By Ruth E. Thaler-Carter
[The 2016 STC Summit, May 15–18, is only days away. If you can’t be in Anaheim, you can still participate live with the virtual track option of ten selected sessions on May 16 and 17, but preregistration is required before May 11. In this article, Ruth looks at how freelancers can market themselves at conferences—even if they can’t attend.]
Now that colleagues have learned from Geoff Hart and others how to survive a large conference, and how to network, I’d like to look at how to capitalize on attending such events, whether in person or otherwise. (Yes, you can have a conference presence without actually being there!)
Conferences are expensive, time-consuming, and potentially exhausting, so why attend? Because not only are they opportunities to learn or enhance skills, they are potential goldmines of new clients and referrals from colleagues. Participating in a conference is a great way to find freelance work, or at least to network with colleagues who are ideal sources of new work and projects, either as clients or as colleagues who might recommend you to clients. For one thing, people tend to prefer hiring those they know. Even in today’s aggressively electronic social media age, there’s still something reassuring and real about having met a writer, editor, proofreader, instructional designer, web worker, or other professional in person. If nothing else, having been at a conference means you’ll stand out from the crowd of virtual connections when you get in touch later about potential projects. Ideally, you’ll make such a good impression that colleagues from the conference will contact you for projects even before you have a chance to follow up on the event contact.
For another thing, meeting colleagues in person is a good way to learn more about what they do and what kinds of freelancing they might need. I’ve picked up several new clients over the years just by chatting with people at meetings and getting to know more about what their organizations or publications are all about, and I know that colleagues have been hired for projects by colleagues they met at the Communication Central conference I host every fall. Meeting colleagues is also a prime opportunity to learn what they need as an entrée for explaining what you do and how you could fit into their systems and projects. People love talking about themselves!
Being at a conference also means meeting colleagues who may not need a freelancer, but whose contacts use freelancers. You’ll come to mind when their contacts ask for referrals once they’ve met you in person.
Making the most of a conference in terms of capitalizing on connections you make there happens in three stages: before, during and after.
Before the Event
- Have lots of business cards ready to take along to any conference you plan to attend (or local meetings—even on errands!). I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people kicking themselves because they forgot to bring along business cards. My favorite instances were when someone came to the Communication Central conference that I host with the wrong cards, thanks to her spouse doing the packing for her, and another when an attendee spent a lot of money on cabfare—more than the cost of the cards—to and from a local quick-print shop to get cards made while she was at the conference.
I keep a handful of cards in every suitcase, briefcase, laptop bag, and purse I own, and in the pockets of a couple jackets, just to be sure I’m never without them.
- Create a special conference version of your business card, especially one that includes your photo. A lot of us may be uncomfortable with using our photos at our websites or on business cards, and usually I wouldn’t suggest that for a card—but a conference is something different. You want people to remember meeting you. If your photo is on the cards that you hand out at the event, it will be easier for newly met contacts to connect your name with your face, and that could work to your advantage when someone gets back to the office and compares your card to all those collected from other people, or hears from you by phone or email when you follow up.
- Learn as much as possible about speakers and potential attendees so you’re comfortable with and prepared for talking to as many people as possible when you get to the event. Consider contacting key people ahead of time to introduce yourself if you’d like some one-on-one time with them.
- Look into sponsorship or exhibit opportunities, some of which may be surprisingly affordable. These can be great ways to have a presence even if you can’t attend the event.
At the event
- Don’t be shy about asking a question or two in educational sessions (just don’t take over). Make an effort to chat with people during meals and breaks, and get colleagues together for drinks or offsite dining.
- Write notes on business cards. When you get a business card from someone, jot a note on the back to remind yourself where you met and why you might want to get in touch later.
- Offer to speak if you want to be remembered and respected. Presenting at a conference is one of the best ways to ensure being visible, in event promotions and onsite materials as well as in person. Not only does presenting make you visible before, during, and after, but it also gives you a kind of seal of approval as an expert in your topic area. (Not all organizations are as generous to speakers as Communication Central, which covers speaker travel and accommodations, but some will cover at least some of your expenses and some actually pay their speakers.)
- Be a sponsor through ads or giveaways. Most conference hosting organizations have systems in place for exhibitors, sponsors, and other options to have a presence at the event—a display, giveaways for attendee packets, ads in the program, etc. Budget for those options as part of your marketing activities.
Booths and displays are expensive, but you can’t beat them for opportunities to meet attendees face-to-face; everyone goes to the exhibit hall or display area. Everyone at the conference also sees program ads, even if not everybody keeps the program after the event is over. We can hope that attendees at least tear out the ads they plan to respond to once they get back home or to the office, though.
I recently sent cards and pens for attendee packets to a conference that I couldn’t attend, and have already heard from a couple of attendees about potential projects. The cost was quite reasonable, it’s tax-deductible, and one new project should more than pay for it.
Whether you attend in person or not, giveaways mean that your presence lives on after the event, especially if you use nonperishable and useful items like mugs, pens, flashdrives, etc., rather than anything edible. I’ve seen colleagues making daily use of tote bags from conferences of a variety of organizations for years afterward, I know of Communication Central conference attendees who wear their sweatshirts three and four years after coming to the conference, and I’ve seen the conference pens on the desks and in the hands of colleagues well after a given year’s event.
The ideal would be to combine the two, of course—attend in person with business cards in hand, but also have a display or booth, giveaways for attendee packets, or an ad in the program.
Following Up Afterward
Once you’ve recovered from the intensity of the event and the travel hassles of attending a conference, get ready to follow up.
- Send “great to have met you” messages to people you want to stay in touch with; perhaps add a PDF of your promotional brochure or some other useful information about your skills and services. For those who use freelancers, don’t just send a generic “Please keep me in mind for freelance work” message—come up with a specific story or project idea to pitch.
- Offer a one-time conference discount to potential clients you met at the event. If they would be repeat customers, offering a discount might help you to get the first project.
- Invite some of your new contacts to connect on LinkedIn (but don’t be upset if not everyone accepts). Just be careful what you say to the people you ask to connect with. I recently received a LinkedIn invitation from someone who said she enjoyed meeting me … at the conference I didn’t attend, but where my business card and pen were in the attendee packet! Apparently she sent connection requests to everyone whose business card she collected, whether she actually met them or not. I found it funny, but I have to admit that it didn’t create the best of impressions.
What do you do to benefit from attending conferences like STC’s Summit or Communication Central?
Ruth E. Thaler-Carter (www.writerruth.com) is a long-time, award-winning freelance writer/editor, proofreader and presenter, and owner of Communication Central, which hosts the annual “Be a Better Freelancer”™ conference (www.communication-central.com). She has been active in STC as a national and local conference speaker, Consultants and Lone Writers SIG member, “Freelance Basics” blogger, and national webinar presenter.