Surely you have attended a conference where the content of the speakers seemed hard to digest, the attention was harder to capture and the post-event outcome tended towards zero.
We will approach this topic in a positional way offering some possibilities to improve the content of the speakers' presentations. In our portfolio of corporate events we also have corporate conferences. And as we like very much to take on the challenges of large scale events, we have also come across situations where a 2-day conference with 500 attendees needs improvements in terms of presentation design - and here we don't mean the design per se, but the flow or the way of presentation.
We talked in a previous article about Effective Learning and how important the design of an event is for the entire content to be assimilated by the participants. So, here are some alternatives to the classic Power Point projected on a screen, with many slides and a duration far too long for the attention and patience of the participants.
(May) Short Sessions
Shorter, more varied sessions followed by breaks.
Instead of 50-minute sessions, organize shorter sessions of a few minutes, use an interactive event app to collect questions from the room, and then the speaker reserves 10 minutes to answer them. An alternative, to encourage human interaction, would be that after the speaker's presentation of just a few minutes, interested participants are invited into a room for a “break-out session” where they have the opportunity to interact with the speaker or to network with other participants.
If each speaker is given 15 minutes of presentation time, not only does he or she concentrate all his or her content in this time, but the attention of the participants is also devoted to the 15 minutes.
Also in this category, we also mention the format of presentations of type PechaKucha 20×20, Ted Talk sessions (including a red carpet) or Ignite Talks.
Poster Sessions
To encourage the above point, we recommend Poster Sessions. Each speaker makes a single poster to present their topic. He/she has a few minutes (5-7 minutes) and can then ask questions from the audience or retire to a breakout-room to spend time with those interested in the topic.
We encourage e-posters, not only do we eliminate print and the hassle of transporting them, but there is the possibility of subsequent changes and quick transition between speakers.
Interactive Sessions with several Speakers
They have the famous panel format. Several speakers are invited on stage, an MC moderates the session and the audience can interact with them via an event app. Speakers can have short presentations before the panel or present their area of expertise at the beginning of the session. For such sessions, we encourage the use of the event app, as the content is very easily customized and directed by the participants through questions. The learning process in such a session is very fast and the feedback is positive.
In Conclusion
The success of an event depends on many variables - from location, the agenda, activations or speakers present. The goal of an internal corporate event is for the participants to assimilate a fairly large amount of information, so you need to use the right method for them to be a win-win. And, for example, to increase interest and interaction between participants in your event you can find some solutions in the article 4 Quick Ways to Increase Participant Engagement.
