Why attending conferences makes sense for SMEs

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Bikky Khosla | 29 Nov, 2012
Do you find yourself in a dilemma about attending a conference! A small business owner often does. There are always a lot of chores to do at office, and the idea of giving one's valuable time to a conference doesn't usually seem worthwhile to many. Recently, I found myself thinking exactly that when I was invited to attend a two-day conference abroad on B2B trade. Although I'm not a kind of guy to shy away from such events, this time I really found it difficult to keep myself away from my office, with lots of work pending on my desk.

But I left for the event, and I would have repented if I hadn't. The conference was directly related to the nature of my business I have been for the last two decades; I met there a number of entrepreneurs from my field and acquired some invaluable insights from them on what is going on in B2B trade across the world; I shared information, asked questions and learned about my peers and competitors; and most notably I have made many new connections. For me, all these sum up into a brilliant experience.

I think conferences can open an entrepreneur's world to new ideas and possibilities. When you attend an industry conference, you can meet with like-minded people at a single place and in a concentrated time period, listen to some brilliant speakers, and share views with fellow entrepreneurs willing to share their knowledge, and this, in turn, helps in broadening your prospective. And especially when you take part in a conference at international level, you get out of your country and your culture and see what entrepreneurs are up to on a global stage.

Besides for learning, you should attend conferences also for potential connections. In a conference environment, you get the opportunity to meet a lot of new people who are already in a learning and networking mode, and only by sitting next to the right person, you might gain a lot. However, don't leave everything to chance: go on your own, talk to people you know and don't know, ask questions about their work, pass on your contact details, and last but not the least: enjoy yourself and be in the moment.

A little bit of preparedness goes a long way. First of all, be careful about choosing a conference to attend. Although it is difficult to quantify the benefits from conference attendance, try to think about what opportunities it will present. Look at the list of attendees or speakers beforehand. Give some thought on what benefits can be derived. Secondly, as I have already mentioned, play an active role in the session. Be attentive, ask questions, avoid being negative and identify people who you want to speak to later. And finally, if you meet interesting people, never forget to follow-up.

I look forward to reading your comments.