It’s important to select events that will help you meet your strategic objectives.  Conferences are expensive and time-consuming, requiring research on which offer the most benefits.  Make sure an event will have a significant impact on the specific goals and objectives you have selected for your job, your business, or your personal life.  Nothing is more frustrating that realizing that you have spent money (airfare, hotel, transportation, meals, registration fees, tips, etc.) and time (usually, anywhere from one day to one week) on an event that has the wrong purpose or focus relative to your needs.

Earlier this year I attended a research conference sponsored by a bank regulatory agency. The event was fantastic in terms of providing me with information on a number of financial matters and issues in banking.  However, the conference provided few opportunities for me to develop new business.  Many of the individuals who attended that conference worked in capacities that were not a good fit for my strategic objectives.  Consequently, the number of business relationships developed from that meeting was small.  More thorough pre-work on the conference content would have allowed me to alter my expectations relative to business and relationship development for that event. With proper planning, I might have had a different focus or even have selected a more appropriate conference.

Attending that conference made me reflect on exactly what I had to offer others.  My skills, expertise, interests, and contacts were probably not the best fit for that event.  The experience reinforced within me the need to understanding what I have to give to others when choosing a conference.  I suggest you do the same.

Establishing goals is the best way to prepare for conferences.  I like to set goals for the number of contacts to be made per day - (at least 20); the number of meetings per day scheduled in advance - (3); the number of seminar sessions to attend per day - (3); and the number of speakers, moderators, or organization leaders to be met each day - (2).

With these goals in mind, I put together a daily schedule for the conference. This requires me to review the conference schedule in detail in order to schedule my time wisely.  I also like to leave time open for unplanned meetings, follow-up, and phone calls.  If you schedule too many activities in a given day, little time will be left for unexpected events that typically occur during conferences and while you are out of the office.

It’s easy to get distracted at conferences because of all the excitement and energy that surrounds these events.  Don’t let that energy keep you from completing your mission and meeting key pre-determined objectives!  Here are a few things that you need to be particularly careful of:

·    Spending too much time with the same people.  Conferences are great for catching up with current and former associates, but don’t let your comfort with new or old contacts stymie efforts to “work the room.”  Workshops, meetings, luncheons, dinners, and receptions serve as opportunities to expand your network by meeting new people.

·    Getting involved with the work at home.  Face it, work is going to pile up while you’re away!  If you get too involved with trying to work on things in the office, you will be unable to fully benefit from the conference.  Avoid this pitfall by spending more time planning for coverage of the work you’ve left behind.  One thing I like to do is to schedule a couple of hours a day specifically for working on emails, phone calls, and pending projects back home.  One hour in the morning and one hour at the end of the day works well for me.

·    Reviewing your schedule on a daily basis.  Check the schedule you’ve planned for the conference at the beginning of each day, or the night before.  At the end of each day, assess how well you have done relative to the goals established.

·    Attending social events.  These gatherings present an opportunity to talk to people in a relaxed atmosphere, where you sometimes have the best opportunity to get to know people and really strengthen relationships.  You also have the chance to meet speakers, attendees, and exhibitors that may have been more difficult to get to at sessions during the day.  Be careful not to over do it at the social events.  Eating right and getting proper rest is key to getting the most out of what the conference has to offer.

Send letters, emails, notes, cards, or company information to contacts within one week of the conference.  This is a lot easier to do if you take notes immediately after holding conversations with business contacts.  I like to use the back of business cards to note when and where I met the individual, what follow up is required, and what other information (home town, number and age of children, hobbies, etc.) was shared during a conversation.  At the end of each day, I go through all of the business cards collected and write down everything I can remember.  I also create a separate “To Do” list of follow-up items from my conference interactions.  This is a great thing to do on the plane ride home!  It provides a quick way to evaluate the productivity of the event and the quality of the conversations engaged in during the event.

To illustrate the point, below is my evaluation of the National Black MBA Conference in Philadelphia.