I would like to start off by thanking each and every one of you for your contributions to Xchange. Your crucial roles as ambassadors have helped in fostering our vibrant community here!  When I first began my journey with the ambassadors, there were so many names on our ambassador list of which I didn’t really know. So, I made it my mission to get to know you all more personally and establish some fun competition. Thus, the 2023 Ambassador Challenges were born! Each of our monthly challenges were strategically chosen to support a company goal. From spikes in follows to lots of insightful comments, your efforts have made a great impact on the community.  And now, it's time to show off our 2023 winners! We are thrilled to announce that the LATAM/APAC/EMEA team won the 2023 Ambassador Challenges!! The winners have received their Global Gift cards from GoGift via email.  Thank you all again for your contributions. If anybody has any memories or achievements from last year they'd like to share, please feel free to do so in the comments! We look forward to celebrating further achievements in the future. With that being said, stay tuned for the 2024 Ambassador Challenges coming soon...

For December’s ambassador challenge, the last challenge of 2023, we asked for the Teams to follow the exhibitors/providers from a list we sent via email.   To begin with, we put all those who followed every exhibitor into a raffle for an extra 50 Bonusly points. The winner for that was @Dion Cooke! As for December’s winning team, the LATAM/APAC/EMEA team pulled ahead with the most overall follows. Everyone on the LATAM/APAC/EMEA team will be awarded 10 Bonusly points each.  But the teams have also been going head-to-head this entire time. Now, the final tallies have been counted, and a winning team has emerged! We will be announcing the winning team soon, so keep an eye out for that message. As we begin 2024, there are many exciting changes coming up. We have new ambassadors, new challenges, and new insights coming your way. We are aiming to have ambassador meetings with the US and LATAM/APAC/EMEA teams toward the end of February where we’ll discuss more.   As always, keep an eye on your respective rooms. And show some love to the ISE room! We encourage you to support ISE by engaging in conversations and sharing articles. Feel free to share some good content you see below in the comments too.  Best wishes for a happy new year! 

Hey Ambassadors! Thank you all for participating in our last challenge, which was to interact with case studies, post a case study from a provider, or reach out to them and say that it would make a great post. The Team Leaders were @Hannah Zelmanski and @Luana Crocco. We asked if the team members could self-report, and now we have the results from November’s challenge! @Matt Bercot won on the US side! @Valeria Rapa won on the LATAM/APAC/EMEA side! And as the Team Leaders went head-to-head again, what was the outcome this time? Congratulations to @Hannah Zelmanski and the US team! The teams have been neck and neck in this challenge, so December will be the deciding factor of which team will come out on top in 2023. So, let’s talk about the next challenge. This challenge will be a bit different. The Expo Team has been kind enough to share a list of exhibitors that have already signed up for InfoComm 2024. From this, we have put together a list of exhibitors that also have existing provider profiles on Xchange. We will be sharing this list with our team members to self-report for the next challenge (no team leaders will be assigned this time). Please be careful not to share this list outside of the ambassador group. For December’s Challenge, we would like for the Teams to follow the exhibitors/providers on the list we will send via email. Give yourself one point for each person you follow on the provided list. If you are already following the provider, go ahead and give yourself a point. Each member of the winning team that participates gets 10 Bonusly points and everyone who follows every exhibitor gets put into a drawing for an extra 50 Bonusly points. After this challenge, the final tallies will be counted, and we will decide on a grand winner for 2023!! 

The LATAM/APAC/EMEA team is one point ahead of the US team. Will they keep their lead in the next challenge?   November’s Challenge is to interact with case studies (like and comment), post a case study from a provider, or reach out to them and say that it would make a great post. If you choose to post a provider’s case study: pick a provider, go to their website, see if there are case studies that can be posted, and if so, post them on Xchange, making sure to tag that provider. If you grab an image, make sure to cite your source. This month’s challenge will not only contribute to our great library of content and support our providers by showcasing their projects but demonstrate how easy it is for them to share meaningful content. It’s also a terrific opportunity to personally reach out to providers with a suggestion on content that would be valuable to the community. EACH of these activities/touchpoints count as 1 point toward the challenge.    Here is an example of a case study posted on behalf of a provider: https://xchange.avixa.org/posts/case-study-uc-riverside-xcite-center-s-classroom-of-the-future  We would like it if the Team Members could please self-report to our Team Leaders this month on anything that goes toward the challenge!  November’s Team Leaders are @Hannah Zelmanski and @Luana Crocco !  Just as a reminder, since there have been some changes, the Teams are now comprised of:   LATAM/APAC/EMEA @Luana Crocco  @Valeria Rapa  @Nelson Baumgratz  @Ana Maria Restrepo  @Sergio Enrique Gaitan Serrano, CTS  @Renata Mérida  @Monisha Devaiah  @Peter Schädel  @Carla Charlton  @Rafael Melson @Franciele Mesadri - AVIXA  @John Van Hoop  @Gaby Rand  @Sarah Carless  @Megan Petrovich (She/Her)  US @Hannah Zelmanski     @Tyler Lawrence  @Alissa Haksar  @Megan Kuhman  @Peter Hansen @Samantha Powell  @Loanna Overcash @Greg Bronson CTS-D  @Stephen Trapani  @Shantal Gomez Carrion  @Dion Cooke  @Sheila Bowman  @Gibran Nassif  @Cecilia Poeck Herrera  @Matt Bercot 

September’s challenge was to comment on a post with a video. And the Team Leaders were @Tyler Lawrence and @Valeria Rapa! So, who are the winners? @Alissa Haksar and @Sheila Bowman tied on the US Team! @Valeria Rapa had the most points on the LATAM/APAC/EMEA side! And, when it came down to it, the winner of the Sept challenge as the Team Leaders went head-to-head is the LATAM/APAC/EMEA team with Valeria leading the way to victory! The LATAM/APAC/EMEA team is now one point ahead of the US team. Will they keep their lead in the next challenge? Here are some highlights from this challenge: We would like to give a special shout out to @Tyler Lawrencefor the creative ways that he spread the word about the challenge to others! The ways in which he leveraged the council members and invited members to participate was magnificient. We’d also like to shoutout @Alissa Haksar and @Sheila Bowman on the US Team for making lots of comments for their team! Star players on the LATAM/APAC/EMEA side included @Valeria Rapa, @Ana Maria Restrepo, @Luana Crocco, @Monisha Devaiah, @Carla Charlton, @Franciele Mesadri - AVIXA, @John Van Hoop, and @Megan Petrovich (She/Her). Due to ISE and Congreso, we have decided to postpone the next ambassador challenge until November. We will also host virtual meetings in November for the US and LATAM/APAC/EMEA ambassadors, so we are excited to see you all then! In the meantime, please keep checking on your corresponding rooms. We are planning to implement a Member Spotlight on Xchange soon, so keep your eye out for that as well. And thank you all for your wonderful contributions!

Thank you all for another wonderful month! We have many important updates and exciting new features when it comes to Xchange, so if you were unable to make August’s Ambassador Meeting, please take a moment to watch the recording on Microsoft Teams. And now, the reason you are all here for: the ambassador challenges! August’s challenge was to start a conversation or contribute to a conversation. So, who are the winners? @Megan Kuhman and @Gibran Nassif tied on the US Team! @Ana Maria Restrepo won on the APAC/EMEA/LATAM Team! And as the Team Leaders went head-to-head again, will the US keep their lead or will the APAC/EMEA/LATAM Team shift the score? Congratulations to @Sergio Enrique Gaitan Serrano, CTS and the APAC/EMEA/LATAM Team! Sergio, as Team Leader of the winning team, will receive an extra 50 Bonusly points! And this means that the teams are tied yet again!!!! Who will be the ultimate winner?! Stay tuned… For September, our challenge is to watch videos and make comments on posts with videos. And our Team Leaders are @Valeria Rapa and @Tyler Lawrence! Good luck to everyone!

Thank you to those that participated in July’s challenge, which was to specifically follow our providers! This is easily done by going over to the AV Provider Directory, where it’s even possible to filter your search to find providers in your area or based on company type. I encourage everyone to continue following providers as it establishes a foothold into the community and conveys legitimacy. It will also encourage others to follow both providers and individuals. Now let’s find out who our July winners are: Sheila was the winner on the US Team! Fran was the winner on the LATAM/APAC/EMEA Team! And as the Teams went head-to-head again, which Team is now in the lead? Congratulations to Dorian and the US Team! Dorian, as Team Leader of the winning team, will receive an extra 50 Bonusly points! And this means that the US Team is currently in the LEAD to win the final prize!!! And now drumroll please… here’s August’s challenge! For August, our challenge is to start a Conversation or participate in a Conversation in any Room. And our Team Leaders are: Megan K and Sergio!

June was a busy month, full of all things InfoComm. During the month of June, we had an influx of people on Xchange and Xchange mobile as well as an influx of comments, likes, follows, and more! June’s challenge was to post in the InfoComm and/or Congreso Rooms. However, we understand that many people were extremely busy. So, we will be canceling our last challenge, and establishing a new one for July. And our team leaders will be moved over from June’s challenge. For July, our Ambassador Challenge is to: follow our providers! And our Team Leaders are: Dorian and Fran! Simply head over to the AV Provider Directory and follow as many providers as you can! Reminder: Each member of the winning team overall, based on each month’s performances, will receive a gift card at the end of the year!!! Currently, the LATAM/APAC/EMEA Team and the US Team are tied so it’s still anyone’s game!