Your annual conference is a great place to immerse yourself in your industry via workshops, connect with association members, and have a lot of fun. It is also an excellent revenue generating opportunity for your organization. From registration fees to refreshments, sponsorships to swag bags there are limitless chances to increase your advertiser’s exposure and in turn your organization’s bottom line through conference ad sales.

Here are a few suggestions to make your event more profitable whether you are throwing the event or simply just participating:

• Get creative: Look beyond just registration fees and booth rental for the exhibit hall for creative sponsorship opportunities that will get your advertiser’s name in front of your group. Provide advertisers an opportunity to sponsor specific workshops, keynotes, and recreational events that are held during the conference. You can also create special areas like a charging station, the wi-fi or relaxation lounge and let that be sponsored by advertisers.
• Monetize your online presence: Tens and in some cases hundreds of thousands of people will be accessing the page for information about the conference. Why not use your digital presence to sell offline sponsorships? Consider selling advertising on your event registration page or mobile app. Another option is to allow sponsors to link to include their content (ie. Whitepapers, blog posts, webinar invites, etc) on the event website or mobile app for a fee.
• Make added value a premium. Anyone can provide a table and a folding chair and call it a trade show booth. The key to increasing advertiser spend is by giving them value for their money. Find those high traffic areas on the exhibit floor and offer those spaces at higher fee. Have a popular keynote speaker that everyone wants to see? Consider making sponsorship of that event more expensive. Want signage posted at the registration desk, where everyone has to go and will see it, charge a premium for that space.
• Consider offering packages and specials. Everyone likes getting a deal. By bundling your conference advertising opportunities into a sponsorship packages you allow potential advertisers higher exposure, while increasing your revenue. This can extend to your event spaces as well. Consider offering upgraded booth offerings like audio/visual, access to more outlets, tables, furniture, lighting, etc. where possible.
• Offer tiered exhibit space pricing: Like we mentioned above, not all sponsorships and exhibit spaces are created equal. Instead of making all booths the same price, offer varying prices depending on the size of the space and amenities. This make your event accessible to vendors large and small.
• Utilize ad sales representation: More than just sell ads for your publications. An ad sales firm can sell sponsorships for your events. An ad sales representation team, like AdBoom Advertising, acts on behalf of your organization and is focused solely on networking with potential advertising prospects to fill your booths and sponsorship needs. Among the benefit of saving you time, there is a cost benefit of getting the services of a sales team without the cost of salaries and benefits.

Don’t let your annual conference be a wasted revenue-generating opportunity. Infuse it with some creative, yet effective sponsorship opportunities and both you and your advertisers will be grateful.