NamesCon is about a month away, and I understand that conference organizers are expecting “well over 1,400 attendees” at this year’s conference. I think NamesCon is well worth attending, and I bought my ticket several months ago. I will be landing in Las Vegas on Saturday night, and I leave on a Tuesday night redeye back to Boston.
I thought I would share 5 conference tips with readers. Some of these suggestions can be acted on right now, and perhaps it will provide a tax benefit or cost savings. I encourage you to share any advice you have in the comment section. If I think of anything else, I will share it there.
Hotel – If you are looking for convenience, staying at the Tropicana is the way to go. The rooms are more than adequate, and you’ll be very close to meetings and events. If you’re looking for something a bit more luxurious, the Cosmopolitan, Aria, Vdara, and MGM all are good options. If you’re looking for something more economical, I think the Luxor and Hard Rock may be less expensive. There is some bridge construction ongoing, so keep in mind it might be a bit more of a pain to walk to different hotels. If you book your hotel now, you may be able to pay for it in 2016 rather than in the new year.
Agenda / Panels – I have never been one to attend many panels. When I do attend panels, I tend to pull out my laptop and get work done. It would be a good idea to look through the conference agenda and pick out the panels you want to attend. Put them in your calendar and set up private meetings around those events.
Meetings – Reach out to business associates and company representatives to confirm their attendance at NamesCon. Schedule meetings around the panels you want to attend. Even if you have nothing pressing to talk about, it is a good idea to connect just to touch based and see what’s new.
Food / Dining – I typically don’t make my dining and lunch plans too far in advance. There are some dining meetings I try to attend – such as the ICA dinner. Most of the time, I make plans while at the conference. I tend to prefer smaller meetings with friends and business associates rather than more organized dinners. However, there have been a few larger organized dinners that have been great. I prefer to keep a clear schedule around lunch and dinner times. One more tip – the east coast people are probably up early. Scheduling a breakfast or coffee meeting in the morning may be the way to go.
Venue – The best conversations I have are generally totally random ones in the hallway or in the lounge area on the exhibition floor. These tend to be casual discussions with people I know and respect, and some good information can be shared. I try to stick around those areas during the day, allowing me to connect with colleagues and meet new people I don’t know.
Don’t be offended if it seems like someone is blowing you off or avoiding you. For some people, this is the one time of the year where they can connect with longtime friends and colleagues, and they don’t really care to meet new people. Some people aren’t really all that social, and while the domain industry suits them well, large get togethers aren’t up their alley.
One more tip – don’t talk ill of colleagues or other business associates in public areas. If you have to look over your shoulder before saying something, you probably should just keep it to yourself.
Don’t go around with a large stack of papers with your domain name portfolio listed on it. Some people may avoid you if they see you walking around with a list of names you are trying to sell (especially if they aren’t very good!).
If you have had any public or private spats in the last year, you might want to reconcile with those people before the conference if they are important enough to you.
Great tips Elliot. Here are a few more:
1. Arrive on Saturday or early Sunday since there are lots of learning and networking opportunities prior to the official start of the conference.
2. Drop by the Tropicana lobby bar in the evening. Many industry folks congregate there to socialize and talk shop. Don’t drink? No problem: order a virgin cocktail.
3. Bring lots of business cards with you. Don’t have one yet? You’ve still got time to get some made at your local Staples store or order from VistaPrint (free) or Moo Cards. But only give out your card when asked for it. Don’t ‘spam’ attendees with your card!
4. Introduce yourself to me. I’m a domain buyer broker and I love to meet domainers since I buy domains from them every week. ;+) Just don’t ask me to sell your domains. That’s not what a buyer broker does!
5. Have fun. You’re in Vegas, the ‘adult Disneyland’, with amazing dining, entertainment, and shopping options.
See you there.
And don’t forget to buy super premium names at the RigthtOfTheDot / NamesCon auction! Happy Holidays to everyone!
Take regular showers 😀
Sounds like great advice. I think it will be a good idea to make a list of things you would like to accomplish while there because once you arrive one thing leads to another and you can get sort of scattered up pretty easily. I’m going to try and make a list myself before leaving on Saturday.
if like me, you are intimidated walking up to strangers in a large meeting mileu – ask ahead of time on industry forums for help with introductions from those that may be ‘old timers’ in the industry
i did this last year before attending my first namescon and was elated by the response, and such intros made all the difference in my ability to fully enjoy the event
or try to overcome your tendency by taking some ‘break the ice’ lines to use on attendees you might come across in panel rooms and smaller spaces where its easier to strike up a conversation – you may be favorably surprised how responsive domainers tend to be
Even over the course of several days, it’s hard to bump into 1400 different people and strike up 1400 separate conversations. Individuals you think you’d trip over get lost in the shuffle. Especially if you’re a sloppy slob like me who prefers serendipity to appointments.
Let’s cross paths this year, Elliot. If by the end of Day 2, one of us hasn’t tapped the other on the shoulder, then I’m assembling a search party.
Yes – that would be good. I will look for you and hope you do the same.
Some great tips here…. Namescon is a Marathon, not a sprint, at least that’s how it always feels to me. A couple more:
1. Don’t forget to actually you know, sleep, when you can. Epic parties, Vegas shenanigans and meetings aside of course.
2. Lip balm, enough said.
3. Soak it up, it’s once a year, absorb as much as possible.
4. Come say Hi. Reach out, we’re all here to learn something 😉
5. Reiterating above…. business cards, business cards and more business cards. You can never have enough.