Take a look at some of the research and predictions from Hyper Island on how Experience Design is more critical to businesses than price. Applying this research to the business of conferences, paid attendee experience will soon become the unique selling point of conference over price and product. Are you even thinking about designing a conference experience for the target market? Or are you still using 20th Century industrial models for development of the conference which leads to a … [Read more...]
The Greatest Conference Story Never Told
It’s time to bring back the luncheon table at your next conference. When attendees break bread together at the table, community is born. It’s where the stories of our profession, our lives, our past and our future are shared, retold, relived and remembered. Too many conferences have made a catastrophic mistake. In the name of conference budget cuts, we have removed attendee gatherings around a meal. We have created sterile, exhausted attendee experiences. The result: the greatest … [Read more...]
The Growing Majority Of The Conference Declined
Who are the people that don’t regularly attend conferences? What are the traits of those that devalue the traditional conference experience? It seems that what attracts some people to conferences actually repels others. Some see the traditional conference experience as stale and predictable. They are uninterested in spending $1,500-$2,000 in registration, airfare, lodging and expenses for an average experience. The Perspective Of The Conference Declined Here are some of the standard … [Read more...]
Walk A Mile In Your Attendees’ Shoes To Improve Their Experience And Increase Your Empathy
Improving your empathy is a key to increasing your conference profit. Many conference organizers and hosts think that empathy has no place in their conference business. They believe that registration systems, schedules, speaker management tools, marketing, social media and conference attendee, exhibitor and sponsor forecasts are more important. But their view is wrong. At least that’s what author and Lady Geek CEO Belinda Parmar says. They are “unequivocally, unforgivably and irremediably … [Read more...]
Conference Improvement Starts With A Focus On The Attendee Experience
Improving attendee experiences is a top priority for the majority of conference planners. Yet few of us plan the attendee experience correctly. We approach conference planning from the inside-out. Considering the attendee experience is an afterthought. Most conference improvement plans look something like this: Systems & Resources → Procedures → Touchpoints → Interactions → Experiences. Although we don't usually use those words. We look at logistics and tools, operations, methods of … [Read more...]
Attendee Experience The Next Frontier For Differentiation
Most conference experiences are very similar. They have similar schedules, receptions, general sessions, breakouts, exhibit halls, lecture-style education offerings, quality and price. They all look and feel alike. Too many conferences are on the verge of commoditization. One of the conference’s main offering—delivery of information disguised as education—is so widely available and mutually interchangeable with other types of information delivery—that potential customers cannot distinguish … [Read more...]
Secret Shoppers Spot Conference Experiences You’ll Likely Miss
Secret shopping conferences and trade shows is something we do regularly. We don't call it secret shopping. At the end of the day, it's an apt description, as we're immersing ourselves in the attendee (buyer's) experience. We're evaluating every component through the attendee's lens to assess what's working, what needs to be tweaked, and what needs to be 86'ed. One week, we'll be at a medical conference, surrounded by doctors as we watch live stream of surgery being performed halfway across … [Read more...]
Conference Growth Is Connected To Unique Attendee Experiences
If you want to grow your conference, you need to annually create a unique conference experience. You also need to create an emotional bond with your registrants. We have to remember that our registrants are people too. And your conference experience should help them solve the issues that are keeping them up at night. Our paying customers buy conference registration with a trust that we will deliver what our marketing materials say we will. And, never, ever forget that they also want a fun, … [Read more...]
