5 Ways to Host a Memorable Meeting or Conference
Whether you’re planning a corporate meeting, a company team-building event, or a seminar-style conference, a planner’s prime objective is to keep attendees coming back for more. That means you need to put yourself in your attendee’s shoes to find ways to add value to their experience.
While there are a million little details to manage strategically during the meeting planning process, it’s important to pay attention to ‘big picture’ goals. The Goei Center team is here to help you succeed. Here are some ways to create memorable events.
1. Design a Content Plan That ‘Speaks’ to Your Attendees
If attendees are coming to your conference to deepen their knowledge, follow a clear plan to source your content. Be on the lookout for hot topics and use polls or Facebook groups to understand the most common pain points that your attendees experience. Research the best subject matter experts and keynote speakers to build an agenda that is highly relevant. Be sure to build-in discussion time, because that is where the magic happens!
2. Choose a Memorable Venue
While you don’t necessarily want the venue to steal the show, you do want your attendees to enjoy the ambiance of the venue. Creative, elegant architecture and decor can set the tone for a highly memorable event. Site-specific elements to consider include ease of parking for guest convenience, the availability of plenty of bathrooms, outlets and high-quality A/V equipment such as speakers, microphones and screens so that the guest experience is flawless.
3. Create Social Spaces
While you need to select a venue that fits your event, you also want to have a plan for how to use the space in a way that creates lots of opportunities for socializing. Create breakout areas (or respite areas!) and map out a cluster-style floor plan around speaking and dining areas to give your attendees somewhere to break the ice and build meaningful connections. Make sure your venue can accommodate this approach.
4. Give Attendees Opportunities to Connect
Networking is a key reason people attend meetings and conferences. Look for ways to help your attendees connect before, during and after your event. That might be a pre-conference Facebook group, a LinkedIn list, or an attendee directory on your event website. Brainstorm unique mixer activities and ways to help introverts break the ice to increase attendee satisfaction.
5. Increase Engagement with an App
A conference app that delivers the benefits of a traditional program can serve double duty by helping attendees connect with your content and with each other in advance of your event. Features calendar, agenda details, speaker information, and a way to submit questions to speakers. Popular trends include providing speaker intro videos, which also help promote your event on social channels.
Additional Planning Details
Conference Pre-Planning :
Is your conference for-profit or non-profit?
What do you want to impart and to whom?
How big of a space do you need?
Venue Considerations
How many people can attend?
Are chair/table rentals available in house?
What are the refreshments/catering options?
A/V Considerations - Is there strong WiFi for virtual attendance or presentations? Are there projectors and screens on-site? Is the technical infrastructure state-of-the-art?
Parking ease and availability
Preparation Details
Organize all moving parts: caterers, speakers, vendors, etc. Get confirmations for the day/make reservations. Determine who gets to the venue and when on the day/days.
Send out reminders to your attendees.
If multi-day, collaborate with local hotels and promote to your attendees.
Communicate with your attendees again. Full rundown and schedule.
Produce materials, brochures, signage, T-shirts and promotional materials
Communication Plan
Make sure your guests know what to do on the day of, and ensure there are efficient ways to communicate with them on the fly
Maintain a clear schedule, and allow buffer time for networking (a big reason people attend these events).
Follow up with your attendees thanking them for making the event a success.
If desired, circulate a survey for feedback - this will give you valuable insight about what your specific audience wants and needs from events. This will help you attract the kind of attendees you're looking for - old and new.
The Goei Center team is deeply experienced in assisting corporate meeting and conference planners stage memorable events that make great use of our elegant, historic property. We’d be delighted to partner with your planning team to deliver an outstanding event.