1) Leave enough free time for the participants so they can create their own mini-agendas, coupled with:
2) At least one great blow-out party that everyone wants to go to
3) WiFi lounges so people aren't disco'd from their lives/jobs if duty calls
4) Maximize online registration to minimize in-person waiting
5) Treat presenters well -- make sure there are sufficient "green-room" facilities and generally suck up to them for being at the sharp end
6) Plan overflows in advance -- make sure no attendee gets shut out of a session they want to see/hear
7) Test and measure: get the attendee feedback on the event and individual speakers and share it; improve on problem areas next time

That's just a few of the top of the head.

posted January 18, 2007

As a past TED volunteer, I suggest recruiting (and screening) some enthusiastic, smart and loyal volunteers who are as passionate about the conference's "content" as you are. Treat them well, and they'll work harder and better than anyone you could hire. (TED treated us very well, btw.)

posted January 18, 2007

The GDC (Game Developers Conference) CA Program has one of the strongest volunteer programs in the country. If you contact the organizers of the CA program, you would probably recieve some great pointers on volunteer programs

Links:

• http://www.gamasutra.com

posted January 18, 2007

Name tags - black type; white background. First, last and company name all as LARGE as possible to be visible from a distance. Cord attached to the corners so it doesn't flip around backwards. PC Forum gets (got) it right.

Plenty of break time for chatting.

Directory of attendees, including name, company, title and email.

Carbon neutral.

posted January 19, 2007

Here are three things I'd like to experience at a great conference -

1) More innovative panel formats
Most conferences have back to back to back panels with general managers from companies from a particular space answering questions from a moderator. Format/content starts to really wear.
Would like to see different formats, such as debate. For example, pit two teams of 2-3 people against each other to debate topic - "10 years from now, will Goog still be the leader in search?" Have the two teams square off in front of audience, and then have audience vote on winning team.
Would also like to see different composition of panelists. For example, on panel about online music space, have exec from one of the big labels, gm of one of the online music sites, but also lead singer from a top indie band, a few kids who are really into music, etc and have that group mix it up.

2) Better ways to meet/connect with new people who are trusted/recommended by your existing friends/colleagues
It can be easy to spend most of conference time with people you already know, vs discovering/meeting new folks. Would be very cool if several hours at conference was set aside for connecting you, in 10 minute intervals, with people you should know (but haven't met).
Perhaps this is powered by your LinkedIn profile/connections. You can meet a dozen people 1 on 1 over two hours who are currently 2nd degree connections, or people who have been recommended by your friends, or people who share common interests/backgrounds with you.

3) Better ways to capture/access knowledge shared at the event
Would like access to brief (ie 1 page) summaries of the key takeaways/most interesting insights from each panel/session of the event, with links to suggested resources (books, articles, experts, etc) if want to learn more about that topic in the future.

posted January 19, 2007

Expanding on the already informative list, and additional points to consider, the key to a successful conference is to define the audience, solidify the objectives to be met, and determine the tone of the event. This will serve as the foundation of the conference in which all other elements will fall into place.

A memorable event or conference will appeal to all five of our senses. Visual presentation and ambiance (sight being the first of our senses to be aroused) should be taken into consideration. When selecting the venue for example, the location should not only meet the basic needs of the participants, but support the tone of the conference. A natural setting, such as a vineyard or mountain retreat will impact participants in an entirely different way than being in a posh uptown hotel in the city.

For the second sense, hearing translates not only into the actual sounds in the background at the venue, but also implies the banter between participants, the laughter facilitated by being in a relaxed setting, quiet, for having the option to tune out daily distractions and allow guests to focus. And of course, the quality of content that is presented.

The third, fourth and fifth senses play a more subtle role in events such as a conference, but shouldn't be overlooked. Touch translates into not only the physical interaction with the environment, but also activities that allow participants to interact as well. Smell transcends beyond the great outdoors. It plays an important role in a big part of an event, and ultimately accompanies the last of the great senses, taste. While a social event may put more emphasis on the cuisine and menu, even a conference can have more impact if the meals are memorable.

The sixth sense so to speak for an event would be expectations. Create and market the event or conference to entice guests to attend, but overstating expectations could be a bigger challenge to deal with and cause disappointment. Allow participants to experience some element of surprise along with covering the basics and you will meet expectations. Keep in mind, less is more. There's truth in too much of a good thing. Ultimately, you want everyone to feel as though they had the most productive, inspiring time and would have devoted more time if allowed, thus they will look forward to doing it again next year.

posted January 20, 2007

In addition to some of the other things mentioned...

SURPRISES - Most of our memories are created by things that surprise us. The ususual, the unexpected.

TRANSITION FROM CONSUMERS TO PRODUCERS - When we get a great idea at an event we need to be able to do something with it immediately. Having podcast studios or vidcast studios at an event would create an interesting dynamic.

CONTROVERSY - Invite the person that everyone loves to hate

ENERGY ON DEMAND - Hot and cold running Red Bull

CREATIVE ENVIRONMENT - Stay away from hotels... so, so boring. Introduce flocks of butterflies. Have robots wander the crowds. Play elephant polo.

MAKE IT PERSONAL - Everyone leaves with unique one-of-a-kind momentos, photos of them with the speakers, mashup video of them at the event on YouTube, etc

THE PERFECT EVENT is very imperfect, syncopated, irregular, fun, energizing, overflowing with ideas, and leaves the person wanting more, telling others.

posted January 21, 2007

And don't forget to make your conference green to demonstrate your leadership:

- Use compostable cutlery and plates and serve organic food

- Offset the carbon emissions of your attendees as they travel to your conference

- Provide recycling bins

- Print your program on 100% postconsumer fiber

- Do NOT give out junk gifts that will end up in the bin faster than you think and be a nuisance in the landfill for the 1500 years to come

- If you really need to print a T-shirt or base-ball cap, then make sure to use organic cotton or bamboo garnments and earth-friendly dyes

posted January 21, 2007

It all starts and ends with sensitivity to the needs and overall quality of experience of the attendees. The best conferences put themselves in the shoes of the attendees.

So the perfect conference will vary, to a surprisingly large degree, on the needs and objectives of those attending.

That said, here's what makes a conference perfect for ME:
- the chance to meet and network with interesting people with whom I share common interests, especially if I can be introduced to them by people I already know
- the chance to learn valuable things
- the chance to try new products and services for myself
- a chance to be fed well and get enough sleep
- to be treated with respect
- to have enough free time to be able to attend to e-mail and other necessary business
- plenty of complementary wireless internet access
- to be able to avoid garbage and trash and low-quality, i.e. the chance to focus on quality
- fairly simple registration procedures that can be accomplished in advance without waiting in horrendous lines (good luck on that one!)

posted January 25, 2007

Create special goodie bags for VIPs (or anyone you would like to impress or network with) and leave them in their hotel room (hotel staff are usually happy to do that for you).

posted January 18, 2007

Screen the speaker!

I recently attended a conference that was enjoyable and full of good information, but featured a keynote speaker who gave a speech so canned you longed to give him a can opener to get out of it--he had done NO research on our industry and the talk was clearly written to be universal.

Another set of presenters had several presentations over the course of the conference and ran over on time on every single one.

Another one that sounds obvious but isn't always:

When choosing a venue, ask about any planned construction or remodeling they may be doing around the time of the event. No one wants to meet in a construction zone!

posted January 18, 2007

I'll add ideas in context to my experience.
For the last 5 I've been work on the Digital Media Festival - Conferences & exhibition (Australia). These events are in Sydney, Melbourne & Gold Coast. The Sydney event attracts around 2,500 visitors over the 3 days.

Exhibition: Having a trade show component adds to the experience for attendees and can also be an additional revenue model for the organiser.

Awards: This can bring the leaders in the industry segment to the event (or a portion of the event).

Career/Job board: 100% of people come to conferences looking to develop themselves and/or career.

There is no perfect conference.

When a couple of thousand people get together, there is no way everyone will be happy all the time. The point I'm trying to make, is that the best conferences have room for improvement, have a sense of community building.

posted January 18, 2007

Make direct contact with people when they arrive
too many times ther are daft individuals wafting and flapping around trying to do last minute things instead of ensuring guests are at ease

have signage up with clear directions of where to go and what to do
check your speakers out before hand
their is nothing worse than incometant and poor speakers at every level

have a decent d speaches and tell people if they read they will never be invited again
do a dry run with speakers to ensure they understand the equipment, mikes are at the correct height and their cell phones and computer equipment do not create feedbach

ensure all presentations are captured before hand and are tested for flawless presentations
nothing worse than having half the conference venue trying to get picture and sound when you start

use people who can react with their audiences and make it an experience
ensure that reposneses can be hear

posted January 18, 2007

Jerry Michalski runs events he calls "retreats", which are gatherings of hand-picked interesting people in a setting that produces meaningful conversation. I have met many great people at these events, and learned a lot. I recommend you contact Jerry because he has studied a range of techniques for organizing people in group settings and mediating conversation, and has proven himself an expert and innovator in this field.

posted January 19, 2007

#1 : Focus on your audience
If you have a conference to developers, throw away the powerpoint slides and write some code on stage. Do demos that involve writing code. Layoff of the marketing and biztalk and leave it to the vendors in the break areas.

If you are targeting managers, then back off of the code and focus on business issues.

Ensure speakers are capable of answering questions in the area they are presenting.

Keep the cost of the conference down to the level where independent contractors and small businesses can afford to attend.

posted January 19, 2007

I have organized the last two years FuturePlay conferences (www.futureplay.org) and we are about to launch this years conference next week. I would say carefully match the speaker to the audience. This avoids the canned speech that means nothing to the listeners. Make sure there is free wi-fi internet access for down time. Allow more time than is really needed to allow for feature creep, other peoples deadlines, etc. Realize that the rest of the world does not run on your schedule. Learn from previous years mistakes and plan, plan, plan.

posted January 19, 2007

Reid,

This is on the other side of the globe (Beijing), but nonetheless. Recently we've began to organize events at China's universities where we host lectures by different local and foreign executives. Unlike in the states where these often concentrate on the topic of entrepreunership (at least at Stanford), here there is a different environment, so we tend to focus on "experience", "successful career path", "finding oneself", etc... Our audience usually is about 400 students from leading universities: Tsinghua, Beida(Peking University), BUPT.

Regards,
Sergey Mirkin (孟盛荣)
cell: (86)13426366367 (China)
office: (86)(010)82367281 (Beijing)
U.S.: 1(408)7865654

Links:

• http://mirkingrp.com

posted January 20, 2007

the right venue/place,where its fun to go.

posted January 20, 2007

Of course, there are no "perfect" conferences because the preferences of attendees will vary greatly. But, as someone who does a fair amount of keynoting and presentations at many conferences, let me offer an observation that could get me ex-communicated from the LinkedIn community: Use less technology during presentations.

Particularly in industries focusing on technology, it has become an expectation that most, if not all, presentations include powerpoint, projection of desktop applications, and similar tools. While product demonstrations require such tools, many other presentations do not. The judicious use of these tools may add to many presentations, but I find that many speakers tend to use powerpoint and other technological tools as a crutch to enhance presentations that would be too boring without a projector. The problem is often that, otherwise great speakers tend to get in their own way when using technology -- eliminating or obstructing the human connection that conferences are supposed to promote.

If it could all be done with powerpoint and similar devices, we could all stay home and log into a webinar. Because conferences are designed to add a "human" element to what we do, and get us away from our computers, select speakers who can carry the football without a laptop and projector. Use this test: Would this speaker capture my audience's interest if his or her laptop crashed seconds before the presentation? Or, does this person need PowerPoint to make a powerful connection to those attending the conference? If you are choosing speakers who truly have something to say, and can connect on a human level without the use of computers, you'll be picking winners.

Another consideration is the use of a strong moderator to facilitate panel programs. You need a "host" that will keep the conversation moving, inject a sense of energy and sense of humor, integrate audience questions at appropriate points to move the discussion forward, and enhance the human connection. I can't tell you how many conferences I have attended feature "panels" that play like a lineup in baseball, where each player takes his turn at bat and swings for the fences on his own. Such a format isn't a true "panel" discussion; it is a series of individual presentations mislabelled as a panel program. When these "panelists" then add their own powerpoint presentations to the mix, you wind up with a very disjointed program that amounts to a race against the clock and leaves those last in the lineup with little time to boot up their computers, much less connect to the audience.

posted January 21, 2007

You want an awesome event?

posted January 21, 2007

Thomas, Laurent and Pedro have literally reinvented the spirit of "tech" conferences as genuine meetings of minds and souls. Inspired by the long-standing success of Thomas' Reboot in Copenhagen, Laurent and Pedro recently created Lift in Geneva and Shift in Lisbon.

These events go beyond the "business as usual" by successfully mixing technology and society, men and women, old and young, from diverse countries, treating attendees and speakers on equal footing, providing surprise, insight, inspiration and laughter. The weeks before, during and after the conference are a continuum where content is co-created, arguments are debated, people are energized, talks are focused and conversations are sparkling. For most attendees, the event keeps resonating long after the doors are closed. Ask the organizers about their magic ingredients, and they'll probably list trust, risk-taking, a good network... and hard work!

By the way, Lift 2007 is two weeks from now: liftconference.com
(Disclaimer: I am not affiliated in any way with any of these events)

On the practical side, here are two innovative uses of time that are sure to kill the boredom and keep laptops voluntarily closed:
- Pecha-Kucha presentations: a format where a talk must fit in exactly 20 slides and 7 minutes. You can fit 7 of these in an hour. Exhilarating! Just try it on your latest corporate pitch or private endeavour...
- Whatever 101, where an expert in whatever subject (sociology, architecture, start-ups, ...) is tasked with condensing a full University semester into a one-hour lecture including questions. Down-to-Earth and breathtaking when you find the right person to deliver this.

posted January 23, 2007

Reid,

Way to often the intrest is to be situated rather on the booze and food afterwards.
Keep the group small and the time short. Less is more!

Jan

posted January 25, 2007

posted January 25, 2007