Briefly about the expert
Mikhail Starostin : founder of the digital agency 1studio , expert in strategic online marketing, analytics and increasing sales via the Internet. Professional speaker, founder and host of the online video podcast for entrepreneurs "Duet-Expert" , trainer and speaker on the projects "Business Focus", "Like", "Skolkovo" and "My Business".
I am the author of more than 20 seminars devoted to management issues, business processes, Internet marketing and promotion. I have conducted more than 300 training seminars for owners and top managers, organized and conducted more than 20 conferences of various formats.
In this article, I will tell you how to organize a conference on your own albania phone number resource I will share a checklist and a detailed plan of what needs to be done at each stage.
Offline conferences are still relevant
Business conferences are very popular: in St. Petersburg alone, there are about 10-15 events per week. Each of them gathers from 20 to 150 people. In my opinion, the conference trend will continue for a long time and will gain momentum.
Many people are now working online, doing business from home. People are missing live communication - not via Zoom or texting, but face to face.
I hold conferences three times a month: two small ones and one large one. We also organize off-site networking events — three days and two nights in a huge country cottage. We tie them to holidays: New Year, February 23, May 9. This is due to the fact that many people want to leave the city for a long vacation, but do not know where or do not want to bother with activities. And we organize everything turnkey: accommodation, food and pastime. Most often, participants come with their entire families, so we hire a nanny for the children so that parents can immerse themselves in learning and communication for two days.
Offline business events:
for organizers, this is a good opportunity to increase both personal and company recognition, attract customers and make the brand's audience more loyal;
For participants, it is an opportunity to meet like-minded people and find clients and partners.
How to Organize a Business Conference
Selecting a topic
Deciding on a topic is the most important thing. There are two options here. If you have already held conferences and have your own audience, launch a survey and ask potential participants what topic they would be interested in discussing.
If this is your first experience, study the news and trends. For example, when Instagram* was blocked (a product of Meta, which is recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation), everyone was interested in marketing and alternative promotion channels.
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Finding successful topics related to promoting their products and services is a pain for most entrepreneurs, since 90% of business owners start with one employee. And this employee is themselves. For example, an entrepreneur makes toys himself and knows everything about their production. But he doesn’t know how to sell them or how to find buyers.
In my experience, the least successful were very narrow topics. It was hard to organize a conference with the stated topic "SEO: how to promote a site to the top". "Craftsmen" (those who are just starting out and doing everything themselves) do not have a site yet, and if they do, it is a one-page one, not suitable for promotion, and those who have a site have already learned to delegate.
The conference topic must meet the following criteria:
It is relevant and affects the interests of various market participants.
Events with similar themes have already been successful in your company or among competitors.
You have found or can find experts willing to speak at a conference on the topic of your choice.
You have a contact base of the target audience that will be interested in the topic, or an understanding of where to look for this audience.
There is no strong competition among events of this type.
Now is a good time to discuss the chosen topic.
Select date and time
What to consider:
Who are you planning the conference for? If the audience is in one city, any weekday will do. If you want to invite out-of-town participants, schedule the event for a weekend. Start no earlier than 11:00. This will give people time to get to you. We start at 11:00, and even then, participants are always late.
When other companies in your industry are hosting events. Try to distance your conference as much as possible from other conference organizers, especially if you are discussing related topics.
Making a Gantt chart
Once you have decided on the date, create a Gantt chart that shows all the tasks and deadlines. It usually consists of a timeline and a task list. It also shows the start and end dates of the work, milestones, and the names of those responsible for the tasks. It shows when the task should be started to meet the deadline, which tasks will require more resources and time, and which will require less.
Example of a Gantt chart for a conference
We invite speakers
Who can be invited:
A speaker who will pay for participation. The cost depends on the number of conference participants. The average price is calculated using the formula: 500 rubles × number of participants.
A speaker who will not pay but will bring an audience. Agree on how many people he should bring to the conference, for example 10 or 20.
A headliner is a popular speaker that you pay yourself to speak. Their famous name will help attract an audience.
We find speakers in chats and social networks. It is worth visiting competitors' events and seeing who is speaking there.
Make a list of experts in the topic of the event and send them invitations. Discuss the conditions with those who respond: what the speakers want for their presentation, what you expect from them.
What else to discuss:
Topics: Ask experts to focus on personal observations and cases, and keep theory to a minimum.
Presentation preparation deadlines. Don't let speakers delay this so that you have time to make sure that the reports of different experts do not overlap.
Time for presentation. Speakers should understand how much time they have for their presentation and for questions from the audience.
Do you need help? Find out what equipment you will need. If the speakers are from out of town, do you need to meet them when they arrive in your city? Offer help with booking tickets and choosing a hotel.
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We are developing a program
After agreeing on speakers, draw up a conference plan. Determine the order in which speakers will speak. If there are many speakers, the reports are grouped into sections and the event is held in several halls so that experts can speak simultaneously.
Headliners' talks will attract the most attention, so place them in the main room and don't schedule other talks for that time.
What else to consider:
Allow enough time for the opening of the event: while you are giving a welcome speech, latecomers will have time to take their seats. You can shift the timing of the conference by no more than 10 minutes. Some people will come only for the presentations of certain speakers, and if you significantly change the start time of their presentations, it will be unpleasant.
Allow time for a break —about 10–15 minutes between speakers.
During the event, keep an eye on the timing. Speakers are hard to stop when they are on stage, so I recommend installing a screen with a timer so that the speakers can see it. A more budget-friendly option is to make a sign with a large inscription "5 minutes" and show it to the speaker 5 minutes before the end of his time. This way, he will be able to logically finish his speech. On the other side of the sign, print "Time's up" - this is a signal for the speaker that it is time to say goodbye.
Allow time for lunch: guests will be able to chat and have a snack. Think about what and where you will treat visitors.
Don't make the event too long , or people will get tired. The optimal length of a conference is 5-6 hours, including breaks and lunch.
We find a site
Good venues are snapped up quickly, and good and budget ones are snapped up even faster. I recommend holding small conferences in restaurants: this way you can continue the discussion without a lunch break. In addition, restaurants often pay a commission of 10% of the check.
When choosing a venue, focus on the equipment, quantity and quality of seats. The basic set of equipment for a conference is a projector, microphone and speakers, flipchart and markers. The seats should be comfortable - it is difficult to perceive information while sitting on uncomfortable chairs.
