Meetings
Common Conference Mistakes Have Low-Cost Solutions
By Amy Kopelan
Apr 9, 2003 - 3:13:00 PM

NEW YORK — Four all-too-common mistakes can prevent conferences from having their intended impact, according to Amy Kopelan, President of Bedlam Entertainment, a New York conference management company. These pitfalls are especially frustrating because they can be avoided at little or no additional cost, Kopelan said.

Certain blunders are practically taken for granted, observed Kopelan, a former programming executive for ABC Television. “Moderators will eat up 15% of each presentation with speaker introductions; at least one speaker will give a canned address that doesn’t talk to point of the conference; a session will start late and run over; a piece of standard presentation equipment will fail; or a break-out session will be over-crowded. Conference-goers have come to expect failings like these, and unfortunately by not preventing them conference organizers miss a critical opportunity to build their brand, stir up positive word-of-mouth and encourage future conference turnout.”

Moreover, most preventive fixes cost nothing, Kopelan explained, they simply require anticipation, creativity and time. “Even when there must be a modest outlay, producing a dynamic and successful event that builds a brand and drives repeat registrations will more than make up for the investment.”

Kopelan cited four specific mistakes and her solutions:

Mistake #1: Sessions lack a sense of pacing and timing. Too often conference organizers are so excited about the content they plan to provide that they overlook how the event will flow. They don’t take into account attendees’ attention spans, how much information is too much to process in one day, what is a reasonable length for each session to run, and how much time should be given between sessions for participants to transition. They allow sessions to start late and run over, which not only undermines the content, but also gives participants a bad impression of the sponsor’s management ability.

Solution: Focus as much on delivery as on content. Research suggests that within any two-hour event 60% of attendees will start doodling, so it’s critical to keep your conference engaging. Don’t pack too many sessions into a day. Intersperse sessions on weighty topics with ones that are less challenging. Don’t schedule all your individual speakers back-to-back. Mix in panels with multiple participants, so attendees will be challenged to keep switching their attention from voice to voice. Dispense with lengthy introductions by providing an event program with acknowledgements and biographies of all speakers and presenters. Leave sufficient time after each session for participants to not only make their way to the next one, but also to further digest what they just heard. And though it may seem obvious, make sure your presenters are ready to start on time, know what rooms they need to be in and where the rooms are.

Mistake #2: Speakers don’t deliver on the information promised. It seems half the time organizers hire well-known speakers who they think will fit with the conference theme and then assume speakers know what to do. Yet without direction speakers usually make off-the-shelf or even off-the-cuff presentations that may or may not be relevant to their audience. The audience may indeed be keyed up to see and hear a celebrity speaker, but attendees won’t come away from the conference thinking they learned something on the promised topic. And if the speaker isn’t a star the disappointment will be even greater.

Solution: Give direction to speakers in advance. It’s the responsibility of conference organizers to tell the speakers what they should accomplish in their presentation and the impression it should leave. Inform speakers of the make up of the audience so they can tailor their remarks. There’s nothing more insulting to an audience than feeling the material is dumbed down. Remind speakers that they are the stars and that their presentations should be sufficiently compelling to hold the audience’s attention. Discourage speakers from using visuals that will distract from their remarks. And of course conduct a rehearsal. If the representative of a prospective speaker indicates that he or she does only one type of presentation and it’s not what you want contract with someone else.

Mistake #3: Break-out sessions break down. Organizers often focus most of their energy on the plenary sessions and not enough on the break-outs. There tends to be wide and unplanned disparities in the attendance at different sessions and quality typically varies too. Presenters may be left to fend for themselves in terms of figuring out what the audience wants to hear. Moreover, they may feel unsupported in terms of equipment, amplification and lighting. Attendees can usually tell when the break-outs were an afterthought, and it shapes their impression of the entire event.

Solution: View each break-out as an event in itself. Break out sessions are just as important as the plenary. Survey conference attendees in advance to find out which sessions they plan to attend so you will know your space and seating needs. Survey speakers as well to find out what type of equipment they will need – and then check on the day of the event to be sure they have it and it’s functioning properly. And of course prepare and rehearse your break-out speakers just as you would your keynoters.

Mistake #4: You experience operating difficulties. About one-third of the time there’s a technical glitch during a conference…whether it’s a microphone that won’t work, a screen that won’t lower or a light that’s burnt out. Even when organizers have dedicated sound and light crews to handle technical matters or choose facilities that are wired and used for conferences every day these things will happen.

Solution: Test it yourself. Don’t depend on your vendors to do a thorough check. Ask them to test everything in your presence before the conference begins. It doesn’t take long to do a walk through with your outside vendors and facilities managers to make sure everything works.

All conferences can function smoothly and effectively, according to Kopelan. “The secret is to anticipate, take the necessary time to plan and be sensitive to your audience. When you consider the huge amount of time, money and effort you’ve invested in your event as well as the fact that your organization’s reputation is at stake, it’s worth the extra effort.”

Founded in 1995, New York-based Bedlam Entertainment combines comprehensive knowledge of conference management with expertise in television and theater production to mount dynamic and relevant conferences, meetings and summits. Contact Amy Kopelan at 212.517.4199, amy@bedlamentertainment.com or visit www.bedlamentertainment.com.

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