i have to attend a conference for work, what should i be paid
I just spent two days at the TechCrunch50 conference, and what I noticed was that most of the attendees weren't getting their money's worth. It doesn't thing if you pay for access or if you lot get in free because your time spent at an event is worth money.
If yous desire to get your money's worth from attending a conference, here are a few suggestions:
Have business cards
Information technology'southward non cool to not have business cards. Recently, it has go a tendency to not carry business cards, and this is a large mistake. If you don't make it piece of cake for people to contact yous, no one will.
If y'all plan on attending an upshot, brand sure you lot bring enough of cards.
If you don't take business cards, create some. More than chiefly, your card needs to stand out, and it has to say something about you.
Come with an elevator pitch
Having business cards alone doesn't hateful you're ready to attend a briefing. Earlier you start mingling, y'all have to come up with an elevator pitch.
This elevator pitch should consist of a few things:
- Your name
- What you do
- Why you lot are hither
In improver to those iii elements, go on your pitch shorter than xxx seconds, and make certain it is relevant to the briefing.
For example, TechCrunch50 is a briefing most startups in the web 2.0 loonshit. During the event, I had the option of using a few dissimilar elevator pitches.
Hither are some examples:
Hi, my name is Neil Patel. I am an Internet marketer that has helped companies like TechCrunch double their search engine traffic through SEO. I am here to find startups that demand aid with their Internet marketing efforts.
Hi, my name is Neil Patel. I co-founded a company chosen KISSmetrics that is a spider web analytics solution for startups. I am looking to help startups solve their problems that revolve around metrics.
Hello, my name is Neil Patel. I co-founded a visitor called KISSmetrics that provides web analytics for pocket-size and medium businesses. I am hither to run into investors.
I know these examples may sound weird, but they work. All you have to do is say them in a conversation then they don't sound cheesy.
Noesis is power
I know the "cool" people don't nourish very many sessions, but yous should. Sessions tin provide a lot of knowledge and insight, and so take the time to nourish a few.
I recommend that you look at the conference agenda ahead of time and circumvolve the sessions you desire to attend. For these sessions, yous should endeavor to sit in the front so that:
- You tin clearly see the presenter and their PowerPoint presentation (if there is one).
- You can hear what the presenter is maxim (the audio organization may not exist working).
- Y'all'll accept a better chance at asking the speaker a question.
Don't be a networking whore
No one likes a networking whore, and so don't exist 1. Plus, what'due south the value in meeting 1,000 people over a two-day period? There is no way you can truly go to know every person at a large event.
Don't waste material your time getting to know a large group of people. Concentrate on coming together high quality individuals with whom you can build valuable relationships.
- Speakers – see every speaker y'all listen to. Don't spend much time chatting to them because they are getting hounded past hundreds of others. Be considerate, and give them space.
- Briefing organizers – coming together the conference organizer is a wise matter to practice. No one really gives them the time of day, simply they should. Organizers can get you into time to come conferences for costless, and they know where the cool individual after-parties are.
- Contest – your competitors don't accept to be your enemies. If you lot build a relationship with them, they tin can potentially refer customers to y'all.
The only grouping of people I haven't mentioned thus far is regular conference attendees. You should get to know these people, but it usually happens naturally equally long equally yous aren't sitting on the sidelines.
Don't consume lunch with your friends
Most conferences provide lunch. The tiffin food usually isn't great, and when lunchtime comes, you lot volition have the urge to swallow out. Don't!
Not only should you lot eat lunch at the briefing, only y'all should also sit down at a table filled with people youdon't know. When you practice sit down, introduce yourself, and go involved in the conversation.
You'll be amazed by whom you'll meet over a xxx-minute meal.
Walk the floor
Most conferences have an exhibition floor filled with sponsors and companies showcasing their services or products.
Take at least an 60 minutes to walk through the exhibition floor, and run across if there are whatever companies yous're interested in. Even if yous don't buy annihilation, you can yet get a lot from exhibitors.
Other than swag, you lot can get free products and services that will help your concern abound. Information technology just may take a bit of schmoozing to go these things for complimentary.
Take someone out to dinner
If you lot want someone to open up to you, you have to talk to them ane on one. Information technology'southward difficult to practise this at a briefing because you tin easily get interrupted. Typically, almost conferences requite y'all a few hours for dinner earlier any after-parties.
Find someone you want to go to know on a personal level, and ask them to dinner. If they say no, move on to the next person.
During your dinner meeting, don't just talk virtually business. Find out how they're doing, and conversation about whatsoever interests them.
There is zilch wrong with doing business over dinner, only it shouldn't be the focus. The focus should be on building the relationship.
Once the dinner is over and the bill comes, make certain yous pay for it.
Attend the after-parties
The biggest value of a conference is the after-parties. This is where you'll get the all-time data. When people are loose (accept a bit of alcohol in them), they'll terminate upward talking and sharing almost anything.
Here are a few unwritten rules to follow when attention subsequently-hour parties:
- What happens at the party stays at the party. Don't go and blab everything you hear.
- Don't push people for data… even if they are boozer. Get to know people, and if they naturally desire to share information with you, great.
- Don't leave the party early even if you are tired. You'll do good more from staying than leaving.
- Stay away from the trip the light fantastic toe floor and any loud speakers. Information technology is hard to accept conversations in these areas.
- There is typically another party afterward the party is over, and then effort to go to it.
Don't forget to follow upwardly
At this point, the conference is over, correct? Technically it is, but for you lot, information technology isn't. You have to follow up withEVERY person you lot met at the result.
If y'all don't, yous'll never end up building whatever real relationships. Meeting someone is great, but if you don't become to know the people you meet, you won't proceeds value from the conference.
If a portion of the people you lot email or call don't reply to you, you can try following up once more in a few weeks, merely I recommend letting it get. Y'all don't want to come up beyond every bit existence bothersome.
Source: https://www.quicksprout.com/beginners-guide-to-attending-conferences/
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