Exhibiting at and attending conferences gets startups media exposure, investor attention and much more
Startup founders are always searching for opportunities to take their companies to greater heights and one of the most common ways, is to exhibit at or attend a conference.
In this series of articles, I will be explaining the different ways in which startups can equip themselves for a conference by diving the steps into 3 stages:
Before the conference, during the conference and after the conference
Let’s gets ready for the conference season!
Before the Conference:
1. Why are you attending this conference?
With media exposure and investor attentions comes the hefty price of exhibiting or attending a conference, and justifying the cost of that ticket or booth is important.
You have to ask yourself why you want to attend this conference? What do you want to get out of it? Is it coverage in the media? Is it fundraising? Is it exposure? or are the attendees of the conference your primary consumers?
Sit down with your team and your colleagues to find out how advantageous this opportunity is for the company and whether the cost associated with it is justified.
If you feel this:
Grab those tickets or booths now!
2. Attend Satellite Events
Once you have made the decision of joining the conference, it is time to connect to the different attendees prior to the conference. Often conferences are surrounded by satellite events*.
Since these satellite events are locally arranged meetups, they are the perfect way to learn and get involved in the larger conversation and the community. They allow you to access more people through smaller gatherings.
* What are satellite events?
Typically, at any conference, there are planned or impromptu events for discussions about various issues related to the theme of the conference. These are called satellite events. They can be in the form of networking events, discussions, workshops focused on content, themes and ideas from the main meeting. You can usually find them on the conference website or app.
3. Out of office reply
While you’re at the conference, you will not be able to reply to your emails as frequently as you do on a normal day.
You can manage your clients and customers’ expectations through an out of office reply notifying them that you’ll be replying slower than you normally do.
Template for OOO reply:
Hi there,
Thank you for your email. I will be out of the office from [date] to [date] and will have limited access to email/will not have access to email.
If your question can wait, I’ll be responding to the emails I missed when I return on [date]. If this is urgent, please contact [name] at [email], and he/she will take care of you.
Best,
4. Prepare Simple Conversation Starters
Conferences can be overwhelming, especially if you’re an introvert like I am. However, I have found this to be very useful in approaching new faces and companies.
Here are some examples and variations of questions I usually approach people or am approached with at conferences, feel free to use them:
1. What brings you here? (Here, in this case, could be referring to the city or the conference)
2. Is this your first time at [the conference/the city]?
3. Why did you decide to attend [conference name]?
4.After a talk: What did you think of the talk?
5. Satellite Events: Why did you come tonight?
6. Exhibitors: What sets your business apart from the crowd?
7. Exhibitors (Job Fair): What would a day in [the company] look like?
Try and come up with a question that makes you feel comfortable but always remember to keep it simple, short and professional (given the style of the conference).
5. LinkedIn
Update. Update. Update.
After the first few years of your career, LinkedIn becomes your online CV.
Update the different sections in your profile, especially the elements related to the company you are going to the conference for!
6. Company Brochures
Company brochures are extremely important (be environmentally friendly and print fewer copies), not only for marketing your products and services offline but to also guide you in your pitch.
Although brochures are primarily used by booths at conferences, you can make use of them while talking to different exhibitors.
A quick tip: Brochures can also be a good ice breaker at conferences!
7. Craft the Perfect Pitch
Brand Pitch: Your vision, mission and solution.
You should be able to answer these questions with your branded pitch:
Elevator Pitch — (Duration: 60 seconds): After preparing your brand pitch, do not forget to prepare a shorter version of it in order to be able to adapt to different situations!
8. Website
Make sure your company website is up to date with smooth user experience.
For instance, if you are looking for customers at the conference, make sure they are able to sign up for your newsletter or check out your services.
The process should be smooth as it might be their first interaction with the company.
9. Research. Research. Research.
Research attendees, exhibitors, media and speakers that are attending the conference.
How does this help? It allows you to
1. Schedule meetings in advance with people you want to meet
2. Identify the panels, keynotes, workshops or talks that you want to attend.
3. Map out who you want to talk to during the conference, helping to create some structure.
10. Have Schwag ready and lots of it!
People love collecting schwag/freebies at conferences, regardless of what it is. It attracts attendees, acts as a conversation starter and also allows you to connect directly with your target audience!
Also, you might throw a brochure but you won’t throw out a free schwag.
It isn’t extremely expensive to produce branded freebies and every time the consumer uses the product, they will remember the brand!
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Southeast Asia’s property technology company PropertyGuru appoints Olivier Lim as Independent Chairman to the Board and Jenny Macdonald and Melanie Wilson as new Independent Directors to the Board
PropertyGuru, the proptech company operates in Southeast Asia, has appointed Olivier Lim as Independent Chairman to the Board. The company’s official statement coined that the move is part of a “broader exercise to evolve its corporate governance and to bring even greater diversity, breadth, and depth to the Board”.
Lim is an experienced Chairman and non-executive Director who is currently Chairman of Certis CISCO and Frasers Property Australia. He was a former Chairman of Australand, a property group formerly listed on the ASX, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of DBS Bank and the Board of Trustees of Singapore Management University (SMU) amongst others.
Both seasoned Australian Directors, Jenny Macdonald, and Melanie Wilson will also bring on board their expertise into the company.
Macdonald is a former CFO with experience in marketplace businesses and is currently a Board Director at Bapcor and Redbubble amongst other companies. Wilson has many years of experience as a Director for consumer-oriented businesses and currently sits on the Boards of Baby Bunting, iSelect, and EML Payments, amongst other companies.
“Over the last twelve years, I have watched with great interest the rapid growth of the business from a Singapore based property portal, to a high-growth property technology company with leading property marketplaces in five core Asian markets. I see so many opportunities in this next phase of growth,” said Lim.
The Group will form a fully independent Audit and Risk Committee (ARC) chaired by Macdonald. Wilson will chair the Nomination and Remuneration Committee (NRC), which will comprise of majority independent directors.
Recently in March 2019, PropertyGuru introduced Lens, an augmented reality feature that allows people to move their phone camera around a given area and see what apartments are available. At that time, it was in an invite-only beta launch phase.
More than cutting-edge technologies and innovative ideas — tell us: what makes your story special?
Whether we’re dealing with creative pursuits like filmmaking or building companies from scratch, the one thread that weaves important products together is a good story. If you really think about it, the most successful companies have thoughtful narratives behind them. They are often more than just giant institutions trying to sell things; instead, they are ideas beautifully conjured by actual human lives with actual human experiences.
After years of being in the industry, this is what we learned: if you are a business that has a vision, one that resonates with audiences, you are more likely to engage people. We have come to realize that the best way to do that is through storytelling. Stories throb at the core of human experiences, helping create something organic and real out of all the glossy technological advances, and ultimately humanising your brand.
In today’s modern world, people don’t just want machine efficiency alone but human engagement as well. Mixing these two ingredients make for a formidable brand that doesn’t just dazzle, but also rattles at the soul.
Our brains are wired to appreciate stories
It’s Science — the part of our brain where our thoughts and actions originate is weak in statistical reasoning. We can bombard our brains with all the data that we can get our hands on but if that data is not shaped in a cause-and-effect format, the brain will ultimately find it difficult to process, or find it “uninteresting” to say the least.
Packaging your data into stories help shape information into a format that the brain can easily identify and process. Only when this is achieved can real, meaningful insight be drawn from piles upon piles of hard information that otherwise provide no real purpose other than to simply fill spaces in a spreadsheet for the occasional clerical checking.
It is for this reason that that e27 commits itself to tell stories: we aim not just to bridge the gap between information that simply exists and a world that revolves obliviously around it. More than that, we aim to weave that information into human experiences that have a real impact on the lives of those who come into contact with it.
Through e27’s plethora of services, these stories are not only told, but rendered into physical, palatable content that invites engagement from the very community it seeks to transform and empower.
Whether we’re opening the world’s eyes to the stories of small to medium-size manufacturers banding together to revolutionise the manufacturing capabilities of Japan, or how a team in Singapore is bringing on-demand household services to the rest of the region one doorstep at a time, we make sure that these realities resonate to an audience that is eager to listen.
We believe that the tech startup ecosystem we have indefinitely involved ourselves in is one that is hungry for meaningful connections—and what better way to build those connections than find common human insights in the different stories we all have?
Why stories matter
When introducing something — an idea, a product, an innovation, or an amalgamation of the three — we tend to get straight to the technical aspect of things and generally assume that our audiences can make pragmatic decisions out of them. In reality, emotions also play a huge role in decision-making, and probably in ways bigger than we think.
This is because ultimately, stories help stimulate emotional responses. When you engage your audience in a story, you stir an emotional response from them which helps direct if and how they engage with your brand.
Building a brand is all about being able to engage the right audience and make sure that they are interested enough to explore possibilities with your brand. With e27’s content services, we seek to unpack and critically exhaust these narratives until we come up with a material that can find its place in the hands of the right people.
We are more than just a community of tech nerds and business-savvy people. We are a community of hungry, driven people who are out to leave an important mark in this world one way or another. Every day, we have members of the community revolutionise some fundamental part of human life like trading, or mobility, or transport—the list goes on!
We believe that in each one of these pursuits lies a narrative that deserves a platform. By shedding light on these stories, we don’t only invite people to engage your brand, but we also empower and embolden young members of the community to see that to have a vision as mountainous as yours isn’t impossible to achieve.
A story told well drives action
At the end of the day, it’s not just a matter of telling stories but a matter of telling those stories well. Stories trigger actions by giving the audience a purpose. When you encounter content that deals with a new innovation, you are inclined to experience that innovation yourself. At its core, we think this is the best way for brands to engage their audiences.
As such, stories need to be told judiciously and generously. You cannot simply announce an innovation and expect that world to come knocking at your doorstep. You need to explain that innovation in ways that make it both relatable and necessary. Good storytelling is the secret to achieving that: when you are able to spur human interest by providing what is most human, and therefore, what is most real.
This belief is what has long galvanized the e27 brand. By telling other people’s stories, we get to tell our own. Only in being the bridge that binds our community together do we ultimately get to define ourselves and our role in a larger, broader world. We need your help to achieve that.
For more information, check out our content services here.
In addition to gojek, we also have updates from PropertyGuru, Indigram Labs Foundation, and Grab
gojek launches GoCar Instant for airport transportation service – Press Release
Indonesian ride-hailing unicorn gojek today announced the launch of GoCar Instant, car-based transportation service from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
GoCar users at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport can now select to be immediately picked up at designated GoCar Instant Pick-up Points at Arrival Terminals 2D and 2F.
The company explained that upon completion of a GoCar Instant booking, airport officers stationed at pick-up points will direct users to their car. It also plans to expand the services to Arrival Terminal 1A and Domestic and International Terminal 3.
gojek has also launched GoRide Instant at Depok Baru Station and Blora Market, which are adjacent to Sudirman Station and Dukuh Atas MRT Station in Jakarta.
PropertyGuru names new Chairman, Independent Director – e27
Southeast Asian property tech giant PropertyGuru today announced the appointment of Olivier Lim as Independent Chairman to the Board as well as the appointment of Jenny Macdonald and Melanie Wilson as Non-Executive Directors.
Lim is an experienced Chairman and non-executive Director who is currently Chairman of Certis CISCO and Frasers Property Australia. He was a former Chairman of ASX-listed Australand, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of DBS Bank and the Board of Trustees of Singapore Management University (SMU), amongst others.
Macdonald is a former CFO with “considerable” experience in marketplace businesses and is currently a Board Director at Bapcor and Redbubble, amongst other companies
Wilson has “many years” of experience as a Director for consumer-oriented businesses and currently sits on the Boards of Baby Bunting, iSelect, and EML Payments, amongst other companies.
Indian incubator Indigram Labs Foundation launches rural agribusiness initiative – Press Release
New Delhi-based tech incubator for agribusinesses Indigram Labs Foundation (ILF) today announced the launch of the Smart Village Program to facilitate agribusiness development in the rural areas.
Through the “Adhunik Gram” initiative, the incubator aims to nurture and promote agri-preneurship and village economy development.
It has been supporting startups in the agriculture, food, renewable energy, and healthcare sector.
Applications for the programme are now open until the end of October.
Grab teams up with Sejasa to launch Clean & Fix – DailySocial
Southeast Asian ride-hailing giant Grab and Indonesian on-demand services platform Sejasa teamed up to launch home and appliances repairment services Clean & Fix on the Grab platform, DailySocialreported.
The collaboration followed the announcement of Sejasa as one of the best graduates of Grab Velocity Ventures.
Grab Indonesia Executive Director Ongki Kurniawan said that the new service is the result of a hypothesis produced by the two companies’ pilot project in December 2018. Previously, Grab has included Sejasa’s service as a widget on its platform.
In your many years of work experience, you will have figured out your strengths, and be able to use it to your advantage
I have heard many people say, “I’m too old to start a business” and that the world belongs to those who are young.
I started my marketing agency with my brother when we were in our 40s.
When we told our family and friends about our decision, we were mocked. The opportunity cost of starting a business is much higher when you are more advanced in your career.
To quit your job and start a business is akin to dumping the career that you took many years to build.
While we often associate startups with young people who are extremely passionate, research suggests that older entrepreneurs are more likely to succeed.
It certainly didn’t feel like that when I and my brother started out five years ago.
Despite this, we both know that the learning curve would be much steeper if we started our business fresh out of school.
Here’s why we encourage experienced individuals to start a business:
You would have mastered your craft
After many years in the corporate world grinding it out, you will have honed your craft. You have many years of experience to draw from.
If you’re providing a service, you would be able to directly apply your area of expertise to your clients.
If you’re offering a product, your area of expertise would be put to good use in managing a specific aspect of the business whether it’s working on the business financials, marketing or developing the product.
You will know how to set goals and map out what it takes to meet those goals.
One of the most challenging things about running your own business is having a good team by your side.
Your team needs to run alongside you in projects when the going gets tough. They need to be constantly motivated.
We have had many issues that arose from managing our teams.
But, as we have managed teams in our corporate jobs before, it was not something totally new to us.
Your experience managing junior colleagues in a corporate environment equips you with the necessary skill sets to set directions for your team, delegate work and mentor younger staff when you start a business.
If you’re faced with unexpected situations such as managing staff who don’t deliver, you would be less perplexed, as many of these situations have occurred in your team at your corporate jobs before.
Yes, you would definitely face greater pressure as a boss because you are responsible for bottom lines and for your staff’s salaries.
But, the soft skills that you gained managing teams in your corporate jobs help guide you as you make the leap from a salaried worker to an entrepreneur.
You will know the industry inside out
If you’re starting a business in an industry that you have been working in for many years, you would know the industry inside out.
You will have a more extensive network of suppliers and partners who will be able to support your business.
You may even get clients or colleagues from your previous corporate jobs who support your new venture.
When we first started, our previous clients who knew about our agency were one of the first few to support us.
They helped us sustain our business and contributed to our first few shining testimonials.
Making the transition from a salaried employee to an entrepreneur is definitely no easy feat. It takes immense courage and poses a huge learning curve.
But, you should use your corporate experience to your advantage and don’t ever think that those years were spent in vain.
Having decades of corporate experience means that you’ve been in all kinds of situations and have probably been burnt by betrayals in the workplace or failed projects before.
You would have developed thicker skin after weathering various setbacks in your career paths.
You are not so worried about what others think, because you know the vision that you have set for your business and what it would take to get there.
If you’re in your 40s and think that you’re too old to start a business, I hope this helps you to make the leap into entrepreneurship.
Your age is your advantage.
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Editor’s note: e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.
Join our e27 Telegram group here, or our e27 contributor Facebook page here.
