Major industry conferences bring together thousands of your customers, prospects, partners and industry peers in one place, often for just a few days.
Whether you are exhibiting at an industry event such as RSA Conference, AWS re, Mobile World Congress, KubeCon or NVIDIA GTC, your objective is not simply to generate visitors to your stand. It is to maximise the return on the significant investment you are already making.
A well planned side event allows you to do exactly that.
By bringing together your customers, prospects and partners in a more relaxed environment, away from the distractions of the exhibition floor, you create opportunities for more meaningful conversations and stronger business relationships. When everyone you want to meet is already attending the same conference, a side event is one of the most effective ways to maximise your return on investment.
Why side events matter
An exhibition stand is designed to attract attention.
A side event is designed to build relationships.
On a busy exhibition floor, conversations are often interrupted by the next meeting, another visitor or a keynote session. Time is limited and everyone is working to a packed schedule.
A side event gives you the opportunity to slow things down.
Whether you are hosting existing customers, introducing prospective clients to your leadership team or thanking partners for their support, a more relaxed environment allows conversations to develop naturally and often leads to stronger, longer lasting business relationships.
Start planning earlier than you think
One of the biggest mistakes companies make is leaving side event planning too late.
As soon as major conferences announce their dates, restaurants, private dining rooms and event venues begin receiving enquiries. The best spaces are often reserved months in advance, particularly for conferences that attract international audiences.
Starting early gives you more choice, greater flexibility and often better value.
Decide what success looks like
Not every side event has the same objective.
Before planning begins, ask yourself what you want to achieve.
Are you looking to:
- Strengthen relationships with existing customers?
- Meet high value prospects?
- Thank partners?
- Introduce senior executives?
- Launch a new product or service?
- Create memorable networking opportunities?
Having clear objectives will influence everything from the venue and guest list to the style of event and overall budget.
Choose the right venue
The best venue is not always the most expensive.
Convenience is often more important than luxury.
Delegates already have busy schedules, so venues within easy walking distance of the conference are usually the most attractive option. The atmosphere should also match the type of event you are hosting, whether that is an executive dinner, informal drinks reception or larger networking event.
The easier you make it for guests to attend, the more successful your event is likely to be.
Think beyond dinner
Many successful side events include food and drink, but they should never be just another dinner.
The experience is what people remember.
That might mean a rooftop drinks reception, an executive roundtable, customer hospitality, a private dining experience or an after party following a full day at the conference.
Recent programmes delivered by Chill Out! have included a cocktail reception during KubeCon in London, held at the rooftop bar within Novotel Canary Wharf, alongside executive transport and customer dinners supporting the wider conference programme.
Later this year, we will also support ComputerCentre during NVIDIA GTC in Berlin, delivering executive dinners, customer hospitality and an after party for around 250 guests, all designed to complement the main conference rather than compete with it.
Whether the objective is an intimate executive dinner or a larger networking reception, the focus should always be on creating an experience that adds value to the conference rather than simply filling an evening in the diary.
Make your side event part of the wider conference strategy
A successful side event should never feel like a separate event.
It should complement everything else you are doing before, during and after the conference.
Your invitations, branding, messaging and guest list should all support your wider objectives, whether that is generating new business, strengthening existing relationships or creating opportunities for your sales team.
When planned properly, your exhibition stand attracts attention while your side event creates the time and environment to build stronger business relationships.
Common mistakes to avoid
Even the best intentions can be undermined by poor planning.
Some of the most common mistakes include:
- Leaving venue sourcing too late.
- Choosing a venue that is too far from the conference.
- Inviting too many guests without a clear objective.
- Trying to fit too much into one evening.
- Treating the side event as an afterthought rather than part of the overall conference strategy.
A little more planning at the beginning can make a significant difference to the experience and the results.
Measure success differently
The success of a side event is rarely measured by attendance alone.
Instead, ask questions such as:
- Did we strengthen relationships with key customers?
- Did we create meaningful conversations with prospective clients?
- Did guests spend quality time with our team?
- Did the event support our wider objectives for the conference?
- Did it help maximise the return on our investment?
These outcomes often provide far greater value than simply counting conversations on a busy exhibition stand.
How Chill Out! helps clients maximise conference ROI
At Chill Out!, we see side events as an extension of the main conference rather than an optional extra. Our role is to help clients make the most of the investment they are already making by creating experiences that strengthen relationships and support wider business objectives.
We also look beyond individual events. Many of our clients attend several major conferences throughout the year and we help plan these as part of a wider programme. By carrying knowledge, branding, supplier relationships and planning from one event to the next, we can often create greater consistency, reduce costs and deliver better overall value than treating every event as a separate project.
Just as importantly, we become an extension of your team. From venue sourcing and planning through to onsite delivery, we represent your brand as if it were our own, allowing your team to focus on customers, prospects and partners while we take care of the detail behind the scenes.
Whether you are hosting a private dinner, networking reception, executive roundtable or large scale hospitality event in the UK, Europe or North America, our aim is always the same: to help you get the maximum return from your conference investment.
If you are planning your next exhibition or conference programme and would like to explore how side events could increase your return on investment, we would be delighted to have a conversation.
Experienced people. Flexible support. Straight answers.
Related articles
- How to Choose the Right Event Management Agency
- Exhibition Services
- Corporate Event Management
- Exhibition Side Events Case Study