Pros and Cons Of Participating In Business Events

Participation in professional industry conferences, is it worth it or not? Some people do not see much sense in it, while others consider it an important event.  So why should you participate in such events? Let’s be as open and pragmatic as possible.

Pros of Participating In Business Events

Here are some benefits of attending business events like CIO conferences and TED talks.

Professional Connections

Thanks to the preparation for the conference and participation in it, you and your employees get a significantly larger circle of communication and acquaintances. These acquaintances are valuable because they are very clearly focused on a professional basis.

Increase Awareness In General

In most cases, after the end, and sometimes before the conference, your company gets a mention. If a company is systematically engaged in PR, then this is a good reason to show business from the other side. Plus, there are always journalists or publications that specialize in your market. They are interested in companies, people, and projects from this market. And by participating in such events, you can get to know them.

Attract New Potential Customers

According to the results of industry conferences and related competitions, you can be found by clients who are purposefully looking for a partner, contractor, or supplier on your topic. The larger the company, the more it focuses on external factors – fame, reliability, publicity. After all, you really don’t want to, having saved a little money in theory, get an unsuccessful project in practice: not to implement it, lose money, or miss deadlines.

Therefore, companies and specific managers within them want to work with those whose reputation will not make their colleagues doubt that the right partner has been chosen. For example, ceteris paribus, the manager of a large oil company will choose to audit a company from the Big Four, and not a local audit firm, even if it is 3 times cheaper. Participation in professional industry events is one of the steps.

Additional Motivation For Employees

Every leader wants their employees to be the best. In order to become the best, you need some measurable criterion or competition. A conference or an award is just such a competition when there is an opportunity to compare yourself with others, to understand where you need to strive, and focus on the best in your industry. And, of course, it is impossible to buy the feeling of joy and pride of employees when the result of their work is recognized.

Cons Of Participating In Business Events

Here are some cons of participating in conferences:

It Costs Money And Time

Indeed, a trip, paying for participation in it in the form of an organizational fee (conferences are also made by people who want to earn money), requires direct financial costs. Well, the time spent on preparing materials and the trip itself will take important time.

You May Not Win

You can spend time and money, but not get the desired prize. Such a risk always exists, and this is the principle of professional conference competitions – there are always fewer winners than participants. Some people think that it is better not to participate at all than to come and not win. After all, a loss can turn into resentment against the organizers and competitors, personal psychological trauma, etc.

Unpredictable Financial Result

So you participated in a conference/competition, even won, but did not receive a direct financial return. Even in theory, it is difficult to predict. Will there be more customers immediately after the victory, will it be possible to increase your average check? Unclear. And the unpredictability is scary. So, make sure that you are always ready for the result.