Transforming Tradition: How CPI Elevated Engagement at BSH 2025 | Conference Partners International Case Study
About the Event:
INCON Partner: Conference Partners International (CPI)
Event: British Society for Haematology (BSH) 65th Annual Scientific Meeting
Dates: 27th – 29th April 2025
Location: Scottish Event Campus (SEC), Glasgow, Scotland
Event website: bshconferences.co.uk
Background:
British Society for Haematology (BSH) has been bringing haematology professionals together since 1960, by listening, learning, and leading to transform the care its members provide to patients. 65th Annual Scientific Meeting marked the third year Conference Partners International has delivered this meeting for the BSH. The meeting returned to Glasgow, its first Scottish venue since 2019.
Challenges:
Each year, the BSH meeting has the goal to enhance the delegate experience, a commitment that drives CPI to constantly innovate and find new ways to engage delegates in the programme.
While the SEC offers a versatile setting with many rooms for sessions, the task of transforming the exhibition hall into a vibrant and engaging destination for delegates presented a unique challenge.
Each year, BSH have the stand located in the centre of the exhibition hall as the focal point. One of their KPI’s is member engagement and increasing member sign-ups. A CPI priority was to promote the society and showcase the benefits of being a member.
Solutions:
Incorporating AI into the Attendee App:
This year, we introduced SnapSight, an additional feature within the attendee app, and invited speakers to have it synced with their sessions. SnapSight provided delegates with AI-generated session summaries, including key takeaways and an idea cloud for each presentation. This innovative feature allowed delegates to engage more fully with sessions, secure in the knowledge that they didn't need to take their own notes but could instead review SnapSight's findings directly on the app.
Enhancements to the Exhibition Hall:
The exhibition area is more than just a space for our stands; it serves as the primary hub for networking, poster presentations, lunches, and tea and coffee, with the BSH stand centrally located. This hall was a blank canvas, ready to be transformed into a vibrant networking centre. The challenge, however, was how to make it genuinely engaging. Each year, BSH integrates wellness into its programme, including guided yoga sessions to start the morning. With this in mind, we aimed to create a welcoming environment where delegates could disconnect from the main sessions and fully immerse themselves. With this in mind, we designed a wellness teepee within the exhibition hall, providing comfortable seating throughout the day, which was then reconfigured with yoga mats for the morning sessions. Once the conference concluded, the yoga mats were donated to "The Wee Retreat". A community space located in Glasgow with a focus on prioritising physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing through self-care.
Increased Society Visibility:
A new stage, an extension of the BSH Stand, was added to the programme and strategically located within the exhibition hall. We partnered with Silent Noize Events to create this unique stage setup. Here, delegates could disconnect from the general exhibition buzz and immerse themselves in a dedicated programme put together by BSH, primarily focused on showcasing top abstracts and facilitating expert-led discussions. Each session was broadcast through wireless headsets, which delegates could collect at each seat. This stage setup proved overwhelmingly popular, with additional headsets being distributed to delegates who, due to its appeal, stood at the back.
Outcomes:
BSH 2025 reached an all-time high in attendance, a clear testament to the conference's sustained growth and CPI's contribution to achieving that goal.
Key Achievements:
1800+ Attendee’s
491 Submitted Abstracts
55 Oral Presentations
203 Poster Presenters
162 Posters
31 Industry Sessions
Feedback:
“CPI are a trusted partner who is not only willing to try new things but has the ideas and expertise to pull them off, which makes the world of difference to both our experience and that of our delegates. People will always seek me out to make their feelings known, so it is so nice to relax in the knowledge that when I am being approached, the likelihood is it will be to tell me how much they are enjoying it all. No more conference-induced anxiety, just pride!”
— Carol Bewick, BSH CEO
ABOUT INCON EVENT ORGANISER
INCON Partner: Conference Partners International
HQ: Dublin, Ireland
Established in 1998, Conference Partners International (CPI) is a full service, multi-award-winning and internationally accredited Professional Conference Organiser with teams located in Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh and Amsterdam and registered offices in Ireland and the UK.