5 Quick Tips for a Killer Conference

By Alex Greenwood

I just finished working as the host city chair for a conference of more than 30 public relations professionals. By all accounts I’ve heard so far, it was a success.

I’ll write more in-depth about the conference in the coming days, but I want to stop for a moment and jot down the top 5 things I think you need to plan and execute a killer conference:

1. A sense of humor. Things are not going to go according to plan. People will make mistakes, venues will have problems. Speakers will get sick or miss a flight. Roll with it–and laugh about it.
2. Planning. I’m not the best planner in the world. I have good ideas every now and then, and I can do “grunt work” just fine, but I don’t always catch every detail. Thank heavens my conference committee was comprised of people who are incredibly good, detail-oriented planners. Which brings me to my next tip:
3. Have a diverse conference committee. Recruit people who possess strengths you don’t. Our conference benefited from people who are good planners, creative thinkers, devil’s advocates, “doers” and most of all–professionals who took their responsibilities seriously. (Pro Tip: No dead weight. Make sure everybody on the committee has a task and completes it.)
4. Recruit great speakers. Get great professionals who bring new insights, humor and even some entertainment to your conference. We didn’t have a “stinker” in the bunch–just wonderful people who gave of themselves and their time. We did have one speaker who was stuck at an airport and missed his presentation, but another speaker filled in just fine.
5. Hydrate. I did not drink nearly enough water. It matters.

Those are just a few quickies off the top of my head. There will be more in a detailed post coming soon. What about you–what are your top tips for a great conference? The comments section awaits!