What goes into a great personal brand, along with the reputation that may follow you throughout your entire career, is the same thing that makes someone a great salesperson: delivering on your word. And being consistent. It really is that simple. For someone with an illustrious career in and around the association world, our guest this week on the Six Degrees of Association Podcast, presented by Big Red M, David DuBois, has been a pioneer in building a brand in our industry. Relationships, an emphasis on building friendships over business, authenticity, and emotional intelligence are the timeless hallmarks of David’s personal brand, and he discusses this at length in his fantastic conversation with host Lucas McCann. He retired as President and CEO of the International Association of Exhibitions and Events® (IAEE) at the end of 2023 and has been the head of DuBois Group, LLC, ever since. (Special shout-out to our friend David Grindle for nominating David DuBois as a guest!)

More about David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-dubois-956bb2352/

Learn more about Big Red M: https://www.bigredm.com/

How can your association avoid the common pitfalls that lead to a poor relationship with association management? How do you even know if one is needed for your organization? Where do you start?Admittedly, it's not uncommon for folks who are lifelong industry employees to not fully understand what an Association Management Company (AMC) does.

Well, we’re aiming to end that confusion this week on the 6 Degrees of Association Podcast, presented by Big Red M, with our special pinch-hitting guest host, Casey Callanan of Clear Contender Media, who has been producing this show for the last several years.

Our guest is Linda Caradine-Poinsett, who is not only a longtime industry veteran and association executive but also the current Chief Strategy Officer at the Association Management Center of Schaumburg, Illinois.

She is an ideal thought leader— as you'll see from this discussion— to guide us through this important topic of the association management industry and what makes it so valuable (or potentially harmful if you don’t find the right fit).

About Big Red M: https://bigredm.com/

About Association Management Center: https://connect2amc.com/

How can you best communicate your value as an association during a time of intense competition for your dollar, time, and attention? It takes experience, authenticity, and knowing how to read the room to effectively serve your members and build lasting trust. All of these themes and much more are explored in depth on our show this week with our guest, David Grindle, President and CEO of the International Association of Fairs & Expositions (IAFE). Join us for this latest installment of Six Degrees of Associations, presented by Big Red M and hosted by Lucas McCann!Fun Fact: As mentioned in the closing moments of this podcast, David appeared on Jeopardy! on an episode that aired March 8th , 2000, according to the fine folks at the TV Database: https://thetvdb.com/series/jeopardy/episodes/4950962 Learn MoreAbout Big Red M: https://bigredm.com/ About the International Association of Fairs & Expositions: https://fairsandexpos.com/

The Six Degrees of Associations Podcast, presented by Big Red M, is back this week with your host, Lucas McCann. Kevin Belanger, Executive Vice President of Sales and Account Management, and Aaron Horowitz, National Sales Manager at AEX Convention Services, bring us a fresh perspective on what associations are doing these days to drive value (and of course – revenue!) from their meetings. This includes efforts to get creative and even simplify. Featuring two industry veterans who are on the front lines of what associations are doing in the expo halls across the country to keep things exciting and profitable, this interview brings a wealth of ideas to spruce up your own meetings and events at any level. About AEX Services: https://www.aexservices.com/ About Big Red M: https://bigredm.com/

Megan Killian, CAE, IOM, is Executive Vice President at theNational Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), and while she found the association industry by serendipity, she has built a reputation over her tenure as someone unafraid to pivot as the times evolve rapidly.

In this latest edition of the Six Degrees AssociationsPodcast, presented by Big Red M and hosted by Lucas McCann, we explore her journey, including many situations where she has helped spearhead change in the face of adversity—and, as we learn in this chat, the tax landscape is no stranger to challenging times.

Make sure to stay tuned until the end, as Megan discussesher tongue-in-cheek dream of an association industry musical and what that would look like with all the characters who call this great industry home!

• More about NAEA: ⁠ https://www.naea.org/
• Listen to the Enrolled Agent Advocate Podcast: https://www.naea.org/eapodcast/
• About Big Red M: ⁠ https://bigredm.com/ ⁠

Brandy Spears, Director of Marketing and Communications at the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), is our guest on the Six Degrees of Associations Podcast this week. Her journey spans from journalism to government contracting to innovative marketing and communication strategies within the professional associations industry—an industry where she most feels at “home.” In this discussion with podcast host and Big Red M CEO Lucas McCann, she shares how embracing creativity, leveraging technology like Salesforce and AI, and storytelling have built the foundation of her mission work while engaging members, communication strategies, and advancing an entire profession. She also offers valuable insights about navigating change, leveraging new tools, and fostering meaningful member connections in a rapidly shifting digital landscape.

More about NAEA: ⁠ https://www.naea.org/

The Enrolled Agent Advocate Podcast: https://www.naea.org/eapodcast/

About Big Red M: ⁠ https://bigredm.com/

Marketing and communications (MarComm) are cyclical in many ways and what’s old becomes new again, often evolved, improved, and streamlined. When it comes to print marketing, this couldn’t be more true, as the digital landscape has helped exponentially create a more efficient, faster, and far less expensive environment for getting your message out. As our digital inboxes become more cluttered, maybe it’s a return to the simplicity of print that your marketing and communications messaging needs for it to stand out.To explore this phenomenon in depth, we’ve invited Cassandra Atchison onto the 6 Degrees of Associations Podcast this week to break it all down. As you’ll soon learn in this episode, she is the Vice President of Marketing at Modern Litho, making her the perfect guest to help catch us up on the intersection of print, digital, and association communications.More about Modern Litho: https://modernlitho.com/

About Big Red M: https://bigredm.com/

Join 6 Degrees of Association host Lucas McCann alongside producer and frequent co-host Casey Callanan for a bonus episode about the need for associations to push for growth in 2025—more than ever before. This bonus episode also features a quick “state of the podcast” update and emphasizes why this show will be so focused on the many unique ways growth can be achieved as a major theme of our podcast moving forward.