We talk a lot about artificial intelligence (AI) here at Associations Now. We covered how AI can affect membership, how organizations use it to further their fields, and the governing standards of the tech itself—and that’s just in the past couple of months.

With all the ink being spilled on this emerging technology by us and across various industries, it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that the Association of National Advertisers named “AI” its Marketing Word of The Year for 2017.

ANA members voted on this word out of a list of nominees curated by its staff. One member said, “It’s not just the marketing word of the year. It’s the transformative phenomenon that’s going to reshape the world as we now know it.”

Another member noted that “2017 was the year that AI moved from being this weird, misunderstood term on the periphery of marketing consciousness to this weird, somewhat understood term spiraling closer to the epicenter of marketing, on an unavoidable collision course with our daily lives and jobs.”

Last year’s winner, by the way? “Transparency.”

Event Disruption

The connected event – how the Internet of Things will disrupt events for the better: https://t.co/829HY3Ugoh#internetofthings #AI #events #disrupt #changeforthebetter #experience #IoT #connected #eventprofs #agency pic.twitter.com/0MieT8QHio

— rapiergroup (@rapiergroup) December 6, 2017

Speaking of emerging technology … in the coming years, the Internet of Things is going to make major waves in the event space.

A recent blog post from the Rapier Group discusses the various event industry aspects that IoT will revolutionize, including catering, security, and marketing.

The post also dives into how IoT will accelerate the access to information at events. “For exhibition stands, beacons already allow staff to read visitor data off their wearables—think smart lanyards or wristbands. This allows them to pitch personalised interactions based on each visitor’s pre-registered interests and movements around the show,” writes Kate Denny.

But she also encourages readers to think through more possibilities. “Smart lanyards could direct attendees to specific talks based on their actions, or even recommend other attendees they should meet, based on their interests or job roles. The IoT promises personal, tailored service delivered pitch perfectly,” she says.

Other Links of Note

Overall, #GivingTuesday was a pretty big success. Network for Good provides follow-up tips for nonprofits who participated.

Volunteers are vital to many nonprofits. Here’s how to recruit more volunteers using social media, according to the Capterra blog.

Google wants users to enter a search vortex. The Verge reports on recent Google updates that encourage more searches.

(NicoElNino/iStock/Getty Images Plus)