Without a plan you plan to fail
Careful planning of the conference program is imperative to a successful outcome. When developing a conference program you may like to consider the following:
Kick Off
- The opening session of your conference should be a draw card to attend. Spend your money and get the best speaker you can afford to kick off. Australian conferences should involve a Welcome to Country by a local Aboriginal Elder. International conferences should have a local flavour in their opening. School children or local musicians can provide cost effective entertainment.
- Your keynote speaker needs to inspire and excite participants. Keep the main plenary sessions to first item of the morning as well as last session of the day. This assists with keeping delegates at the conference for the full day rather than heading off ‘sightseeing’.
Wake Up
- Conference dinners and special evening events are great for networking but remember to provide delegates a reason to get out of bed the next morning. Allocate a popular speaker the next morning to entice them to attend on time.
Stay Up
- Make your days a reasonable length. Don’t try to cram too much into each day. Try not to run for longer than 7 hours including breaks.
- Allocate a time keeper and create cards to be held up for speakers to let them know how much time they have left. If the speaker runs overtime, keep to your schedule by reducing break times so you stay on track.
Break Up
- Ensure enough time is allocated for breaks to allow delegates to network. Hold the breaks in an open informal area where delegates can move around freely.
- If you are running parallel / concurrent sessions allow time between sessions for delegates to move around.
- Exhibition areas are terrific areas for breaks and your sponsors will love you for it.
Kick On
- Give them a reason to come back next year. Ensure your final session explodes with excitement.