Insider Nonprofit Conference Planning Tips from the Pros

Last month we provided 11 tips to make your life easier when planning a conference. We wanted to really get to the core of the conference-savvy folks' secrets, so we reached out to those who are working in the nonprofit sphere, planning annual conferences to hear their insider tips.

We got some really great feedback, and are excited to share these pro tips with you.

Christine Schaefer of Salsa Labs told us that "the most important thing to remember about running any conference is that you are the gracious host.  Just like inviting your friends to watch 3 hours of photo slides with no breaks from your vacation is poor hosting, subjecting your guests to long speeches or powerpoint shows that seemingly never end will lose you friends.

So, think through the details by asking yourself this question: how can you make your guests feel most comfortable and enjoy the conference?  Ask it often. 

Gracious host = gracious guests.  And, gracious guests will enjoy hearing your stories, help with whatever you may need and possibly offer gifts."

Christine shared her top three tips for taking extra care of her guests at conferences.

1. Have staff or volunteers at the information desk whose sole job is to act as a concierge - i.e. walk people to the room they need; handle emergency needs like printing, band-aids, etc.

2. If your conference will have a lot of people traveling from out-of-state and a lot materials, offer a shipping service at the end of the conference to send all their materials back for them. Then they don't have to carry them in a suitcase. You can sometimes get sponsors who will cover the cost of shipping, or have a computer setup so they can pay for their shipping by credit card directly on the USPS site (so you don't have to handle their money). Then, just ask for a small cash donation in appreciation for the volunteers who take care of packing their items.
3. Give them a mini-agenda and map of the conference (show restrooms, etc. on the map) inside their name badge; no need to keep pulling a big map out of their bag or looking up a web app (especially if there might be a spotty cell phone signal in the building).

Ricci Levy, Executive Director of the Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance revealed a few of the tricks that she keeps up her sleeve:

• THE most important piece of any conference planning is a reliable, engaged staff. It is impossible to manage all of the details of a conference by yourself.  If you are in charge of the event, be sure you have a second-in-command who can step in and pick up the pieces seamlessly and without drama.

• If you have a volunteer staff, responsible leadership is key to a successful experience for the volunteers and for the organization.  Regular engagement of the volunteers in the months leading up to the event is crucial to a successfully staffed event.

• Train staff - paid or volunteer - so that the information you want to capture, and all of the registration desks and workshop positions are operating from the same understanding. A policy and procedure manual will be a big help in this.

• Have a fully-fleshed out social media plan for the event. Pre-scheduled tweets will make your life much easier at the event itself.

Darian Rodriguez Heyman, Co-Founder of Social Media for Nonprofits, explained that "There are tons of conferences out there full of talking heads. Make sure that your speakers share not only vague concepts and theories, but the concrete tips and tools that not just inspire your audience, but inspire them to action. It's not about the what… it's about the 'so what.'" 

Darian also shared a few logistical tips:

• The key to attracting a large conference audience is pitching a big tent, meaning inviting lots of partners to help spread the word and offering them benefits and tickets in exchange.

• A conference can't flow smoothly without tons of planning- having a "Q2Q" that literally plans out who's doing what for every minute of the big day is crucial.

Lindsay Martin-Bilbrey, Program Director at NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network answered a few questions about conference planning and the importance of self-care.

• What is the most important item to have on hand when planning a conference?

My smartphone and water (really it's coffee, but water is the healthier choice I'm supposed to say).

• What do you wish you would have known when you were planning your first conference that you know now? 

That your backup plans need backup plans need backup plans. It's so important to have a good long term and short term crisis plan in place, so that when something doesn't go as planned, you have a solution to get you to the next step. And this isn't just advice for onsite. It's for before and after the event too. Also, it's okay to remember you can't control everything, including the weather.

• What is the first thing you do when a conference ends? 

Ten years ago, it was get a bottle of red wine and sit down. Now, it's call my kids and then get the bottle of red wine and sit down.

• What is a tip for nonprofits who are hosting a conference while still managing daily affairs of their organization?

Use all the help you can get to make sure that the planning/hosting an event is truly cross-functional and community driven. But remember that at the end of the day, you have to make the decisions so block time off on your calendar to have it just be another part of your daily to dos.

Jamie McGonnigal, Community Engagement Manager of the New Organizing Institute weighed in to answer the questions, as well.

• What is the most important item to have on hand when planning a conference?

People. You need to have good, reliable people on-hand when planning a conference. You don't have to be good at everything, but you can always surround yourself with people who are smarter and better than you at some things.

• What do you wish you would have known when you were planning your first conference that you know now?

Things are going to go wrong. Your job is to do everything you can do to avoid that from happening, but your job is also to understand that some things are still going to go wrong. The sooner you get that into your head, the better off you'll be. You can't beat yourself up. What you can do is do everything you can do to avoid those issues from coming up again.

• What is the first thing you do when a conference ends?

Have a cosmo. Sleep. And then debrief as soon as possible. If you're going to do this again, you need to get people's opinions and thoughts as soon as possible. Send out surveys to attendees, presenters, volunteers...get as much info as possible.

• What is a tip for nonprofits who are hosting a conference while still managing daily affairs of their organization?

Understand the importance of the conference and that community building needs to be an essential part of all of your work. Without them, where would you be?

We're excited and hopeful that these tips will support the work you're doing in your community. Were you surpised by any of the suggestions? And we're curious of you, what do you wish you would have known when you were planning your first conference that you know now?