by: Rachel Bridge
It's your turn to organise the annual industry bash but you have no idea where to start. Here's how to do it right:
1. Hold it somewhere that's easy to get to. Not just by car, but by train, bus and taxi too. Yes it sounds devastatingly obvious, but
having attended many, many conferences in its time, SME Masterclass can assure you that it is amazing how often this crucial point gets forgotten. Holding a conference in the middle of a English safari park in November may sound like a good idea on paper (really??) but it is most definitely not.
2. Turn up the heating. Organisers are usually so worried that attendees are going to nod off during the presentations that they generally blast them with the air conditioning turned to freezing, with the result that it is close to arctic and thoroughly unpleasant. Here's a radical thought; make it warm and cosy and we might not have to keep leaving sessions half way through because we can't feel our toes.
3. Hire a facilitator who can tell the time - and who is brave and bold enough to make all the speakers stick to their allotted time slot too. There is nothing more annoying and infuriating than conferences that overrun, and yet for some reason almost all of them do, with the sole exception of the ones that SME Masterclass is asked to facilitate. Give speakers one minute warnings then cut them off if necessary, reduce the length of breaks to get back on schedule and choose someone sensible to make the closing speech which they can tailor to fit whatever time is left. If delegates are anxious they are going to miss their train home it will undo every last bit of goodwill you have generated during the day. Avoid.
4. Don't have name badges that can only be attached by safety pin. Most people don't actually want to stick safety pins into their nice new jackets, funnily enough. So don't make them. The clip-on ones are pretty hopeless too for people without pockets. Either go for the cord round the neck version or invent a better solution and make a fortune.
5. Make sure that there is mobile phone reception at the conference venue. And don't just take the venue's word for it; check it yourself. If everyone has to go outside and stand in the rain to check their messages, you have lost them. And provide free wifi - it is amazing how many times this is overlooked, even at technology conferences.
6. Signpost the toilets. Three hundred people wandering around looking lost is not a good look. Mark Judson, an event consultant says: "Imagine you've never been to the venue before. You may know where the loos are but your delegates might not. Have a mixture of printed and electronic signage for all locations together with real people to help and assist. This brings a human touch that you can't buy with a plasma screen."
7. Don't skimp on the sound system. Whiny feedback and rubbish microphones will just make everyone switch off. Judson says: "There is no point in having the Prime Minister speak at your conference if half the people can't see or hear him. Ask for recommendations of production companies and always get references. Even better, ask to pop into one of their conferences before you agree the deal to check they meet your standards."
8. Don't give people a goody bag that hasn't got any goodies in it.No-one wants to carry a heavy plastic bag full of promotional guff around with them all day. They will dump it at the first opportunity and hate you for making them do it. But do give them lots of water otherwise their brains will melt.
Finally - if you need people to stay overnight, choose a hotel that can fit everyone in. There is nothing worse than being Billy No Mates relegated to the overflow hotel down the road. If you really don't want to invite someone, it might be kinder to find another way of telling them.
source: the telegraph uk
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