[I have been helping run conventions in my volunteer work since 2001. The goal of this article is to communicate my experiences so that others might benefit from them.]
So, you may be asking yourself at this point, why are we talking about conventions? Well, aside from knowing a lot of folks that need this information, it's an illustration that products are not just things you buy off a shelf, they are just about anything you are trying to sell to a customer. So, as we plan a convention, we can benefit greatly by approaching this as a Product Management effort.
Before we start to roll up our sleeves and really dig into planning our convention, we need to first understand our audience. Any successful product needs a customer base that wants that product. Otherwise, we run the risk of building a convention/product that no one wants to attend/buy.
Personas are, essentially key archetypes of your customer base. By fleshing them out, we can better understand our intended audience/customer, e.g., for a customer-facing healthcare application, one persona might be a patient and another might be a caregiver.
Let's consider what personas we might want to define for a convention.
Everyone At Your Convention Is A Customer
An important thing to understand about a sustainable and successful convention is that everyone there is your customer, not just the attendee that buys a badge. That includes:
- Your presenters and special guests, even if you are paying them
- Your staff, both volunteer and paid
- Your exhibitors
- Your venue
You want all of these people to have a good experience and want to be a part of your conventions in the future. While they have some common needs, they have some specialized ones as well.
Key Personas
Good product creation is enabled by creating and understanding the personas you are serving. There are a number of common personas for a convention.
Attendees
This is the person paying money to access your convention. The badge may be paid for by them, their company, or someone trying to entice them to attend (a salesperson trying to build on a prospect). They are there to primarily to consume the content of your convention. Their satisfaction will be impacted most greatly by:
- Perceived value for their dollar/time: Was the content worth it? Did they get enough?
- Venue: Did it meet their needs? Was it appropriate for the events?
- Accommodations: Primarily, were the accommodations a detractor/distraction?
- Transportation/access: How hard was it to get to and from the convention and events?
- Was it fun?
Paid Staff
These are people that will be helping you execute the convention, from planners to the person sitting at the registration desk. They are there primarily for compensation. Their specific needs may include:
- How easy/difficult was it to volunteer?
- Were their responsibilities well-understood?
- Was it fun?
Volunteer Staff
These are people that will be helping you execute the convention, from planners to the person sitting at the registration desk. They are there primarily for the operational needs of the convention, but usually they are also there to consume it. Their motivation for volunteering may be a mix of 1) contributing content to the convention and 2) getting a free badge. Their specific needs may include:
- All of the needs of an Attendee
- All of the needs of Paid Staff
- Are they proud to be part of the convention?
- Do they feel like they are making a difference?
Volunteer Presenters
These are people that will be providing the event-specific content to your attendees. They may have other titles, like "musical performer" or "gamemaster". They are there primarily to provide content, but usually they are also there to consume it. Their motivation for volunteering may be a mix of 1) contributing content to the convention and 2) getting a free badge. Their specific needs may include:
- All of the needs of an Attendee
- How easy/difficult was it to volunteer?
- Did the timing/location of their event match their needs/preferences?
- How well did their assigned space suit their event?
- Was it fun?
Paid Presenters
This includes special guests and celebrities. They are primarily attending for additional compensation. They may or may not have any interest in the convention itself. There is a high likelihood that they will be less engaged than other attendees in the details of the convention. Their specific needs may include:
- All of the needs of an Attendee
- Assistance with arranging and finding travel and accommodations
- Delivery to and from events for which they have been paid
- Troubleshooting issues that arise
- Was it fun?
Exhibitors
These are folks that are primarily attending your convention to staff a booth to sell products, communicate ideas, etc. While they may also be attendees, let's focus on the needs specific to their role:
- Was it easy to sign up as an Exhibitor?
- Were the Exhibitor policies and guidelines easy to understand/find and reasonable?
- Is the price of the booth/table/space cost-effective for me?
- What are the demographics of the convention?
- How easy was it to set up (loading/unloading, time to set up)?
- Was the space adequate (power, layout, lighting, etc.)?
Vendors
These are the people that you need to provide services and materials for your convention. Some examples:
- Venue
- Tables and tablecloths
- Printers (t-shirts, programs, signs, badges, etc.)
- Web designers
You may be paying them, but they still have a choice of whether or not to keep doing business with you, so it's best to think of them as customers to preserve your freedom of choice. Their concerns are not surprising:
- Were your needs clearly communicated?
- Did they have adequate time/warning to provide what you need?
- Was it difficult to provide you with the service/material?
- Were they paid in a timely fashion?
Do What Makes Sense For Your Event
This list is not intended to be exhaustive. You may have specialty cases and your personas may differ in their needs. But take a moment to consider who your personas are so that you can start to create something they may want.
No comments:
Post a Comment