Conference Production

Successful conferences are now sophisticated and seamless experiences. The primary source of information is no longer with the host or speaker but with everyone involved from the participants to the event organisers. Successful conferences today are rich in relationship building and content sharing. Here are three areas which impact on the experience at your conference:

Technology

With advancements in mobile technology we have become a society that wants to track and document what we experience and share them with others through social networks You should look to incorporate things such as interactive polling for live feedback, Twitter feeds on screens, Wiki spaces (for collaborative session note taking), live webinars and geo-location check-ins. These will all encourage social sharing of your conferences content and will greatly enhance your delegate’s experiences as they will feel more involved by sharing their experiences and feedback during the event. You can even encourage your delegates and speakers to create media for marketing and sharing to get them much more involved in the overall conference experience. Videos and podcasts will add a digital storytelling layer to the experience.

Collaborate

Sharing information and learning from our peers has proven to be a powerful learning tool whether face to face or digitally. Learning together should be embedded into your conference experience to bring the hosts and participants together. Inconnection’s managing director Nick Hamilton says: “Participants want to connect with their fellow participants and presenters as they feel they have contributed to the overall values of the event in some way”. You can ask participants to share what has or hasn’t worked for them; you’d be surprised what feedback can be gained by doing this and even new ideas can be generated which can be used to enhance the experiences at your future conferences. Collaboration in conference experiences allows participants to communicate, find common ground and create learning. Collaborate before, during and after the conference to create a lasting conference experience.

Integrate

Your conference shouldn’t be thought of as a standalone event that is filed and forgotten once it ends. It should be viewed as one experience within an ecosystem of experiences. Each experience is connected to one another whether it’s face to face or digital. You should look to create opportunities that allow participants to connect with each other, exhibitors, key note speakers and sponsors before they even arrive to generate conversations and learning experiences before your conference. Your delegates can communicate weeks, even months before the live conference experience extending the life of your event. Your audience will have valuable information that will add to the overall conference experience and the audience deserves a chance to hear it. The true value of any event is through personal face to face interaction with continued communication through the digital world before and after the event.