5 Questions to IT Conference Organizers
Let’s talk about IT conferences.
With fall just around the corner, it’s time for conference season. As part of the employer branding team, you probably have sponsorships lined up for this year. But what about the future?
Hey, I’m Anton Anokhin, an employer branding manager with almost 12 years of experience. I’ve spent most of that time at Wrike, juggling various events, content, and community initiatives. Today, I’m here to discuss what we did, what worked well, and where we could have improved. I hope this helps you with your projects.
Choosing the right conferences to sponsor is key. But how do you make those choices? What questions can you ask organizers to help you make the final decision to buy or not buy a sponsorship package? Here are my questions. Although I have never received an honest and clear answer to all of them, I keep asking.
1. Who is the audience?
Knowing the target audience for a conference may seem like a simple question. If conference organizers have created a well-designed registration form and carefully collected data, they can provide the number and approximate profile of the audience, including professional background and experience. This is commonly referred to as a “persona,” and last year’s statistics can also be helpful in defining it accurately.
However, in the 8 years I’ve been working with conferences, I’ve noticed that the profile of the audience provided by the organizers has only rarely matched reality, as the number of attendees has often not been close to the actual number.
Is this a shortcoming or a lack of willingness to be honest about who is actually attending the conference, because sponsors may want a very different audience there?
2. What kind of booth set-up assistance do you provide?
The type and level of booth set-up assistance provided by conference organizers can greatly impact your experience as a sponsor. A full understanding of this aspect can help you allocate resources and plan effectively.
Start by inquiring about basic logistics: What dimensions will the booth have? What utilities will be provided, such as Wi-Fi, electricity, or other event-specific needs?
It’s also important to understand what kind of booth setup and teardown support will be provided. Does the package include design and setup, or will sponsors need to handle these aspects independently? After the conference, will there be assistance with booth disassembly and materials disposal?
In addition, ask about permissions and restrictions regarding sound, light, giveaways food on the booth, etc. Is there a framework for the use of promotional materials? Are there any conference guidelines or restrictions on what can be shared with attendees?
It’s also nice if the organizers are genuinely interested in what will be in your booth, perhaps even asking for specific details. When they proactively let you know of any concerns at the project planning stage, not at the venue on the day of the conference, and come up with suggestions and ideas. It’s a great example of the conference looking at sponsors not just as a source of funding but as partners in creating a better experience and value for the audience.
3. How can you help the audience get to the expo zone?
Of course, this question is not about venue plans or logistics. It is crucial for partners to know how the organizers will present and promote the booths in the Expo Zone. Sure, my challenge is to get people to the company booth and keep them there. But what do I do if the Expo Zone is physically separated from the sessions and it’s hard to find? Or if the breaks between tal are too short and attendees have no time to visit the booths?
I have a nice example of how this ”booth promo” task was elegantly solved. The organizers of the Budapest JS conference invited their speakers to hold Q&A sessions at partner booths. There was a schedule, and each partner booth “had its own speaker” and an audience that came to the booth with them.
At another conference, the activities in the expo zone were incorporated into the main schedule so that attendees could get the full picture.
4. Is there an afterparty? Who is sponsoring?
It may sound funny, but the question of after 1sd day’s parties is actually quite important. A well-organized after-party can add significant value to a conference by providing a great place for networking, discussing talks, and getting insider information (and gossip!) about the market. It’s important for organizers to carefully consider the after-party program, provide comfortable areas for chatting, and keep in mind the principles of diversity and inclusion.
However, local parties are often sold by organizers as additional sponsorship options, which can lead to a decline in the significance and relevance of those events for participants. For example, in my experience, some events have been held in offices that simply could not accommodate a large number of guests, when the party interfered with the work of regular employees who were not involved in the event, or when sponsors paired free food and drinks with an aggressive recruiting. In some cases, there were get-togethers among employees of the company, making it difficult to join in the conversation. Having multiple sponsorship parties at the same time greatly reduces the value for attendees who may not know where to go and end up not attending any of them.
5. How can we get participants’ feedback and general statistics?
The conference is over, and it’s time for a retrospective session with the booth crew to gather impressions and feedback. However, it would also be useful to have an official summary from the organizers, including the number of attendees and their demographics, such as age, job title, and company affiliation. In addition, it would be helpful if the organizers provided a feedback form for attendees to rate not only the speakers and general organization but also the booths. One of our favorite conferences required attendees to provide feedback on all booths and sent an individual report for each partner, including a summary, anonymous ratings, and even recommendations for the future.
This feedback could include information about popular activities, prizes, booth design, and booth staff performance. With this information, you can gain a holistic view of your conference sponsorship and adjust your strategy.
Imagine if you could get clear answers to all of these questions. Would it increase your confidence in this organizer and make you more likely to vote for a partnership? For me, it certainly would. However, I have never been 100% satisfied with the answers. Have you?
