I can say it’s the little things that make a great conference.  Companies find budgets of a few thousand to several million dollars for conferences in the hopes of getting an ROI.  As a conference keynote speaker who gets to participate in conferences weekly, I’m beginning to notice a few important things, which can make or break the success of the conference.  I always say, begin with the end in mind.  What is your revenue ROI and what are your outcomes?
A number of conference planners are focused on all of the non-outcomes of the meeting.  These outcomes are important and do link directly to an ROI.  The question I always ask as a keynote speaker is, what percent of increase in revenue or even more specifically, what is the amount of increase you would like to achieve by investing in this meeting?  This is a different conversation that should sync with an overall plan or objective.   Understanding the answer to this question takes the pressure away from the budget question.  It is an investment, not an expense.
I recently completed a conference as the keynote speaker where the client invested several thousands of dollars per person.  The conservative percent of increase desired was 15 percent over prior year.  The client understands, by achieving this objective, it will allow them the opportunity to move forward on other initiatives that can bring additional growth to the company.  Once they determine what they felt they could get as a return, they comfortably move forward in establishing a budget for everything.  Everything selected, including the content, was based upon the achievement of the ROI.