Conference Attendance Strategies

A lot of the value of attending or speaking at a conference doesn’t come from being there. It comes from what you do afterwards. How many times have you come back from a conference or event and thought, “I should’ve done more to maximize that experience”? Not just attending the sessions or showing up at the networking receptions, but turning it into something meaningful for your visibility, your relationships and your business development efforts. Me too 🙋🏼♀️ It’s easy to get caught up in our busy lives, especially after returning from a conference and then move on to the next thing without following up. What you proactively do after the event is what can turn conversations into relationships and visibility into opportunity. Here are some ways to make the most of attending your next conference: ✔️ Prioritize the people you met and follow up with context on LinkedIn or by email, referencing your conversation and suggesting a clear next step ✔️ Follow up with organizers to share feedback and express interest in speaking or getting involved in future programming ✔️ Turn your conference notes into key takeaways and share them as content (LinkedIn post, blog post or short video) connected to your work, your clients or what you’re seeing in the market ✔️ Host your own webinar to recap key themes and extend the conversation ✔️ Interview speakers or attendees whose perspectives stood out and use that content in a webinar, blog post or on social media ✔️ Host an internal recap to share key insights and connect them to your team’s work ✔️ Turn questions or conversations from the event into content or targeted outreach ✔️ Share insights from the event in an email newsletter ✔️ Add relevant new contacts to your email list so you can stay visible with them ✔️ Create a simple system to stay in touch with the people who matter most ✔️ Review the attendee list and reach out to people you didn’t meet ✔️ Follow up with speakers you admired, even if you didn’t connect in person ✔️ Identify one trend or theme you kept hearing across conversations and proactively share that perspective with clients or colleagues You already put in the time and energy to be there. This is how you carry that momentum forward. Which of these ideas resonated most with you? #LegalMarketing #ClientDevelopment #LinkedInTips #BusinessDevelopment #PersonalBrandingTips

Conference fatigue is real! Attending conferences can be rewarding and energizing, but the packed schedules, travel, information overload, and constant networking can quickly lead to fatigue or even burnout. Here’s a few ways to stay refreshed, focused, and make the most of your conference experience: ➡️ PLAN AND PRIORITIZE YOUR SCHEDULE: -- Review the agenda in advance. Highlight the sessions, speakers, and events that align with your goals. Focus on quality over quantity and don’t feel pressured to attend everything. -- If you’re traveling across time zones, use jet lag apps like Timeshifter or StopJetLag to help your body adjust. These apps provide personalized plans to optimize sleep, light exposure, and meals, which can significantly reduce. -- Schedule intentional downtime. Block out periods for solo walks, quiet meals, or short breaks in your room to recharge. Over-scheduling is a major contributor to event fatigue. -- Build in transition time between sessions. Even five to ten minutes can help you reset and prepare for the next event. ➡️ PREPARE FOR NETWORKING AND MEETINGS: -- Carry old-school business cards and a pen. -- Have your LinkedIn QR code or a digital business card ready for quick sharing. Digital cards (using apps like HiHello, Inc. or Popl) are increasingly popular. -- Download the conference app if one is available. They often include networking features, schedules, and ways to connect with other attendees efficiently. ➡️ DURING THE CONFERENCE: -- Limit distractions and avoid multitasking during sessions, meetings, or conversations. -- Be intentional and selective with your #networking: Focus on meaningful connections rather than collecting as many business cards as possible. -- Take notes during or immediately after key conversations and sessions. This helps you remember details and makes follow-up easier. -- Listen actively and ask thoughtful questions-engaged participation is more valuable than passive attendance. -- Designate some “no-conference” time: Block out periods where you don’t attend any sessions or meetings to decompress. -- Skip non-essential social events (like early breakfasts or late-night mixers) if you need rest. Prioritize your well-being over FOMO. -- Pay attention to your body and mind. If you feel overwhelmed or exhausted, take a break, even a short one can help you reset. ➡️ SCHEDULE TIME FOR FOLLOW-UP: -- Review your notes and contacts as soon as possible after the event to combat the “forgetting curve”. -- Set calendar reminders to follow up with new connections-ideally within a month, and then periodically (such as quarterly) to maintain relationships. -- Send personalized LinkedIn connection requests to everyone you met, referencing your conversation to reinforce the connection. -- Use #technology to your advantage: AI-powered apps can help summarize sessions, organize notes, and remind you of action items. What’s your best tip to avoid conference fatigue❓

After hosting over 150 events for founders and investors, here’s what I’ve learned: If you’re attending events without a plan, you’re wasting time. Founders need to strategize their attendance just like they strategize their product or pitch. Here’s how: 1. Define your goal Are you meeting investors? Developers? Potential users? 2. Know who you need to meet Write names or roles down 3. Figure out where they’ll be Not every event attracts the same crowd 4. Go to the right rooms Targeted events work better than popular ones 5. Don’t network just to network It’s great to catch up with friends, but if you’re raising or hiring, stay intentional 6. Learn how to exit a conversation Not every chat needs to go on forever. It’s okay to pivot and move on Your time is your runway. Treat events like a business asset, not a social distraction #foundertips #startuplife #vcnetworking #eventstrategy #techfounders #entrepreneurmindset #businessgrowth

Conference season is officially here… and my suitcase has basically become a second closet 😵💫 After attending more private equity conferences than I can count (and powering through some very long days), I’ve picked up a handful of tips and tricks I wish I'd known earlier. In case anyone else needed a few pointers, I thought it would be a great opportunity to share: -Complete your conference profile ahead of time. Especially your cell number. Being easy to reach is critical, and if someone can’t find you, the meeting often doesn’t happen. -Stay at the conference hotel if you can. Even if it is a bit more expensive, I usually find that it is worth it. Periodically popping back to your room to work, rest, change, or recharge makes the days much easier. -Comfort > fashion (at least a little). Block heels are my compromise. Your feet will thank you. -Leave quick voice memos after meetings. After 10+ conversations, details blur. Voice notes straight to the CRM are a lifesaver. -Stay in your normal time zone as much as possible. It is not always realistic, but I have found it makes getting back into work mode far less painful. I also love getting up early and fitting in a workout before the day starts. -When in doubt, say “nice to see you.” If you are unsure whether you have met someone before, “nice to see you” always works. “Nice to meet you” can get awkward fast. It happens to all of us. -Go to the after-hours events. That’s where connections turn into real relationships (which eventually lead to referrals!) -Block time for follow-up when you’re home. Organize your notes, reach out to everyone you met, and add them to your CRM. The sooner the better, while everything is still fresh. Early in my career, I sometimes questioned whether conferences were worth it. What I’ve learned is that the ROI compounds over time. The more you go, the more familiar faces you see. Familiar faces turn into friends. And those relationships naturally turn into business referrals. It has worked very well for me. Let me know if I missed anything. I’m always looking to level up my conference game and would love to hear the tips you swear by! #ConferenceTips #Networking #PrivateEquity #MiddleMarket #Recruiting #SoulEquity #WeBuildDealTeams

How do you make the most out of the conferences and events you attend? A few years ago, I would’ve thought this question was simple; just meet as many people as possible and pay attention during sessions. That approach works well as a student when your goals are mostly personal. But once you start attending on behalf of a company, everything changes. It’s no longer just about what you gain, but how your presence advances your team’s priorities. You start thinking about how to build relationships that align with ongoing projects, gather insights that inform your team’s next steps, and find collaborators who can help tackle future challenges. Balancing those organizational goals with your own growth can feel daunting at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s incredibly rewarding. Thinking beyond the surface, staying organized, and asking the right questions has made every event more valuable; for both me and my team. So, to those recent grads starting your first full-time roles: when you attend conferences or networking events, challenge yourself to think beyond personal development. What partnerships could help your team reach its goals faster? How can you make an early impact by connecting the right people and ideas? #earlycareer #conference #workforce #recentgrads #newgrad

We spend ~$1M/year on trade shows and conferences. At first it was a giant waste of money, but now it’s a massive revenue driver for our business. Learn from the 8 mistakes we made early on to increase ROI at these events👇 1 - Engage Current Customers Logo retention & upsells lead to NRR & that’s as good as new revenue. Don’t shy away from opportunities to meet/engage customers. All current customers of ours sign the “do the work” board committing to another year working together to do the work. 2 - Have a Plan and Track All Metrics I mean it, track all metrics and know ahead of time what success looks like. It’s easy to come back from a show feeling energized, but your goal is ROI not energy. Track all customer/prospect interactions for post show attribution modeling 3 - Have a Meeting Space Biz dev deals get done after hours. It usually starts w/ someone passing by your booth, then ends meeting w/ someone after hours. At many of these shows there are no private meeting rooms. Having an extra empty suite to meet is key for biz dev. 4 - Have a Theme As cliche as it sounds, you need a hook to bring people to your booth. We’ve done everything from Elvis to a Beat The Box stores campaign. Regardless of the theme, we found that having a theme always beats not having anything to remember. 5 - Write Notes on Business Cards You’re going to be trading a lot of business cards, many times in quick convos. Carry a pen with you everywhere you go and write quick notes on the back of business cards you get to save in your CRM later. I promise you’ll thank me later 6 - Build Culture We are 100% remote, and conferences are the only time our team meets in person. Leverage this. Go a day early to strategize for the quarter. Go to a team dinner. And talk to someone you don’t see on Zoom. Take advantage of the in person time with the team 7 - Do a Retro After each show do a retro with the team that went and the team that helped execute everything. You can always do some things better / differently and some of the best ideas are from those that participated at the show for the first time. 8 - Host Your Own The single biggest revenue driver for us, is when we host our own show FloorCon. I’ll save the details for another another thread BUT I would recommend having the show near where most your employees live. Employees = show staff which saves tons of expenses

I talk to a lot of new founders and creatives who drop $$$$ on conferences hoping to bump into investors, land clients, shake hands and kiss babies. Their heart’s in the right place, but if investors see you blowing early-stage capital on $5K conference passes with no clear ROI, it raises a red flag: “Will this person treat my money like Monopoly cash too?” Here’s a better play, attend “Lobby Con.” That’s right, skip the badge, grab a latte, and park yourself in the host hotel’s lobby or bar for 8 hours a day. That’s where the real game happens. Keynote speakers, power players, and actual dealmakers aren’t at the expo hall, they’re lounging over Negroni’s. Do your homework. Identify 10–20 decision-makers before the event, then slide into their LinkedIn DMs or email inboxes a few weeks out. Try to get on their radar early and set up face-to-face time during the event. Why spend $5K on a conference pass when you can get further with a $20 coffee. Make an impression by hosting a small dinner or cocktail hour. Invite prospects or collaborators to a vibey restaurant and actually have a real convo. Relationships are built over hard drink, and finger food. Be the belle of the ball, not the ghost at the gala. If you’re gonna attend a conference, own it. Try to get on a panel, moderate a session, or find a creative way to get your face on the flyer. Visibility from the stage (or even just the website) changes the energy, suddenly they’re Googling you, not the other way around. Being positioned as a thought leader by the event itself is the ultimate credibility shortcut. And don’t forget: social media is your hype machine. Announce that you're attending on LinkedIn, Bluesky, or Instagram. Tag the event, share insights in real time, and follow up with new connections after the fact. It’s not about who you meet, it’s about who remembers you.

Here’s how we built more pipeline from Saastr and Dreamforce with a GA ticket (or sometimes even no ticket) vs. some companies that paid $50k+ for booths. Rule #1: The rule of thirds I used to approach conferences with the sole goal of building pipeline. I was stressed and in the wrong mindset, which led to transactional conversations. People want to have authentic conversations without a premeditated agenda. I now believe conversations should roughly split into the following buckets: 1) Business problems and whether Bluebirds might be helpful. This is what leads to pipeline in the near-term. 2) Talking about where the market is going (e.g. AI and sales). This is usually with C-Suite (it’s often why they’re attending the conference) and on-the-ground employees like AEs or BDRs. 3) Swapping notes on company building. This is primarily with other founders, and it’s a fantastic way to meet and learn from experienced builders. The important thing is to let go of every conversation being about pipeline. I usually don’t bring up Bluebirds unless asked. Don’t be that person who hyper-analyzes name-tags to corner decision makers. Focus on learning and great conversations, and pipeline will follow. Rule #2: 80% of the game is in the side events This one is counter-intuitive — the actual event is usually the least interesting part of a conference. Most reputable conferences have a cottage-industry of happy hours, brunches, dinners, etc. hosted by companies in the space. They’re free to attend and you just need to track down lists of these events (they always exist) and sign up. Side events have more focused groups of people (e.g. a brunch for CMOs), so it’s easier to meet people and have high quality conversations. Rule #3: It’s all in the follow up Last year, I struggled to stay organized with conversations and track follow up. When you’re meeting 20 people a day, it’s tough to remember what was discussed with each person. Now, after a great conversation I always ask to connect on LinkedIn. Have them connect with you (not the other way around) so you can accept their connection request one day later and immediately follow up via LinkedIn DMs. If I felt like they’re leaning into Bluebirds and we can be helpful, I’ll ask to pull up calendars and schedule time for a follow up right there, or exchange phone numbers. If your follow up takes more than 24 hours after meeting, or you’re unable to get ahold of someone, your process is broken and you should re-think your approach to staying in touch. These 3 changes made a huge impact to my experience at conferences, how much fun I have, and building pipeline. Anyone else at Saastr / Dreamforce have advice or tips they’ve learned? Sriharsha Guduguntla Atul Raghunathan Oliver Johnson Albert Wang Zaid Khan Max Clang Avishek Roy

Last week I was in New York to attend IEEE UEMCON conference. Here is my experience. Do the following 10 things before you go to a conference. 𝟏. 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐫: Volunteering for various activities help you get visibility and involvement. You can volunteer as a session chair, stage support, information table attendant, and so on. 𝟐. 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟: Identify relevant people from the conference program. Connect with them via email, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc, and introduce yourself prior to the conference. This will help you easily connect with them at the conference. 𝟑. 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦: Conference programs are released prior to the conference. Read the program carefully and mark what you want to attend and why. If it requires a pre-read, such as reading a research paper, read it in advance. 𝟒. 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐤 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤: The conference will be attended by academics and practitioners having expertise in your research area. Seek feedback on your work subsequent to the one you are presenting at the conference. 𝟓. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: You will listen to several talks and presentations closely related to your research. Listen to them from the angle of how it relates to your research. At least take away 5 new ideas for your research from the conference. 𝟔. 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: This is when you are in the limelight. This is your time to steal the show. So, give it your best shot. 𝟕. 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐬 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞: If you really like a presentation, poster, or demo, go to the person and give him/her a thumbs up. It's a good way to connect as well. 𝟖. 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲: Don't sit in the corner of the room and look at your laptop all the time. When it's time to network, do network. Avoid small talk. Jump to topics like here is an idea to collaborate, try this for your research, and so on. 𝟗. 𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐤𝐞𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬: Keynote speakers are experts in their fields. These talks by keynotes are very informative and interesting. Keynotes speakers bring together their years of experience here. Don't miss them. 𝟏𝟎. 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧: Identify the places you want to see, the food you want to try, and the experiences you want to have in the city/country where the conference is taking place. Also, do join the trip or fun event organized by the conference organizers - it's often quite good and free too :) Any other point you want to add? #research #conference #newyork