How Attending an Industry Conference Can Boost Your Business

Whatever industry you work in, it’s likely that you will have a community of professionals who discuss, share and network together. Even in the most competitive of niches, these communities allow businesses, and their industry as a whole to grow even stronger.  

One way that industry professionals get together to share ideas is through conferences. These are a great way of listening to some great, insightful talks by those at the forefront of their respective fields, as well as an opportunity to use the obligatory social event as a way of networking with a wide range of people who you wouldn’t necessarily have the chance to talk to in the day job. 

With these conference events so widely anticipated amongst your industry peers, attending them or perhaps even speaking at one if you get the opportunity to do so can really benefit your business, as we discuss below. 

Be seen as an expert with a great talk: 

If you are fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to talk at a conference you’ll already be seen as someone who ‘knows their stuff’ and has something interesting to say. It’s important that your talk offers the audience something new and exciting to take away, as it’s usually the speakers who give the best talks who are then seen as the most knowledgeable. Provide your audience with a great talk, and you could find yourself becoming someone who your peers use for quotes and opinions into certain industry debates in the future. 

Mingle with potential business leads: 

Try to find out who is going to be attending before the conference happens, and determine which of the delegates could potentially become a business contact of yours in the future. If you can, try to get in contact with them before the event saying that you are looking forward to meeting them, and try to arrange a time to get together during the evening social. You never know what could come out of it! 

Make the most of your branding: 

Another way to get your business in front of someone at a conference is to set up an eye-catching stand in the foyer with your branding clear to see. Try to draw people in by running a competition for signing up to your mailing list, and whilst they are there try to find out what their business needs and ambitions are to see whether you’d be able to help. 

Listen to people’s opinions:  

It’s important that, whoever you are talking to whilst at the conference, and whether it be in a Q&A after your talk, in the evening social or at your company’s stand, that you aren’t just firing all of your own opinions on a topic straight at them with no reply. Instead, you should be trying to listen to them as much as possible and try to gauge their opinion on things too. People love being listened to and given the opportunity to share their opinions, so being someone that does this will instantly earn you respect. 

Don’t Panic Projects are event organisers in Manchester who run a number of industry conferences. If you are looking for help to organise and industry event, contact them by visiting their website.