HOSTING THE ACA CONVENTION

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in hosting an American Cichlid Association (ACA) convention. These guidelines have been written to help you and your club, prepare, write and submit a competitive convention proposal for the ACA Board of Trustees (BOT). They are somewhat flexible and almost all items can be negotiated for almost any situation. They have been designed to insure that hosting an ACA convention will bring many benefits to both the ACA and your club.

Club Benefits

• Hosting a convention requires significant effort but offers substantial rewards. Clubs have historically earned up to $6,000, with strong potential to grow local membership since all attendees must belong to the host club or the ACA.

• Remaining tanks, filters, and supplies can be sold to members at cost, and auctions feature rare fish unavailable elsewhere. Members with fish to sell benefit from access to the largest auction of its kind.

• Above all, hosting a convention brings pride in showcasing your club and region to the broader ACA community.

Your Club

Host clubs do not need to be cichlid-only; many successful conventions are run by general aquarium societies. With multiple bids each year, proposals should clearly highlight the club’s strengths to the BOT.

Hosting requires significant volunteer effort. Clubs of about 50 members can manage a convention, though smaller, highly active clubs have succeeded. The workload can be demanding.

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Clubs must be financially sound and submit a financial report. The BOT values strong organization and accurate record-keeping.

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Prior event experience is important; the ACA convention is not the place for a club’s first major event.

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Advance planning is critical. Conventions are awarded up to two years in advance, and clubs must have the personnel and technical capacity to handle online publicity and registration.