The Ultimate Event Planner - Amazon S3...Sharing content from the live event with your audience will...

Y O U R G U I D E T O A S U C C E S S F U L E V E N T

www.BeckyAuer .com

The Ultimate Event Planner

Getting The Most Out of Events You Attend

2 | 2018 © Becky Auer. All Rights Reserved

With the GKIC SuperConference fast approaching, I thought it would be a good time to share why attending live events is VERY worthwhile and why you should really think about what it is you would like to accomplish when you attend a live event. Attending a live event costs you time, flights, meals and hotel stays. But it is a major marketing opportunity that many business owners shy away from for a variety of reasons.

Remember in your overall business plan, you shouldn’t be planning ONLY for a quick sale. You want people to remember you and you should develop relationships with others both online and in real life so they will refer you to their circle of friends. Forming that relationship is also how people will get to know, like, and trust you, which will lead to sales and other referrals.

Yes, you can develop relationships online via social media and videos but why pass up the opportunity to meet people in real life? You never know who you will meet; your next big client may be somebody who lives in your home town. Or maybe you’ll meet your favorite speaker or guru at a conference and become inspired to achieve more. Or maybe you’ll meet someone who offers services you can use in your own business. You can never predict who you’ll meet at different events.

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING A LIVE EVENT There is always something to be learned from a conference. Usually, every event will have a website detailing exactly who the event is for, what attendees will learn, along with the guest speakers and an itinerary. Keeping your overall goals in mind, read the information on the event websites and decide what sessions and training will help you most in your business.

Educational experiences are many at live conferences with the workshop speakers as well as the keynote speakers. These are often industry leaders who pave the way and develop new strategies, who watch and analyze the industry and have unique points of view. They may introduce brand new strategies or ways of handling problems that you haven’t heard of yet. You will likely leave the sessions feeling energized and ready to implement what you just learned.

Meet with vendors and suppliers to discover new products and technology that can help your business grow. Instead of thinking of the exhibition hall as a den of aggressive salespeople, consider them instead as having the inside track to what’s happening in your industry. Having a personal contact on the inside can also help when it comes to getting questions answered or getting prices on a product, such as customized software. Plus, they usually have some cool swag and snacks. And who doesn't like free swag and snacks?



Networking with peers can be really rewarding and is one of my favorites parts of attending events! But when you network it's easy to get carried away. Remember to listen very carefully to others. Ask them about their business first and don’t bombard people with your elevator speech or sales pitch. Networking is NOT about sales; it’s about meeting others like-minded folks in your industry, learning about their businesses, and developing relationships that could turn into a partnership or new client down the road. Networking is all about having a conversation. Be authentic, listen carefully, and don’t expect anything in return.

Sharing content from the live event with your audience will help position you as an expert, which improves your credibility, which can lead to speaking engagements and/or new clients. Even if the content is that of a keynote speaker, the fact that YOU are in attendance will be exciting for your followers. All the educational content you learn throughout the event can be used to grow your own business and can also help your clients, especially if they can’t afford to go to the same conference. If you’re always thinking about how best to help your clients and audience, you’ll maintain a solid following of people who want to learn from you.

KNOW YOUR GOALS Knowing your goals and reasons for attending a live event will help weed out events that don’t meet your criteria. There’s nothing more discouraging than spending good money on flights, food and hotels to be at an event only to get nothing out of it. Whatever your goals, you'll be much more likely to achieve them if you clearly spell them out in advance.

Why do you want to attend live events? Most people say to network with other business owners or to meet new potential clients. In either case, location of the event will be important. Every year, GKIC offers several key events to help our members get live, in-person access to the best minds in small business marketing today on the topics that drive leads and more sales.

What do you want to learn at this event? Larger events will offer learning opportunities and workshops or breakout sessions so if you want or need to learn a particular skill, then traveling to the event will take top priority. The Info Summit is the conference where the most successful information marketers in the world gather to exchange ideas, network and trade tactics. The SuperConference is where the top direct marketing strategists in the industry help businesses make the kind of breakthroughs that transform lives. It is packed with sessions on topics like copywriting, direct mail, sales strategies, social media marketing, info marketing and more. Decide what you need to learn and get to the appropriate event.



Who do you want to meet? Is there a particular speaker you’ve admired for years and can't wait to see? Speakers are hired to draw in crowds and share their knowledge, but attendees often find the speakers a bonus to what information they’ll learn at the event. Even if your favorite person in the world is at an event, be sure you’ll learn something new from attending. Build your own credibility at events. Socializing with big name gurus at live events – and getting your photo taken with them – builds your credibility among your audience members. Build your credibility even more by asking these favorite experts different business questions and share their answers with your audience. At every SuperConference and InfoSummit for GKIC for instance, there is a book-signing and photo opportunity on one evening. It's very organized and great to be able to take photos and get books signed with folks like Dan Kennedy himself. Brainstorm and mastermind with other like-minded business owners. Some events have mastermind workshops and/or breakout sessions set up where multiple attendees can get together to discuss the event topics or to solve a business problem. Very often you’ll learn just as much from these workshops as from the featured speakers. In many cases, these mastermind partners become close friends, potential clients, or even joint venture partners. Get new ideas to grow your business. Not only will you learn new techniques and strategies for your business, but the presenters will often share their newest products and projects at these live events. While their product may or may not suit your business right now, you’re still learning advanced techniques and strategies from them as well as from the other attendees with whom you’re networking. Very often you will leave an event pumped up to implement these new ideas. Should you stay at the hotel where the event is being held? Yes, yes and yes! Most networking happens after the event! The planners of the conference book a certain number of rooms at a discount rate so why not take advantage of it? Also, most who don't stay at the hotel where the event is just to save money don't get the advantage of being able to take a quick break to run to the room to freshen up, put your feet up for a few minutes or just be able to network late into the night and just be able to go up to your room when you are ready. You will even save money by not having to Uber to your less costly hotel 2-3 times each day.

PLAN YOUR TIME Review your goals and determine what’s most important about attending your chosen event. Most multi-day events are jam-packed with workshops, breakout sessions, or networking events, which are all beneficial but don’t feel like you have to attend every single one. Think about who you want to socialize with along with the breakouts you most want to attend and create a daily schedule that suits your individual needs.



Reach out to other GKIC members or friends you met from past GKIC events and ask if they’re going to the event. Not only is it nice to know someone at a conference, it allows you the chance to reconnect with these friends and to be introduced to their circle of friends. When choosing which workshops or breakout sessions to attend, analyze your business and determine which new systems and strategies you want to learn. When it comes to mealtime, sitting with newfound friends is most comforting but if you haven’t connected with a small group yet, use this time to netw ork with others at the table. Remember that you’re all at the event for most of the same reasons so don’t be afraid to speak up and join the conversations. Or, if you need a bit of quiet time to regroup, grab a meal to eat in your room and prepare yourself for the rest of the day’s activities. Networking opportunities abound at live events, from milling around the lobby at registration time to waiting for the main event to begin. Contacts have even been made having fun at the pool so don’t be afraid to leave some free time in your schedule to relax by the pool or in the Diamond Lounge if you are a Diamond Member. Every event will have official networking time, sometimes with entertainment or just with drinks and hors d'oeuvres. At large events, the official networking parties are often sponsored so you’ll likely have more people to mingle with and a greater chance of connecting with potential clients or JV partners. Always keep in mind that even though you’re at the event to network and to market your business, these events can be exhausting. Plan your schedule so you allow yourself enough time to sleep and relax or you’ll leave the event feeling like you need a vacation.

FOLLOW UP, FOLLOW UP, FOLLOW UP After the excitement of the event is over, it's easy to revert to "business as usual." Don't do that without first following up on all the connections you made. The best time to follow up is immediately after the event, when contact names and conversations are fresh in everyone’s mind. As time passes after the event, people’s memories fade and reigniting a connection may become more difficult. Here are just a few ways to stay in touch with your new contacts:

• Follow people on social media, send a private message about meeting them, and make regular comments to keep building the relationship

• Join their groups and/or pages but do NOT add them to yours without permission. Adding people to groups without permission is a quick way to kill



that new relationship.

• Join their mailing list to keep up with what’s new in their business but do NOT add them to your mailing list without permission. This is considered spamming which will also kill your new relationship.

• Snap selfies together and tag them on Facebook and/or Instagram.

• Be active in the event group, if there is one. After the event, post about the great experience and your biggest take aways from the event. Not only is that good feedback for the coordinators but also keeps your name in front of the other attendees who are active in the group.

• Read and comment on blogs. Even though social media is where the majority of people focus their attention, leaving comments on blog posts is nice feedback for the author and another way to keep your name fresh in their minds.

• Email them with possible joint venture opportunities. A note of caution: use this tip sparingly. Just because you meet 50 new people at an event doesn’t mean your opportunity will be right for all 50 people. Do your due diligence when choosing a partner but you might have an added advantage if you have already met this person at an event and have worked at developing that relationship afterwards.

• Make it a habit to reach out personally to people. Set aside 15 minutes a day to reconnect with people on social media or via email. Don’t ask for anything; just relay a funny story or ask about their latest product. Once you get in the habit of contacting others, if you need to ask for a favor it will be a natural part of the conversation.

• Know everyone’s birthday. Yes, Facebook reminds you about friends’ birthdays but go outside of Facebook by sending an actual card or a personal email. The added touch will go a long way.

• Set up Google Alerts for names and companies. Whenever an announcement is made or they are mentioned in the news, reach out with congratulations.



Think About: What are your event goals?

Event Name + Location Goal or Reason for Attending

I want to introduce myself to Jane Keynote.

I want to ask influencers for an interview for my group coaching program.

Other Notes

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Think About: List how these goals will help your business grow

Event Goals Growth Results

Meeting Jane Keynote will…

Set up interview with influencers that may lead to…

Learning these skills will…

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Plan out your important DON’T MISS event activities

Session + Location Must See Seminars, Activities or Speakers

Other Notes

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Create your personal event schedule

Day + Time Activity Location

Friday, 7-8am Breakfast with___________ Main dining room

Friday, 8-10am Workshop #1 with guest speaker

Friday, 12 noon Lunch with new friends

Friday, 2-4:30pm Workshop #2 with guest speaker

Friday 6-7pm Networking happy hour



Exercise: Track connections with next action steps

Name How Did We Meet? Next Action Steps

Networking event at XYZ conference

o Social media o Private message o Personal email o Phone call o Join group or email

Played golf at ABC conference o Social media o Private message o Personal email o Phone call o Join group or email

Guest speaker at ABC event o Social media o Private message o Personal email o Phone call o Join group or email




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