[dlvorg] Follow-up, continued ...

In this mailing:

Org List
Continuing the follow-up
Ending evening and related items
Vendors and commercial activities
Off-Strip budget hotels
Dress and higher end dining
A few activities comments
Annoying behavior
Administrivia
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Org List:

This is the DLV 2015 Organizational Mailing List (dlvorg_at_geekbabe.com)
Replies to this message will be forwarded to the DLVORG list and not
the DLV-Announce or DLV-Discuss list.
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Continuing the follow-up:

Our annual survey closes this Friday. For those who have not taken it,
this is your last chance.

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/2015survey.html

Unless unforeseen circumstances arise, the preliminary survey results
will be posted sometime this coming weekend.
. . . . . . . . . .

We broke 130, barely. Confirmed headcount now stands at 131. This will
probably be our official count unless more stragglers report in. Two "I
didn't receive the photo link" items bumped it to 131.

I (Annie) believe that this is undercounted, due to lack of convenient
check-in for some, and also such things as not registering for others. I
cite this example. During one Afternoon Social, someone present said she
was heading to the airport to pick up someone, whose name I did recall.
As I was going over the list after DLV I thought I should better double
check to be sure she was counted, and I did not see her name on this
year's roster, although she does appear (under two variants of the name)
for 2013 and 2014.
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Ending evening and related items:

Bob writes:

The 1st DLV I attended, we weren't in the Gazebo room. We were in a big
round room, not as nice, no room for an entertainer, although I think we
could have live music, if we were making it and it could probably hold
around 100.

Just a thought.
. . . . .

Robyn (one of those with the "y") :) writes:

After calling Trevi today while questioning some charges on our bill (I
know it's after the fact) but I was told by a day manager that one of
the items on the bill was bq fee which I thought was a bbq item (not),
it was a 5% plus fee added to each persons bill and it can show up in
the middle of the food or drink items that were ordered. Without knowing
what was in the contract I really do not understand why there was BQ fee
plus a min. dollar amount.

For the past few years we have had a hard time finding a second venue
for a large gathering. Its probably time to read the writing on the wall
and nix the event.

In short I would like to see several small gatherings and meet after
dinner to socialize at a central location.
. . . . .

JoAnn responds:

The suggested approach of several dinner venues and a closing event
location as suggested ... needs to be explored in more detail.
. . . . .

Annie responds:

If we have difficulty finding dining venues which are willing to handle
our size of group in the manner our attendees expect, we may indeed need
to cut back or eliminate large group dining, and concentrate instead on
large-group socializing with smaller group dining.

If we do have one strong dining venue which is acceptable to all, I
think the greater need for said strong venue is toward the end of the
event.

Very few will skip the opening large gathering. The draw of meeting the
new people and seeing old friends is very strong. The gathering can be
almost anywhere and very few will avoid it even if the particular venue
is not exactly to their liking.

The ending large gathering, in the minds of many, is less of a priority
and more likely to be skipped.

Therefore, the ending larger gathering and venue for such, with or
without a meal, needs to have more drawing power.

I think we also need to consider the timing of the second large
gathering, meaning look at planning it so it occurs prior to any
significant number of departures.
. . . . .

Robyn continues:

Girls I am not asking for any $ just stating that everybody should take
time and check every bill ex did not take one of our appetizers off our
bill, we caught that one or should I say Dale did.

I do not think anybody at our table was added to my bill because at are
table we all asked what the others were having. Just saying if happened
to me we all should check to see if we paid twice or for someone else.
Who ever had BQ fee, Bruschetta, GI MER, Red Rock Iced Tea You welcome.
. . . . . . . . . .

Dionne writes:

> I really don't know what the answer is regarding the check splitting.

Check splitting is not an issue with Buffets where you pay when you
arrive.

I've tested out several Buffets looking for places suitable for a large
DLV group.

What does this group think about a Buffet? As a Closing Dinner?

Your thoughts are welcome.
. . . . .

JoAnn responds:

Libations is a very important part of a closing and opening event.

Buffet locations do not accommodate such.
. . . . .

Annie responds:

If you're referring to a casino buffet, other than JoAnn's note that
most do not offer convenient cocktail service, they are all pay-at-entry
and would not accommodate those who wish to join us only to drink and to
socialize and not to dine.

Now if you're referring to a place such as that Asian buffet you once
checked out, the one on Flamingo (is it still open?), a place like that
may be willing to admit those who are not dining in exchange for the bar
business. That place may warrant a circle-back and re-evaluation.

In any case, it will require some busy work on the part of our
volunteers to seek out and evaluate either dining venues which are
willing to cater to our peoples' wishes, and/or drinking venues which
would like a good volume of business some evening with little formality.
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Vendors and commercial activities:

Dionne writes:

> ... And is spending an afternoon going to a mall shopping that
> much different then going to a vendor who is supporting DLV?

IMHO, Yes, there is a difference between shopping at the Mall and
attending a DLV Vendor event. Also, I think the Newcomers benefit from
the Vendors who support DLV, whereas, the Veterans would prefer the DLV
activities.

I want to respond this this one, since I am considered to be a DLV
Vendor {although, my total sales $$ are almost nil}.

I consider myself a DLV newcomer since my initial DLV was in 2012. My
main focus during this period has been to improve my appearance. The
knowledge I gained from the Vendors was largely responsible for my
improvements.

The (19) attendees at my 2bShapely workshop were all Newcomers with two
exceptions who were supportive.

I learn from my attendees and they from the material I present which is
about how to learn from my mistakes.

I found key Suppliers who are willing to work in small quantities and
provide real women's wear essentials.

My personal experience with Vendors prior to DLV was so disappointing,
it was one of the reasons I decided to start this.

Another reason is my Math skills can be applied to creating a better
fem-shape.

Truthfully, Makeup still confounds me. So, I helped coordinate the
makeup sessions.

I paid the same cost as everyone else at BM & N2 the Looking Glass. The
MU Artists are very helpful and accepting without any sales pressure.

DLV influenced BM employment policy by including diversity questions
during MU Artist interviews.

Would you consider Dr. Victoria to be a Vendor? She charges for being a
Therapist. Would this event be classified as a DLV Vendor or activity?
The EHM event was attended and enjoyed by both Veterans and Newcomers.

If DLV were to eliminate the Vendors, it would negatively impact the
Newcomers more than the Veterans.

DLV strives to welcome and help out our Sisters, especially the
Newcomers.

The Vendors provide an on-ramp into the DLV world with acceptance and
knowledge.
. . . . . . . . . .

JoAnn responds:

All things in perspective. Or, too much of any one thing is not good.
Thus, I suggest that as we schedule a "balanced program approach" --
vendors and activities.

At the same time, my thoughts on "balanced" is not 50-50, but rather,
80% activity and 20% vendor. That makes for a vacation.
. . . . . . . . . .

Annie responds:

With 19 attendees at the boobie session and 33 at the hair session,
it is clearly evident that there is a demonstrated demand for such
activities (and products).

Both the Bare Escentuals and Nordstroms makeover sessions were also
well-attended. I personally "checked in" with BE and they said that
they were very happy with the attendance and sales level.

I'm sure that the Coordinators of the other daytime (non-commercial)
activities would love to see numbers such as this.

I would definitely consider the EHM and Dr. Victoria session to be more
cultural and participatory than commercial. It's most definitely not
sales-oriented.

Now, shifting gears a bit ...

Let's look at JoAnn's proposed standard for the percentage of vendor
and commercial activities and see how that compares to what we now
have.

I calculated this two ways, since it's kinda difficult to do an apples
to apples comparison.

Using strict schedule line item counts, the percentage of commercial
activities during this past event comes out to 22% and change.

When we "fold" repeat sessions of the same activity (commercial and
non-commercial) into one line item and do likewise with concurrent
activities in the same venue, the percentage of commercial activities
comes out to around 19%. Both of these come very close to the "balance"
that JoAnn has in mind.

For those who wish to see more recreational, participative, outdoorsy,
cultural, etc. activities, the solution is for those who want them to
plan them. Very simple! :)
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Off-Strip budget hotels:

Dionne writes:

> with the current Sunday-Friday span, those who wish to stay over
> that Friday get equally socked.

My budget does not permit me to stay in those upscale hotels where this
happens. My off-strip budget hotels charged me the same rate Saturday
through Saturday.
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Annie responds:

Beverly's hotel deal with Flamingo eased this out quite a bit. I hope
very much that a similar deal can be made for 2016 and that more will
know about it and will take advantage of it.
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Dress and higher end dining:

Delaney writes:

> You, as the activity Coordinator, can most definitely set limits,
> on all ends of the spectrum, as to what is and is not appropriate

Thanks for your thoughts. I think I should also look at the venues I am
offering - they have had limited appeal, so perhaps I need to change my
viewpoint and look at a more popular restaurant, vice someplace
"unique".
. . . . . . . . . .

Annie responds:

I think that there is a demand for both the wide-appeal dining venues
and the specialty places, such as Pamplemousse. Special-interest dining
activities such as this typically score highly on the survey, and we'll
have some numbers on this next week.
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A few activities comments:

Vanessa writes:

Shooting Venue was the primary reason for poor attendance this
year...The Clark County Trap facility is simply too far away from the
Strip .... we will confine our shooting to the Discount Firearms range
from now on.

The High Tea seems to suffer from some misconception that if they attend
and eat at 2 pm it might spoil their appetite for the Farewell
Dinner....and since they are paying for both they opt for the dinner.

Don't think this is a realistic belief but we may want to try the high
tea on a Thursday afternoon to see if it approves attendance.....we had
8 attendees out of 9 reservations...and in the 5 years that I have
attended I don't think we ever topped 15 attendees.
. . . . . . . . . .

Annie responds:

Thanks for the reports, Vanessa.

I agree that you will probably get a better turnout with a near-Strip
location for the shooting.

As for High Tea, yes, it may be better to do this on an afternoon prior
to one of the multi-track evenings. We won't know our ending plans for
DLV 2016 for some time now, but the "big bash ending on Friday" is in
question as an optimal strategy and Friday (assuming we have a Sunday
thru Friday event) may very well end up as more of a wind-down day.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Annoying behavior:

Vera writes:

A cigar smoker, or inappropriate dress or untimely and unladylike loud
and pungent farting etc. Really...I thought ladies only poofed, and
instead of pungent odor it was the smell of roses..lol!

Seriously, come on, ladies. We're a bunch of ladies not heathens
watching a boxing match. If we need to puff on a cigar, excuse yourself
and light up outside. This should come automatically.

And inappropriate dress, well we are ladies not ho's! I'm all for
showing some leg and a little cleavage but some do get carried away.

It all depends too on the dress and who's wearing it. If you need to
expel a lot gas, well do the group a favor and step outside for a minute
or two, and join the cigar smoker, so the cool desert breeze can carry
away those foul odors down toward the Las Vegas Strip.
. . . . . . . . . .

Annie responds:

I would think that those who smoke cigars or expel flatus in a crowded
area would be aware that said activities are offensive and annoying, and
that said odors do offend others. As Vera says, this should come
automatically!

I think the solution to this is to raise the level of awareness and hope
that those emitting said odors will realize that the emanations are not
appreciated.
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Administrivia:

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Diva Las Vegas 2015
Sunday, March 22 - Friday, March 27
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Received on Wed Apr 29 2015 - 06:09:36 CDT