Autumn is traditionally a very busy time for membership associations as it tends to be popular season for annual conferences. This is due in part to the logistics of asking multiple people to be available at the same time. By mid-September people have completed their summer holidays and children have returned to school, making the logistics of childcare and travel much easier. There is also a renewed sense of ‘getting back to business’ and making an impact before the Christmas and New Year celebrations signify the beginning of another membership cycle.
After the lockdowns and uncertainties of Covid over the past few years led to many events either being cancelled or held online, the hospitality sector is now seeing a lot more confidence for people gathering in person. All three major UK political parties have scheduled face to face conferences this year in September/October, albeit the Liberal Democrats had to cancel due to the period of national mourning. This is a really good opportunity for membership associations with a remit for social impact to send representatives to lobby for their cause and raise awareness.
What about your own annual conference? I believe they are a great opportunity for your members to get together and discuss the burning issues while meeting the board and management team and expanding their support network.
Most conferences will provide an educational aspect with relevant speakers, and you could choose to have an associated exhibition where suppliers will pay for the opportunity to demonstrate their products and services directly to a niche audience. The funds raised can either be used to subsidise the cost of delegate places or go into general running costs to further the aims of the association.
You can either restrict attendance to your membership as a specific benefit or you can use the event to showcase your organisation and allow attendance by individuals who are considering joining so they can see the benefits for themselves.
There is a huge amount of unseen planning that goes into delivering an event. From setting the budget and finding a venue to planning the AV and staging requirements. Then there is the sourcing of speakers and exhibitors in order to build a great programme that you can advertise to delegates. There are presentation materials to put together, possibly speeches to write and delegate packs to design and collate.
Once you know who is attending you need to identify any dietary or access issues as well as liaising with the venue for ‘day of’ logistics like arrival times/presentation running times/delegate rooming lists/room turnaround for a formal dinner etc.
While some venues will provide function staff to assist on the day, I would always recommend having people who know your organisation and your members manning the event reception desk and acting as first point of call for problems. As well as greeting delegates and speakers it is important that they are able to show enthusiasm for the organisation and answer simple questions about the organisation and policies and procedures. For example, they may be asked how to find specific information on the website or how to book on to a seminar you are running. It is also particularly helpful if you can have designated individuals who can help to make introductions between delegates and use some ice-breaker small talk to start meaningful conversations. This often works well if it is the same people the delegate met at reception, particularly for new members or first-time conference attendees.
However well you plan an event I am afraid I can almost guarantee that things won’t go to plan. To avoid this causing a noticeable problem for you or your delegates it is vital that you give one or two nominated individuals a certain amount of delegated responsibility to deal with the diversity of issues that will arise on the day. While the issues may become an amusing anecdote over coffee the next time you meet you really don’t need to know about the minutiae just before you go on stage to give your welcome address.
Over the years I have experienced many different types of problems, including speakers running late, delegates arriving at a sold out 2-day conference with their suitcase but no booking and one delegate at a gala dinner who was very upset about the vegetarian meal put in front of him (specifically requested on booking) because he preferred the look of his neighbour’s chicken dinner.
I am also well aware that the work doesn’t finish when the last delegate has bade their farewell. It is good practice to have a ‘wash-up’ meeting with the venue after the event to discuss any issues that arose and how to avoid in future, and to give compliments for good service where they are due. Don’t forget to send thank you letters to your speakers either.
Finally, always remember to collect and collate feedback from your delegates to help you improve next year.
Don’t forget that we can help with any aspects of planning and running conferences, events and training courses. Just get in touch for more information or to discuss your requirements.