Content curation e thought of having such an expert pool of speakers to call on for your event programme will be quite an appealing one for most event planners. But it’s still a case of nding the right person to match the event’s purpose, Bensenouci says. “What I do is a lot around content curation; what’s the goal of the event, who is the audience? And then it’s about nding the best author to facilitate that conversation. “I do everything from planning and scheduling speakers to providing logistics. For our book clubs I will put together a line-up and create
authors and their expertise to a wider audience. It needs to be embedded in the business.” Experiment With the pandemic forcing all events online for more than a year, the publishing sector has been forced to reconsider the way it approaches events. And as with all sectors, the enforced period of change has resulted in new lessons being learned – and perhaps a new attitude to events, according to Bensenouci. “With virtual events, the content is the biggest draw. And publishers have amazing content! I think the publishing industry could have done more
There is a resistance to acknowledge events as something powerful”
to experiment in this area but I see more conversations happening, so hopefully it won’t be long.” Like any event professional, Bensenouci is eager to get back to in-person events as soon as is safely possible. And having such a wealth of talent and creativity on tap means that the return to live events is even more keenly anticipated. “Lately the bit I’ve missed most about face to face events has been the author parts – being able to work closely with talent – big names, new names,” she explains. “Attendees at our events leave energised and inspired because of our brilliant authors. I love getting to know them and helping them on the journey.”
interviews and interactions. We have so many really engaging speakers that can talk to speci c topics. At the moment we’re doing a lot around wellbeing. It’s so varied and interesting.” Bensenouci adds that the publishing sector hasn’t always appreciated the power of events to reach corporate audiences – something she hopes to address. “I do think that the publishing world doesn’t realise the huge potential that innovative and creative events have in this space. Generally – not just in publishing – there is a resistance to acknowledge events as something powerful. It’s not just about reaching new readers, it is also a way to in uence positive change by connecting our
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