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Writer's pictureSharon Fisher

DIY Ideas to Engage Your Guests


Today’s conference attendees want to be part of the action.  They come to network, learn, share, collaborate, participate and contribute.  These activities provide unique and fun opportunities for your guests to do just that.


Most of them are DIY – Do-It-Yourself Ideas you can steal and host yourself.  If you have any questions, or just don’t have the time/bodies to DIY – give us a call at 407-872-3838 and we’ll be happy to help.

 

Flash Learning Mobs


Most conferences spend a lot of money on a great Keynote Speaker for the Opening Session.  Then we send our attendees directly to a coffee break or a break-out session, with no chance to think about or digest what the speaker said.  Create more impact by giving attendees time to make the most of the learning, inspiration or ideas shared by the speaker - with Flash Learning Mob.


Directly after the keynote, either in the same room or in the foyer or outside on a patio, scatter dozens of flip charts or white boards around the space.  Each can be pre-headlined with engaging topics regarding the speaker content, or you can leave them blank and let the guests decide on the conversation topic (or a combination of both.)  Encourage guests to pick a topic, and share their ideas, action points, disagreements or best practices around the topic.  Guests can feel free to roam and explore other topics.


Afterward, collect all the sheets and compile the information to share with the attendees in a blog post, on social meeting, etc.


Tips for Success:

  • Give yourself a minimum of 30 minutes, even up to an hour, for this activity. The bigger the group, the longer it will take to get organized and have worthwhile conversations

  • Controversial, topical or ‘tell it like it is’ speakers provide great fodder for this kind of exercise

  • Tell guests before you break what is going to happen after the Keynote.  This will give them time to think about topics for the Learning Mobs

  • Have some of the boards pre-assigned with topics and facilitators chosen, to get the action going

 

Five Minute Success Stories


As the saying goes, “I learn more in the hallways talking to my peers than I do in the sessions.”  So capitalize on those 5 minute peer learning conversations! 


Prior to your conference, invite attendees to send in their “Success Stories”.  These stories should be real life examples of some skill, talent, technique or idea that they put to use to accomplish something good.  So for a conference of Sales People, it might be a unique selling tip, or how they got a customer to take their phone call, or how they partnered with someone else to make a sale.  Each of the Success Stories should be pertinent to the audience and give them a usable tip to put to use after the conference.  Solicit these stories, and choose the best to present at your conference.  Let the story-teller know they will have 3-5 minutes at the conference to share their Success Story.


Intersperse the stories into your schedule. Include them in a General Session, in related break-outs, give them a pulpit during a coffee break, share on long bus transfers.  Encourage them to make them fun.  Include visuals if you have AV support.  No time in the agenda?  Write them down and post them on the walls or on display boards during break for attendees to browse as they want. 

 

Tips for Success:

  • Pre-prepare.  Get submissions prior to the event so you can screen and pick the best stories.

  • Help storytellers plan their story, to keep it concise and relevant.  Have them share with you and review prior to presenting.

  • Almost everyone likes to have the ego-boost of sharing a great tip. Even introverts – who traditionally don’t want to take the stage.  Possibly have an MC or the story-tellers boss share their story if they are nervous about being in the limelight. You don’t want to lose great ideas because of stage fright.

  • Be sure you create the right ambiance/platform for the story-teller.  At a cocktail party where everyone is drinking and chatting isn’t the best scenario.

 

Nametag Notoriety


Most nametags are wasted real estate!  Use ours to create better engagement and spark conversations at your meeting.  Here’s one way to do that:


As guests arrive, give them their name tag and ask them to answer this question:  “If your life were going to be made into a movie, what movie star or celebrity would play you in the leading role?”  Have them write that on their name tag, in a prominent place. 


That’s it!  The conversations that this will spark are guaranteed to be hilarious, prompting and memorable! 


Tips for Success:

  • Do this at registration or the very first event, to get maximum play from it.

  • Leave plenty of room on your name tag for them to write their celebrity.

  • Extend the fun by creating some interactive games.  At your cocktail party, have each person find a ‘celebrity’ that they were in a movie with.  Or encourage them to find someone who plays a current role in their life, and see if their celebrities are a good match.

  • Prior to the event,  pre-make a short, funny video clip of an Executive, VIP, Board Member or other persons in the group, living a day in their life.  Only have an impersonator or someone dressed up like the celebrity that would play them as the star of the clip!  Use it to kick off a General Session or party.


For more Engagement Ideas, or to get help with any of these, please call us at 407-872-3838. And if you try any of these, let us know on Facebook (www.facebook.com\playwithapurposeevents) how they worked for you!

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