What are the best ways to manage your time at conferences as an entrepreneur?

Conquering conference chaos as an entrepreneur? Pre-plan your must-attend sessions, mornings for knowledge bombs, afternoons for networking, and evenings for casual connections. Minimize distractions, recharge in quiet spaces, and maximize connections by exchanging info, scheduling follow-ups, and turning insights into action. It's a marathon, not a sprint, so pace yourself and savor the learnings!

Before I attend a conference, I pick and choose who I want to meet and what I want to learn. If I want to meet a specific speaker or two, I attend their session, ask a thoughtful question during the Q&A, and then stick around after to meet them. If I'm looking to meet leads, I will plan a few hours to meet them where I predict they will be (a certain session or two, different networking areas, a particular reception, etc.). I also always schedule 30 minutes or an hour mid-day for a lunch or email catchup, as conferences are typically in the midst of a work week.

Choose your conferences wisely. Most are a waste of time, a bunch of sales guys talking to each other. Know who your decision makers are and don't go unless you know they'll be at the conference and ideally you've scheduled time with them in advance.

Before going to conference, make sure to look up the previous one, see some videos and data of participant as it will help understand what it will look like. Second thing you wanna do, is looking for the list of participants if any, or exhibitor list if any, and start making your schedule. Sometimes the conference can be very big and you won’t be able to assist to conferences and visit these exhibitors or attend all workshops, so look for events and try to be invited as they usually have most of the people in the same place.

As anything in life, setting our intentions before taking action provides a sense of clarity like no other. Understanding your reasoning for attending, your desired outcomes and anything else that may fall between the cracks is setting you up for success. To that point, be mindful of the bandwidth that you have while at this event. Proper prior planning prevents poor performance, so don’t shy away from overachieving but do so with intention and boundaries.

When selecting a market research vendor, prepare by clearly defining your objectives, budget, and timeline. Pack smartly by assessing vendor expertise, reputation, past work, and methodologies to ensure they align with your needs and goals.

The secret to getting the most out of any presentation is preparation. Doing initial research on the event's speakers, attendees, and organizers not only demonstrates your sincere interest in the occasion but also aids in making targeted contacts. Networking possibilities can be greatly impacted by having business fundamentals and a professional opening pitch.

Pack light! Chances are you'll be at the conference for several hours (and maybe be invited to social activities afterwards). Usually your smartphone, a nice stack of business cards, a notebook & pen as well as your wallet (and maybe some breath mints) is all you need. If possible, always leave your luggage at the hotel. Snacks and water can be bought at every conference, even though it's a bit pricey. If it's not strictly necessary for a presentation, leave your laptop in the hotel or even at home! Your smartphone is enough for a quick follow up via email or LinkedIn. After a long day of networking and conferencing, there is nothing worse than hauling around items or luggage you never needed during the day.

Identify speakers and attendees you want to meet and schedule as many meetings as you can in advance. Depending on the scope of the conference and the size of venue (or venues), chances are you won't meet your contacts at the pre-established times, but at least you will be already on each others radars, which makes it easier to "play it by ear" and meet when conference activities allow. This is way more effective compared to relying on random networking with attendees.

Cuando encuentro algo motivador, interesante en el discurso del ponente, le busco rápidamente, para seguirle en redes. Los grandes oradores, que poseen conocimiento siempre lo comparten en su día día. Siguiéndoles se nos abrirán puertas y ventanas a nuevos conocimientos.

DICA DE OURO: Ao final de cada palestra/evento procure o palestrante, peça o contato dele(a), tire fotos e se possível faça um vídeo no formato de entrevista fazendo duas ou três perguntas relevantes sobre o tema apresentado, assim você terá conteúdo para postagem, atrairá pessoas que se identificam com o(a) palestrante/tema apresentado e provavelmente conseguirá o contato direto da pessoa entrevistada, tendo como consequência, iniciando um poderoso networking e construção de notoriedade.

Networking is extremely essential for a young entrepreneur. At the same time, it is essential to find a mentor from whom you can learn and who can guide you. You have to walk the thin line of networking and picking moments where interacting with people for valuable pointers has to be learnt.

Always come back and email or connect on linkedin with people you met. Personalise it so that they can recall who they met. Thank them for their valuable inputs and time and if possible ask them to connect again. This shows initiative on your end and this also helps build bonds for life.

I fully recommend learning to use productivity tools to organize and manage the information gathered during the conference. Tools like note-taking apps, task management systems, and customer relationship management (CRM) software can help you systematically record and prioritize your follow-up actions. Automate reminders for important tasks such as sending follow-up emails, scheduling calls, or fulfilling commitments made during the conference, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.

One framework you could use to structure your reflections and actions after a conference is the SWOT analysis: **Strengths:** - Identify what aspects of the conference were beneficial, such as learning about emerging trends and networking. **Weaknesses:** - Acknowledge the shortcomings, like the lack of hands-on workshops and missing out on a session about influencer marketing. **Opportunities:** - Recognize the opportunities to apply what you learned, such as integrating new analytics tools into your business strategy. **Threats:** - Consider the potential threats, like not staying updated on specific areas due to missed sessions.

Regardless of their type & audience size, events are generally overwhelming. There are hundreds & thousands of stakeholders to meet, workshops to attend, business cards to collect, and pitches to make, among other stuff. To best manage your time at conferences, here are a few things to consider: • Set clear priorities for the event. Be realistic; you cannot do all you wish at once. • Divide tasks & delegate to your team to achieve the best results. • Be agile, switch plans if set KPIs cannot be met. Revisit your plan if the event does not have the investors you wish to target. • Network, yet be cautious about time. Give time to timely conversations, collect business cards, & address those that are not later on. Hope this helps!

Certain conferences get to a point where there's no more value. As an entrepreneur, respect your time enough to leave when that happens.