The event pros who hold the most successful conferences are always on the lookout for tips and tricks to polish their strategies and tackle their to-dos. If you’re looking for ways to improve your process, maximize the effectiveness of your conference, save yourself some headaches, and make you sure have all the bases covered, use these 8 foolproof conference planning tips. And for a quick guide to conference planning, we wrap it up with a helpful conference planning checklist!
1. Make sure the venue aligns with the event
Alternative venues can lend unexpected flair to a conference. Locations like museums, historical sites, theaters, libraries, and sports arenas have all hosted conferences. But consider the needs of your group: A venue should set the stage for the conference to do its work, not steal the show.
2. Give every attendee a leg up on networking
Get your conference name badges ready: Networking is a top reason people attend conferences. And in a job search, face-to-face networking is several times more effective than networking online.
3. Build a detailed content plan with unique takeaways
If attendees are coming to your conference to deepen their knowledge, follow a clear plan to source your content.
First, if possible, poll your audience about topics, sub-topics, and depth of subject matter knowledge. This might seem like a Catch-22: If you’re drawing an audience with your content, how will you have an audience to poll before you have content?