.
One of my biggest takeaways? The power of the CEMA community. I reconnected with friends I’ve experienced now 20 Summits with, and met so many new faces bringing fresh energy and perspectives to the table. Whether you’re a seasoned vet or new to the scene, CEMA creates a space where you truly feel like you belong. That feeling that you’re part of something bigger is what makes our CEMA community thrive.
Here are a few insights that I keep coming back to:
Experience as a Metric is More Important Than Ever: Engagement is no longer about impressions. It’s about impact. How did we make people feel? What did they walk away believing? Events that move people emotionally are the ones that win long-term brand loyalty.
AI is Here, But So Is Empathy: There was plenty of buzz about AI and how it’s helping us personalize, streamline, and scale. But the real magic happens when tech and human connection team together. Smart doesn’t mean soulless.
Sustainability Has to Be More Than a Line Item: More and more brands, and their audiences, are demanding that sustainability be baked into the event strategy from the start. It’s not just about carbon offsets anymore. It’s about values alignment.
Event Pros = Business Architects: One of the big ideas that resonated throughout the Summit: We’re not just producing events, we’re shaping business outcomes. It’s time we claim our seat at the table and speak the language of C-suite goals.
CEMA Summit is It's Own Proof Point: CEMA Summit 2025 wasn’t just great content (though it absolutely was). It was a powerful reminder of why we do what we do to bring people together in meaningful ways, to create moments that matter, and to drive the kind of change that only live experiences can deliver.
To everyone I met, laughed with, learned from, and shared tacos with: thank you. To my fellow Velocity XD crew, let’s take all this inspiration and turn it into our most daring work yet.
See y'all next year in Toronto!
By Jimmy Ervin, President and Chief Support Officer, Velocity XD
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