• Learn what steps to take when planning a meeting and what mistakes to avoid.
Attendance is key when planning a meeting. Regardless of the size of your meeting, having good attendance is always in the back of a meeting planner’s mind. There are a handful of things a meeting planner can do to help increase attendance at a meeting and here are a few of them.
Choosing the Right Speakers
Anyone can hire a speaker but finding a speaker that fits just right with your event, it can make all the difference in the world. Try to select speakers who haven’t made the rounds at recent events. Choose a speaker(s) that may be unfamiliar to a majority of people. At the same time, make sure to market the speaker well so attendees will be eager to hear them. Look to see if the speaker(s) you have in mind, have good testimonials. Strong testimonials will instantly catch your attendees attention. In addition, it can make promoting them easier as well.
Attendance is key when planning a meeting. Regardless of the size of your meeting, having good attendance is always in the back of a meeting planner’s mind. There are a handful of things a meeting planner can do to help increase attendance at a meeting and here are a few of them.
Choosing the Right Speakers
Anyone can hire a speaker but finding a speaker that fits just right with your event, it can make all the difference in the world. Try to select speakers who haven’t made the rounds at recent events. Choose a speaker(s) that may be unfamiliar to a majority of people. At the same time, make sure to market the speaker well so attendees will be eager to hear them. Look to see if the speaker(s) you have in mind, have good testimonials. Strong testimonials will instantly catch your attendees attention. In addition, it can make promoting them easier as well.
Adding More to the Mix
It’s also easier to market a meeting if you have a variety of activities to offer your prospective attendees. Aside from a presenting a speaker, entertain the idea of a comedy show, concert, golf tournament, tradeshow, awards banquet or a live or silent auction. Every attendee will like different things, so if you don’t catch their interest with one activity, you may be able to with another.
Promotion
Promotion is one of the biggest indicators of whether you will have good numbers at your meeting. When promoting a meeting its not just the amount of marketing that is done, but it’s largely the quality of marketing that is done. Be creative, convince prospective attendees that the meeting is worth their time and money and address the reasons why they should attend by listing how your meeting itinerary can benefit the attendees.
Use Your Resources Wisely
Give more than just the basic information when sending out emails or postcards. Since you’re not able to talk to each person face-to-face that you’re inviting, do as much as you can with the resources you have. A few tips to keep in mind, don’t make your headline for your event, the name of the event (i.e. 2010 Annual Meeting Conference). Instead say something like, “Make This The Year You Achieve Your Biggest Goals” or “Reduce Your Costs & Increase Your Revenues”. A mistake made often is a promotional postcard or flyer with too much information scattered on it. It’s not about fitting as much information on the promo as you can, it’s about putting the most important information on it.
Registration Incentives
Early registration incentives are great because often times if potential attendees don’t register right away, the meeting can get put on the back burner and forgotten all together. Incentives such as early-bird specials, discounts for the first 20 or 50 registrants or a free gift if they register by a certain date are great ways to motivate people to attend the meeting.
Market to the Masses Make sure you use several different marketing avenues; telephone, website, postcards, flyers, email and fax blasts, newsletters and magazines. If you send out postcards and have more information you want people to know about, let them know they can find out additional information on your website. If you don’t have a website, send a fax or email later that gives more information. If you don’t reach someone one way, you may catch their attention another way.
Timing is Everything
When you are marketing to your prospective audience, market early and market often. Some meetings can be doomed from the beginning because the marketing starts too late. Your first form of promotion for a monthly meeting should go out around three weeks beforehand. If it is a one time event, three to four months in advance and for an annual meeting, six to nine months ahead. Your first form of promotion doesn’t have to give all the details, just the bare-minimum basics so they know about the meeting and the date it will be held.
Continually Deliver Communication
The next question is how many times should people be contacted. It may seem like a lot, but for a monthly event three to four communications, for a one-time event six to eight and for an annual event nine to twelve. Some individuals may not even read the promo until the second or third time it is sent. Make sure that during those times that each promo sent, is slightly different from the previous one. Highlight or focus on different things when marketing the meeting. Invest in these approaches when planning your next meeting to see your attendance climb to new heights!
Pull Quotes
-Aside from a presenting a speaker, entertain the idea of a comedy show, concert, golf tournament, tradeshow, awards banquet or a live or silent auction. Every attendee will like different things, so if you don’t catch their interest with one activity, you may be able to with another. (continued on next pg)
- Give more than just the basic information when sending out emails or postcards. Since you’re not able to talk to each person face-to-face that you’re inviting, do as much as you can with the resources you have.
It’s also easier to market a meeting if you have a variety of activities to offer your prospective attendees. Aside from a presenting a speaker, entertain the idea of a comedy show, concert, golf tournament, tradeshow, awards banquet or a live or silent auction. Every attendee will like different things, so if you don’t catch their interest with one activity, you may be able to with another.
Promotion
Promotion is one of the biggest indicators of whether you will have good numbers at your meeting. When promoting a meeting its not just the amount of marketing that is done, but it’s largely the quality of marketing that is done. Be creative, convince prospective attendees that the meeting is worth their time and money and address the reasons why they should attend by listing how your meeting itinerary can benefit the attendees.
Use Your Resources Wisely
Give more than just the basic information when sending out emails or postcards. Since you’re not able to talk to each person face-to-face that you’re inviting, do as much as you can with the resources you have. A few tips to keep in mind, don’t make your headline for your event, the name of the event (i.e. 2010 Annual Meeting Conference). Instead say something like, “Make This The Year You Achieve Your Biggest Goals” or “Reduce Your Costs & Increase Your Revenues”. A mistake made often is a promotional postcard or flyer with too much information scattered on it. It’s not about fitting as much information on the promo as you can, it’s about putting the most important information on it.
Registration Incentives
Early registration incentives are great because often times if potential attendees don’t register right away, the meeting can get put on the back burner and forgotten all together. Incentives such as early-bird specials, discounts for the first 20 or 50 registrants or a free gift if they register by a certain date are great ways to motivate people to attend the meeting.
Market to the Masses Make sure you use several different marketing avenues; telephone, website, postcards, flyers, email and fax blasts, newsletters and magazines. If you send out postcards and have more information you want people to know about, let them know they can find out additional information on your website. If you don’t have a website, send a fax or email later that gives more information. If you don’t reach someone one way, you may catch their attention another way.
Timing is Everything
When you are marketing to your prospective audience, market early and market often. Some meetings can be doomed from the beginning because the marketing starts too late. Your first form of promotion for a monthly meeting should go out around three weeks beforehand. If it is a one time event, three to four months in advance and for an annual meeting, six to nine months ahead. Your first form of promotion doesn’t have to give all the details, just the bare-minimum basics so they know about the meeting and the date it will be held.
Continually Deliver Communication
The next question is how many times should people be contacted. It may seem like a lot, but for a monthly event three to four communications, for a one-time event six to eight and for an annual event nine to twelve. Some individuals may not even read the promo until the second or third time it is sent. Make sure that during those times that each promo sent, is slightly different from the previous one. Highlight or focus on different things when marketing the meeting. Invest in these approaches when planning your next meeting to see your attendance climb to new heights!
Pull Quotes
-Aside from a presenting a speaker, entertain the idea of a comedy show, concert, golf tournament, tradeshow, awards banquet or a live or silent auction. Every attendee will like different things, so if you don’t catch their interest with one activity, you may be able to with another. (continued on next pg)
- Give more than just the basic information when sending out emails or postcards. Since you’re not able to talk to each person face-to-face that you’re inviting, do as much as you can with the resources you have.
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