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How to Plan a Conference for the Soul

At The Rock It! Co., we are always thinking of fun ways to reach attendees beyond engaging content and amazing speakers. What’s something new? Factor in the body, mind and soul!

But what exactly does this mean? For the body, keep attendees moving so they leave the event feeling invigorated and inspired. For the mind, make sure to maintain mental energy throughout the event so you don’t find your attendees passed out in the corner. And for the soul? Connect with attendees’ emotions and reach them at their core. If you’re successful, you’ll turn them into long-term customers! (Trust us, we’ve seen it happen.)

Our director of production Manon put The Rock It! Co. founder and CEO Leah in the hot seat to find out what it means exactly to plan a conference for the soul. Check out the Q&A below. And if you haven’t already, check out our posts on rocking conferences for the mind and body.

How do you make the most out of people’s time?
People spend a ton of time, money, and energy to attend your conference so you need to make it worthwhile for them! There are three ways we do this.

  1. Kick things off with an advisory council. Fly these attendees in earlier than others.
  2. Host a pre-conference session so interested attendees can get accreditation.
  3. For everyone else, pack in a little content early on, even on travel days. This can include short (think less than 10-minutes), TED-talk style sessions or happy hour so people can settle in and network. Set the tone for the event.

How do you consistently elevate the experience?
Put your attendees first! When we sit down and map out an event, we plan the experience from an attendee’s perspective. Consider how you want it to look from beginning to end. And it needs to be seamless since first impressions are super important. This is how attendees will perceive your brand and ultimately, the event. Maybe most importantly, incorporate a little surprise and delight! These are “wow factors” that attendees talk about for days (or even years!) following the event.

Speaking of surprise and delight, play off the event location! For example, we hosted one event at an aquarium. We had a diver in one of the fish tanks, holding up branded signs. People posted it all over social media, which was great for the brand. At an event in Utah, we brought in a mechanical bull. Attendees loved it!

To watch the full interview: click here.