The Executive’s Guide to Creating an Out of This World Conference
Conferences are hubs for like-minded individuals to gather together, learn new things about their industries or themselves, and create long-lasting connections. But when people can access the world’s information and connect with others on their phones, what purpose does a conference serve?
In this guide, you’ll discover why the future of this event format may be in jeopardy and how you can survive by boldly going where no conference has gone before.
Download the guide and you’ll learn:
- How to avoid gimmicks and create sustainable differentiation for your conference
- Advice from brand and experiential design experts for creating immersive, one-of-a-kind experiences
- Five instant upgrades that will make your next conference out of this world
Preview
Preview
Chapter 1: To boldly go where no conference has gone before
As humans, we naturally want to gather with one another, broaden our understanding, and connect through shared experiences. And for generations, that’s how the conference industry has thrived. But when people can access the world’s information and connect with others on their phones, what purpose does a conference serve?
Don’t panic. The live experience offered by conferences won’t be replaced by our devices anytime soon. A number of out of this world conferences — like Salesforce’s Dreamforce — welcome hundreds of thousands of registrants each year and continue to see positive growth. If they can, so can you.
To survive, conference creators need to offer more than content and start delivering experiences. And in this chapter, you’ll learn what three brand experts say are the three defining characteristics of a stand-out conference.
But first, a few words about chasing the latest event trends.
The dark side of trends
In a rush to beef up your conference experience, it’s tempting to adopt the latest fads to appear current. But what’s trending now is out of date tomorrow.
So when a conference-goer is given yet another fidget spinner in their swag bag, their experience will suffer from the thoughtless gesture. To them, you’re just maintaining the status quo.
The speed at which a trend can become a gimmick isn’t just bad for your brand reputation. You could end up wasting money on trends that won’t be relevant by the time your conference has kicked off.
Instead, keep a pulse on industry trends while aiming for sustainable differentiation. A sustainable differentiation strategy, as the name suggests, distinguishes your conference from competitors — and it’s an easier and more cost-effective method for you.
Hungry for more? Fill out the form to download the full guide.