Acronym

APAC is running a straw poll in the Connection Central area at this year's Annual Meeting, asking attendees who they think will win the presidential election (McCain, Obama, or another candidate--write-ins accepted). They've had hundreds of votes cast so far, and the poll isn't closing until this afternoon.

I pass this along not as a promotional item (although I'm sure APAC would love to have your vote as well ... vote early, vote often!) but to point it out as a tool other associations might use in their own conferences. It's a great way to draw in politically-interested members and bring them together with information on your government affairs activities or PAC. And I wonder if a straw poll could work just as well for a non-political topic--maybe a straw poll related to trends in your industry could bring together members with an interest in environmental scanning, or a poll related to your magazine could bring together potential contributors. I love to hear about new ways to connect with members with an interest in contributing who may not have found a way to make themselves known through the "official" channels in an association.