Topic: Training & Development Summit
The 2018 Training & Development Summit will be here before you know it. It provides professionals from a variety of industries many opportunities to network with peers, meet with solutions providers, attend world-class workshops, and more.
If you really want to get the most you possibly can out of attending the summit this year, you’ll need to get a game plan together once you register. Here are some things you’ll want to be sure to do before you show up in person at the summit.
Create an Agenda
After you’re successfully registered for the summit and have booked your hotel stay and travel arrangements, you’re going to want to create your own personal agenda. On your agenda, include:
- Workshops you want to attend
- Free time to network
- Time for one-on-one meetings
- Free time to explore the city
- Meals and small breaks
Be sure to allot yourself enough free time to talk to others and to roam around the venue and talk to vendors, partners, and sponsors. If you’re only in workshops all day, you may not get the full experience of attending the summit. You also want to make sure you don’t overload your agenda so much that you don’t have time to eat or breathe.
Make a Networking Plan
Along with your agenda, get a networking plan together. Determine what vendors you want to learn more about and find out who from each company you’ll be able to connect with at the summit. See if there are representatives from organizations your organization typically partners or works with to see if you can meet them at the summit. Learn more about the presenters for the workshops you’ll be attending, and reach out to them in advance to schedule a one-on-one meeting if you’re interested in asking them more in-depth questions and networking with them further. Also, leave room on your schedule for impromptu coffee, lunch, or dinner meetings that may come up when you meet new people at the summit.
Order Cards, Brochures, and Promotional Items
Make sure you order plenty of business cards and that they’re delivered before you leave for the summit. If you have products or services you think others will be interested in, create brochures to hand out. Just be sure to hand them out sparingly and only to those who will really benefit from the information or who express a direct interest in it. And if you’re representing a company, order some small promotional items you can hand out for others to keep such as a pen, mouse pad, or USB drive with your logo on it.
Promote the Summit to Others and Petition Requests
Make a promotional plan for your own organization to sell the value of the summit to others inside your organization. See how you can recruit others inside your organization to attend, too. And petition others who won’t be able to attend the summit to send you questions they have or information that would benefit them that you might e able to pick up. Remember that you’re representing your organization when you attend the summit, so see what you can really do or discover on behalf of your entire organization while you’re there.
(Look out for tomorrow’s post about what you should do after attending the Training & Development Summit.)