How to Kick Ass as a Conference Attendee
The TL;DR Summary
To paraphrase The Rock: "Know your goals and shut your mouth."
The Pre-Show
Yesterday, I had the pleasure to attend AccelerateMTL. I wasn't a speaker. I wasn't in the running for the CIX Accelerator. I wasn't one of the conference organizers, nor is my company part of their portfolios. I didn't even have a big announcement to share (yet).
Even though I knew a sizable chunk of the folks in the room... I wouldn't be able to get the introductions I wanted, or the follow-up conversations I needed, unless I stood out.
So I did what any entrepreneur with some gumption would do: I wrote down my goals:
- To get at least 2, but preferably all 3, of the keynote speakers to call me over to chat.
- To enhance every attendee's experience at the event (as I wanted to be asked to follow up with most of the organizers)
Thinking about these two goals, I remembered a lesson I learned back when I promoted nightlife events in Montreal: everyone loves a good ego-stroke. (Also known as the "all great parties have a party photographer" rule.)
Then I remembered my 2010 Halloween costume, and how people loved taking photos with me. In fact, the costume is currently hanging on a wall at a friend's office, where people still occasionally pose with/next to it!
The Game-Day
Eureka. Who wouldn't love to take surreal photos with Brad Feld, Dave McClure, and Howard Lindzon? (Answer: very few people.)
Something this weird needs a partner to pull it off. So major thanks go out to David Chouinard, from TEDxConcordia, who was instrumental in pulling this all together. The conference was amazing, and speakers like Tara Hunt and Lenny Rachitsky (among others) are still seeing tons of love. So do yourself a favour: check out TEDxConcordia, and follow the guy.
A bunch of photographers also helped little ol' smartphone-less me. Thanks a ton Jordan, Jonas, Robin, Karam, Lino, and Satish!
The Results
As you saw in the gallery above, we got a ton of great shots. And made people smile!
There were also a bunch of tweets and retweets, extending the experience's reach beyond the venue's walls.
And when it comes down to work?
- After their Q&A sesh (during which we wore the masks in the second row), Dave and Howard called us over to laugh and say hi.
- The conference organizers laughed, let us hang a 2'x4' poster* in the venue, and many invited me to catch them up on what's new on these fronts.
The Lesson
Know your goals and shut your mouth. It's not sexy to speak to a "lowly" attendee. So get sexy, not chatty.
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*Thanks a thousand for the design, Affan!
