Liz King Events: Social Media Event Planning Specialists

In New York, things are in fashion for barely a season before they're passé. In America's other big cities, three to four years may pass before that fashion catches on. Ten years later, you'll encounter people sincerely hanging on to that look because it's still new to them.

The events world is similar. Tasting tripe may be big with hipsters right now, but no one is rushing to put it on a banquet menu. That's not because event organizers don't love innovation. It's because there are still attendees out there who are amazed that mashed potatoes can be served in a martini glass (believe me, I met them just last year).

Which brings me to the presentation style called Pecha Kucha.

Chances are you've either heard of it but haven't seen it, have seen it and are over it, are all about it and love it or have no idea what I'm talking about.

What the #%(*& is it?

To summarize: Pecha Kucha was developed in Tokyo by a couple of architects who thought other architects talked too much. They limited speakers to 20 slides that auto-advance every 20 seconds. Now it's a "thing" people do in cities all over the world and sometimes at conferences. When done well, these 7-minute Pecha Kucha presentations can be stunning, hilarious, moving and/or thought-provoking.

Sound interesting? It is. And when you mix in drinks, it's a lot of fun for the crowd, too. But mark my words, Pecha Kucha is in grave danger of becoming as stale and overexposed as a mashed potato martini. And, what's worse, it can seriously backfire on you. So before you add one to your event, there's a few things to consider.