Tech conferences are an excellent opportunity for VCs, startup founders, and serial entrepreneurs to advance their businesses. In one place, you can gain insights, network with influential people, and learn about industry news and game-changing announcements firsthand before anyone else.
In our previous post, we mapped out a list of the top 5 tech conferences to consider in the second half of 2024 — check it out if you haven’t decided which one to attend yet.
How to make sure that attending a conference won’t be a waste of time? To avoid situations where it really could have been just an email, remember the golden rule: preparation is everything. In this article, we’ll share some helpful tips on what to do before the conference to make the most of your experience.
How to prepare for a tech conference
Make sure your professional materials are up-to-date…
When was the last time you updated your LinkedIn bio? With a tech conference coming up, now it might be the perfect time!
Networking is one of the biggest perks of attending such industry events, so you’ll likely exchange contacts with many people, some of whom will want to stay in touch. Take a moment to check your LinkedIn page for any outdated information and ensure it reflects everything you want others to know. For example, is your first-ever job included in your bio? Chief people and purpose officer at Guild Dean Carter argues it should be.
Also, don’t forget your business cards. As old-fashioned as they may seem for such a progressive field, business cards still remain a very useful networking tool. Be sure to carry at least a few with you, and include your social media profiles so that your new connections can follow up and stay in touch with you online.
…as well as your business materials
At the conference, you’ll likely be discussing your business ideas and pitching your product to potential investors, partners, and other key market players. So, it might as well be a good idea to review your business materials beforehand.
If your startup already has a website, that’s great! Just verify that all the information is up-to-date. If you haven’t launched a website yet, consider establishing at least a basic landing page. It will serve as the face of your business and should include all essential details such as your mission, recent updates, team members, contact information, and more.
Identify people you want to meet and try to reach them before the event
A few weeks before the conference, review the latest schedule and spot the events and people you’re most interested in. Research the speakers’ backgrounds before attending and delve into their areas of expertise, key topics and important discussions.
Don’t be shy to reach out to them before the conference through email or social media. Set up meetings in advance. Big tech conferences can be quite hectic, and having a bit of pre-planned structure can make a big difference.
Draft your schedule or at least try to
Do your homework and prepare a preliminary schedule of the sessions, public talks, and discussions you want to attend. Since some events at tech conferences may overlap, it’s smart to review the program ahead of time and select the most relevant ones for you. Include any pre-planned meetings with attendees you’ve arranged to meet.
However, don’t forget to leave some open slots and blank spaces in your schedule for spontaneous opportunities — you never know who you might run into over a cup of coffee.
Download the conference app if there’s one
Most conferences, forums, and meetups develop their own applications, designed to serve as digital guides and help attendees navigate the flow of events. These apps typically feature a user-friendly interactive schedule, venue maps with navigation tips, event descriptions, speaker profiles, and more.
Important announcements appear on your screen as push notifications, which by the way you can usually customize according to your interests. Additionally, such apps may include networking features like in-app chat rooms, one-on-one messaging, and even business card scanning.
Be ready with your elevator pitch
Have a clear understanding of what you want to communicate about yourself and your business. Considering the amount of information everyone processes at events like these, your elevator pitch should be just around 30 seconds. Yeah, really. Before the event, think carefully about what you want to achieve with this pitch. Respect other people’s time.
Another tip is to rehearse in advance, even if it feels a bit awkward. This is especially helpful if you’re an introvert or find it challenging to chat with strangers. Imagine meeting a potential investor — what would you say if they only have a 1-minute break?
Have fun
Last but not least — enjoy your time! Every tech conference is simply a shining jewellery box of ideas, insights, and extraordinary people from across the globe who are changing the world with their breakthrough products and services. Yes, it’s an excellent opportunity for networking and promoting your ideas.
But remember that you can’t fit everything into just a few days, no matter how meticulously you plan. The most important thing is to get inspired and to inspire others, so don’t overthink it and be ready to have some fun.
Some personal stories
What’s a tip without real-world evidence? We’ve found several stories from people who attended tech conferences and shared their insights.
For web developer Kostis Maninakis, attending Vue.js Amsterdam was his first experience of this kind at a major tech conference. Read his post where he shares the key insights he gained like that striking thought that superstars are just humans.
And here’s a personal story by Ewelina Kurasz, who reveals how attending a tech conference completely changed her life and inspired her to start her journey in the IT industry.