Meeting Planners Unite! Timeless (and New) Tips, Part I

Hooray! It’s conference season. And people are really showing up in person, full of energy, curiosity, and a bit of trepidation, too. In this time of (unavoidable) chicken dinners paired with the real-life hugs we’ve all been missing, every meeting planner can use a few new tips and old reminders to ensure their hard work translates into amazing returns from their efforts.

As someone who’s been “on the other side” for two decades as a keynote speaker at private and public events around the world, I’ve learned a handful of conference tools and approaches I hope you can benefit from.

Close the Gaps

Theatre designers know that gaps and too much empty space in the audience suck out the energy and focus. In the event world, this means scrapping the middle aisle. Put a large block of seats right in front of the speaker with two side aisles and the sides chevroned in. Fill in dance floors, band areas, or other gaps that separate your speaker from the audience so there is no more than a ten-foot gap from the front row when possible—otherwise, it’s like trying to kiss across a canyon. Finally, tape off the back one-third of your room and let the front two-thirds fill up first. By encouraging your attendees to get cozy, you prime the pump for speaker success.

?Avoid the “Bowling Alley”

In another theatre example, the balcony serves an important purpose. By stacking audience sections, instead of putting them one behind the other on the same level, the distance is reduced by half to the farthest audience member, thus allowing prime viewing for all. Of course, in the event world, unless your budget includes building a balcony, or you possess powers of large-group levitation, do not make people sit too far from the speaker by placing a stage at one end of a long room. That’s a “bowling alley” setup, and it doesn’t work (even with multiple screens). Instead, set up a platform on the side midway, bringing each person closer. The cheap seats will thank you.

The Performance-Centric Agenda

Every professional speaker has a modular program that can be expanded or cut back based on the allotted time frame. However, in my experience, each person also has a favorite length—a certain number of minutes that is their sweet spot where their content is thorough but unrushed. Keep that in mind when you plan your schedule. After you have scraped and saved for the keynoter of your dreams, do not limit your success with an arbitrary session length based on other factors. Reverse the usual planning. Ask the speaker what slot length stacks the bases for them, and then tweak the other elements to fit.

“Cast” All the Parts Well

If there was no Zero Mostel, there would be no Fiddler on the Roof. If it there was no Jerry Seinfeld, there would be no . . . well . . . Seinfeld. Directors line actors up around the block for auditions because they know that the right fit is everything. This lesson applies to the stars and supporting players. In the event world, you need to realize that the person introducing your speaker sets the tone for their first pivotal moments of impact. Do not choose introducers according to an organizational hierarchy or by whose turn it is to participate. Search out the most articulate, vibrant, and outgoing person you can find and have them tee up your speaker’s first moments with energy and enthusiasm.

Up-Level the “Nonperformers”

No matter how much passion your supporting players have, a majority of the folks on stage at a company’s general meeting or who take roles at industry events are uncomfortable being there. They are not speakers or performers. Although they are usually quite competent in reading the script that has been written for (or with) them, their delivery may lack the oomph behind those words that make the event into a show. So perhaps you add another element to your next general session script—stage directions. Before sections that could be served well by a particular delivery, give your nonprofessional presenters clues like these: (pause here for the laugh), (say this next part with extra excitement and energy), (say the bold parts with emphasis), (slow down a bit here to let the meaning sink in). Trust me, your audience will thank you.

Don’t Close with Your Closer

Picture these two event elements in your mind and take a look at how poorly they go together.

1. Many conference attendees book flights that depart immediately after a conference and have to run to the airport the minute it is over.
2. The general session speakers, often an opener and a closer, are where 90 percent of your precious speaker budget is spent.

What this means is that a high percentage of your attendees may experience your closing speaker—the one you have scrimped and saved for—with one eye on their watches and the other on their suitcases that are already packed and waiting in the back of the room. NOT IDEAL! The solution is to put your closing speaker on earlier in the program and then have a few sessions with words like “post,” “bonus,” or “extra” in the session titles to close out the last day.

Join us next time for more—and happy conferencing!