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By EventMobi • July 2026

Greetings all, and welcome to The Mixer. As we start the second half of the year, we’re leaning into education sessions: How many is too many, and how can good UX sort through the mess?

By the way, we heard a rumor that we’ve been working on print copies of The Mixer. Want one yourself? Find us at an upcoming event! We’re going to be at CMEE and the German Association Congress in August. Stop by and say hello!

Also this month:

🎫 High ticket prices

📈 A growing meetings sector

🎪 Why event pavilions matter

Anyway, let’s get to it:

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💡 This month’s insights Too Many Sessions?
MixerJuly26

How To Make Your Event Education Schedule Less Confusing

Is an event loaded with education sessions a UX problem, a scheduling problem, or both? And is it solvable, possibly with AI?

By Ernie Smith

Is it a user experience problem? Is it a structural problem with the event itself? Is it a problem at all?

Aaron Wolowiec, the founder and president of the meetings-strategy firm Event Garde, says that there is often a tension to go maximalist with the session count given the number of attendees you’re trying to reach. It’s especially true given the large number of submissions at play.

“I don’t default to more is more,” he says. “I also don’t default to this philosophy that just because we got all of these proposals that they’re good ones and that we should accept them and find a home for it.”

Sveta Fedarava, EventMobi’s head of Product Design and UX, says that a huge list of sessions can cause two separate, but related issues: cognitive load and decision paralysis.

“Too many options without guidance doesn’t lead to better choices,” she says. “Instead, it leads to disengagement.”

Both Fedarava and Wolowiec say that AI could help make a confusing meeting lineup more approachable, but Wolowiec also says that it’s essential to have a grasp on your target audience.

“It is really about being intentional about who the audience is, making sure you have something for everyone, and then identifying the number of sessions that meets those needs or expectations,” he says.

So, is it a scheduling problem, a UX problem, or both? Read on for the answer:

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🔎 Dive Deeper Learnings About Learning

Trying to think big-picture about learning sessions? Start here:

» A recent trend report from Freeman offers an excellent bird’s-eye view of the event education landscape.

» Looking into strategies to work more AI into your event app? EventMobi has the guide for you.

» Are you doing enough to encourage serendipitous interactions during education sessions? At Associations Now, Mark Athitakis dives into the role design plays.

» Worried about attendee retention? Wolowiec recommends the book Make It Stick, which is packed with insights on this very issue.

📈 Big Stat

Huge, In Aggregate

A data point that highlights just how broad the event space really is.

1.65B

The number of people brought together with events globally throughout 2025, according to research from the Events Industry Council. The council, which collaborated with Oxford Economics on the 2026 Global Economic Significance of Business Events study, reported that events generated $1.3 trillion in direct spending last year, a 12.2% increase over 2019. EIC Chair Stephanie Harris says that the findings offer direct evidence that the sector is a “driver of progress.”

 
📸 Spotted & Noted Free Event Inspo
pavilions

Have a well-represented niche inside your community of exhibitors? Say, a lot of tech startups that serve your non-tech association?

That might be a strong case for building a targeted pavilion area on your expo floor, says Anna Shaw, the president and CEO of B-FOR International, a trade show exhibition design firm that specializes in pavilion setups.

Developed either by the meeting planner itself or by an exhibitor, these setups often make a splash by combining a lot of smaller exhibitors into one setup that can be promoted more centrally. These can be fairly niche groupings, but depending on the context, they can help build attention around a larger theme.

“Instead of having a 9-square-meter booth in some far-flung area of the show floor, they’re now able to be placed with other exhibitors similar to them in a more prominent location,” she says.

Pavilions make sense in a number of contexts (“We organize USA pavilions at a lot of international shows,” Shaw notes), with some pavilions offering associations a presence at a related association’s event. That’s a strategy the Advertising Specialty Institute is doing at the PRINTING United Expo this fall.

Thinking about leaning more on the pavilion approach yourself? Shaw has a few recommendations for event planners curious about the model.

“Who are they not reaching? Where can they make connections that aren’t currently being made? Those areas typically make for the most interesting pavilion opportunities,” she says.

Above: The USA Pavilion at Food Ingredients China 2026 in Shanghai, organized by B-FOR with the USDA’s support. (Handout photo)

That’s where the event sector stands this month. Keep an eye on where we’re headed—and be sure to share this link with your favorite reader:

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