To fix this, it is a good idea to make your conference more interactive. Having your attendees participate in a number of activities will not only more enjoyable, it will also make them feel like they have got more out of the experience. Here are a few different ways you can spice up your next conference with a bit of interactivity:
Discussions
This is a simple option, but one that works. Rather than sorting out a presentation on a certain topic, you can run a discussion panel instead. Get in a few industry experts and have them talk through an important business issue with the audience, or have guests sign up to be part of a debate between two different sides.
This will engage attendees much better than a lecture, but it does require a bit of extra work from you. Debates can get heated, after all, so you will need to keep a careful eye on each session and know when and how to intervene if things begin to get out of hand. If you can manage the discussion well, however, this will be an excellent addition to your conference.
Set up a sharing board
One of the main strengths of interacting online with people is that you can share details, articles, useful tidbits of information or just funny images with a large audience of people. You can replicate this at your conference with a simple sharing board. All you need to do is create a large cork board and supply guests with plenty of pins.
Encourage people to pin up their business cards, any articles they've written, or even just funny doodles they think other attendees would enjoy. They can even pin a white paper to the board if they want! That way people can share information with complete strangers and learn even more from the conference than they would have before.
Encourage voting
There are a number of different mobile phone apps available that allow you to set up a crowd poll. This is where you pose a question to a large group of people, and they can answer it and see how their views line up with the rest of the participants.
Not only can this make your attendees feel like more of a community, it also adds an extra level to any lectures or discussions you host. Being able to give an opinion on something makes people seem more connected to it, making this a great way to increase overall engagement at the conference.
