Are you thinking of organising your first ever corporate conference in 2026 or maybe you are a professional conference organiser looking for some new and exciting ways to enhance the experience for your delegates?
Whatever the stage of planning you are at, it is now more important than ever before to create an engaging experience rather than yet another stuffy boring conference. Delegate expectations have risen dramatically in the last few years and we all expect more not just from public events but corporate events too.
Ever wondered why cosmetic brands are creating fruit stalls as brand activations? This is just one example of needing to use events as a platform for thinking outside the box to get those all-important messages across and conferences are the perfect place to create a lasting impression on your audience.
We all know the world of work has changed and as a result we no longer see our colleagues or peers as much as we once did. Whilst remote working and meetings has a great benefit for the environment which we are huge believers in, it presents an even more important need annual conferences whether they beheld internally to discuss strategy or externally to educate an audience on topics important to your business, association or industry.
“85% say face-to-face meetings with internal colleagues are important.”
A survey conducted by hospitality chain Accor found that colleagues within organisations deemed face to face meetings essential in them being both happy and productive in their professional roles.
Whilst we know that conferences are important for keeping people aligned, informed and motivated particularly internal teams, we also find despite this importance, we are asked by senior management increasingly to prove the returns on investment or return on event as some prefer to call it.
So, with ROI on event planners’ minds, you need to ensure that you have the tools within your conference to make it more memorable and engaging and in turn you will see bigger returns. Engagement shows your audience are listening and interacting with your message or brand so this should be the number one KPI for successful see bigger returns. Engagement shows your audience are listening and interacting with your message or brand so this should be the number one KPI for successful conference organisers.
Ever heard of a conference energiser? Well good job Blackberry Events are here to enlighten you with one of the most effective ways to boost energy in the room when organising a conference. Conference energisers are activities that bring your audience together and improve engagement and excitement during your agenda. Depending on the running of your conference you may wish to open with an energiser to set an upbeat and positive tone for the day (particularly good if your topic is somewhat serious, dull or complex) or post lunch when fatigue usually starts to hit and you need to maintain high levels of attention. Popular energisers involve getting people on their feet to try movement of some sort, whether it is through motivational warrior dancing in a Haka Workshop, feel-good stretching with some seated disco yoga. Speak to our event management team for a free proposal containing the latest conference energisers that best suit your event.
Having a great speaker who can connect with your audience can be the difference between your message being heard or unheard. Your content can be great but whether it resonates depends on how it is delivered. Corporate and public event organisers regularly hire motivational speakers or hosts to facilitate the day and deliver content. Your budget and objectives for the conference will determine your choice of host or speaker but choose wisely, vet them against your values and ensure they fit with your brand’s tone of voice. A great example of occasions where speakers are used is when a topic is perceived as boring, having an entertaining or funny speaker can make the topic seem more interesting.
Team building isn’t just about inflatable games in the great outdoors, it’s perfect for incorporating into your conference. Team building has come a long way from the days of building bridges out of straws, it now consists of digital, compact and easy to set up table top formats that can be implemented into your conference agenda with no distraction or need to hire additional space at your venue. Adding an hour into your corporate conference for team building activities can really bring colleagues together, encouraging networking, connection and collaboration. Use team building to your advantage and reap many benefits and rewards with cross-functional teams post conference.
Location, location, location! Yep, there’s a reason there was a whole TV show dedicated to this phrase. Location is everything when hosting a successful conference. Selecting a venue is difficult and can be vital to the success of your event. This is why so many event organisers hire venue finding professionals such as Blackberry Events. Risk aside, to wow delegates you need to choose a venue that first and foremost inspires people. Unique venues are an ideal way to make a great first impression that keeps on giving throughout the day. Look for conference rooms with natural light, exciting AV, neutral floors, sustainable features or a unique setting that tells a story.
Take it from us, we've organised hundreds of conferences for multiple organisations and a conference doesn’t mean sitting in the same spot for 8 hours. The best and most well attending conferences include brilliant break-out sessions and workshops, these are practical sessions ran by experts that usually tackle how to apply theory into practice regarding current topics that appeal to the delegates in the room. Giving your delegates or team the chance to apply what they have learnt with real life scenarios instantly increases the chances of them remembering key takeaways.
Whether you are using in house audio visual or audio visual through your event management / conference production agency, be sure to ask the technical experts about using it in tandem with your content to make the most impact. Content can be delivered in a dynamic way with the help of additional lighting, creative and sound to keep things interesting. Why not try some walk on music to help build anticipation for each speaker or hire a creative team such as Blackberry Events to create animation and video that brings meaning, emotion and story to your presentation.
There is something powerful about bringing people together for a purpose and events are a catalyst for positive change and making a difference.We’re not saying you need to create the next Band Aid Concert, there are simple but highly effective ways to introduce a give-back element to you conference which is not only a brownie point for your own ESG goals but a great way to make delegates feel good about being part of a meaningful experience. Raise awareness with a charity slot in your agenda, play an emotive video and collect donations for a prize raffle, have a food bank present, add some CSR team building activities that educate on important world topics such as sustainability or homelessness or work together to make something that can be used by those in need. The opportunities are endless. Speak to the Blackberry Events team for charity team building ideas you can add to your conference.
As said previously engagement and interaction is your best indicating metric for how well your conference has performed against its objectives. One of the most used ways organisers are increasing audience interaction is using our robot friend – AI.
AI and it’s use in event delivery is still being discovered, but popular ways it is being used is for instant and live audience interaction.Use a chat bot to answer audience frequently asked questions about your event there and then, saving queues at the help desk or use an AI interpretation to offer a more inclusive conference with live subtitles or translation available on screens around the room.
AI can also be used to promote your event, with easy and instant access to automated pre-show promotional social posts. Give busy delegates, speakers, exhibitors and anyone else attending the tools to shout about their attendance at your event.
Don’t worry by Gamify we don’t mean popping out play stations or monopoly, conference gamification is something much more forward-thinking and inclusive. Use quiz apps like Kahoot or Slido to ask your audience questions throughout the day, up the ante with a little prize incentive or use an event app to add a live leader board and challenges at your event. You'll be surprised how into it people get! Give delegates the opportunity to participate in challenges such as networking or social posting for the chance to win prizes. Not only will they benefit from this fun and competitive element, so will your business as you guessed it engagement equals returns!
For help from our expert conference organisers at your next event please reach out we'd love to chat!
If you found that interesting here are some suggestions from us to find out a bit more about Blackberry Events and our events management services.
Are you thinking of organising your first ever corporate conference in 2026 or maybe you are a professional conference organiser looking for some new and exciting ways to enhance the experience for your delegates?
Whatever the stage of planning you are at, it is now more important than ever before to create an engaging experience rather than yet another stuffy boring conference. Delegate expectations have risen dramatically in the last few years and we all expect more not just from public events but corporate events too.
Ever wondered why cosmetic brands are creating fruit stalls as brand activations? This is just one example of needing to use events as a platform for thinking outside the box to get those all-important messages across and conferences are the perfect place to create a lasting impression on your audience.
We all know the world of work has changed and as a result we no longer see our colleagues or peers as much as we once did. Whilst remote working and meetings has a great benefit for the environment which we are huge believers in, it presents an even more important need annual conferences whether they beheld internally to discuss strategy or externally to educate an audience on topics important to your business, association or industry.
“85% say face-to-face meetings with internal colleagues are important.”
A survey conducted by hospitality chain Accor found that colleagues within organisations deemed face to face meetings essential in them being both happy and productive in their professional roles.
Whilst we know that conferences are important for keeping people aligned, informed and motivated particularly internal teams, we also find despite this importance, we are asked by senior management increasingly to prove the returns on investment or return on event as some prefer to call it.
So, with ROI on event planners’ minds, you need to ensure that you have the tools within your conference to make it more memorable and engaging and in turn you will see bigger returns. Engagement shows your audience are listening and interacting with your message or brand so this should be the number one KPI for successful see bigger returns. Engagement shows your audience are listening and interacting with your message or brand so this should be the number one KPI for successful conference organisers.
Ever heard of a conference energiser? Well good job Blackberry Events are here to enlighten you with one of the most effective ways to boost energy in the room when organising a conference. Conference energisers are activities that bring your audience together and improve engagement and excitement during your agenda. Depending on the running of your conference you may wish to open with an energiser to set an upbeat and positive tone for the day (particularly good if your topic is somewhat serious, dull or complex) or post lunch when fatigue usually starts to hit and you need to maintain high levels of attention. Popular energisers involve getting people on their feet to try movement of some sort, whether it is through motivational warrior dancing in a Haka Workshop, feel-good stretching with some seated disco yoga. Speak to our event management team for a free proposal containing the latest conference energisers that best suit your event.
Having a great speaker who can connect with your audience can be the difference between your message being heard or unheard. Your content can be great but whether it resonates depends on how it is delivered. Corporate and public event organisers regularly hire motivational speakers or hosts to facilitate the day and deliver content. Your budget and objectives for the conference will determine your choice of host or speaker but choose wisely, vet them against your values and ensure they fit with your brand’s tone of voice. A great example of occasions where speakers are used is when a topic is perceived as boring, having an entertaining or funny speaker can make the topic seem more interesting.
Team building isn’t just about inflatable games in the great outdoors, it’s perfect for incorporating into your conference. Team building has come a long way from the days of building bridges out of straws, it now consists of digital, compact and easy to set up table top formats that can be implemented into your conference agenda with no distraction or need to hire additional space at your venue. Adding an hour into your corporate conference for team building activities can really bring colleagues together, encouraging networking, connection and collaboration. Use team building to your advantage and reap many benefits and rewards with cross-functional teams post conference.
Location, location, location! Yep, there’s a reason there was a whole TV show dedicated to this phrase. Location is everything when hosting a successful conference. Selecting a venue is difficult and can be vital to the success of your event. This is why so many event organisers hire venue finding professionals such as Blackberry Events. Risk aside, to wow delegates you need to choose a venue that first and foremost inspires people. Unique venues are an ideal way to make a great first impression that keeps on giving throughout the day. Look for conference rooms with natural light, exciting AV, neutral floors, sustainable features or a unique setting that tells a story.
Take it from us, we've organised hundreds of conferences for multiple organisations and a conference doesn’t mean sitting in the same spot for 8 hours. The best and most well attending conferences include brilliant break-out sessions and workshops, these are practical sessions ran by experts that usually tackle how to apply theory into practice regarding current topics that appeal to the delegates in the room. Giving your delegates or team the chance to apply what they have learnt with real life scenarios instantly increases the chances of them remembering key takeaways.
Whether you are using in house audio visual or audio visual through your event management / conference production agency, be sure to ask the technical experts about using it in tandem with your content to make the most impact. Content can be delivered in a dynamic way with the help of additional lighting, creative and sound to keep things interesting. Why not try some walk on music to help build anticipation for each speaker or hire a creative team such as Blackberry Events to create animation and video that brings meaning, emotion and story to your presentation.
There is something powerful about bringing people together for a purpose and events are a catalyst for positive change and making a difference.We’re not saying you need to create the next Band Aid Concert, there are simple but highly effective ways to introduce a give-back element to you conference which is not only a brownie point for your own ESG goals but a great way to make delegates feel good about being part of a meaningful experience. Raise awareness with a charity slot in your agenda, play an emotive video and collect donations for a prize raffle, have a food bank present, add some CSR team building activities that educate on important world topics such as sustainability or homelessness or work together to make something that can be used by those in need. The opportunities are endless. Speak to the Blackberry Events team for charity team building ideas you can add to your conference.
As said previously engagement and interaction is your best indicating metric for how well your conference has performed against its objectives. One of the most used ways organisers are increasing audience interaction is using our robot friend – AI.
AI and it’s use in event delivery is still being discovered, but popular ways it is being used is for instant and live audience interaction.Use a chat bot to answer audience frequently asked questions about your event there and then, saving queues at the help desk or use an AI interpretation to offer a more inclusive conference with live subtitles or translation available on screens around the room.
AI can also be used to promote your event, with easy and instant access to automated pre-show promotional social posts. Give busy delegates, speakers, exhibitors and anyone else attending the tools to shout about their attendance at your event.
Don’t worry by Gamify we don’t mean popping out play stations or monopoly, conference gamification is something much more forward-thinking and inclusive. Use quiz apps like Kahoot or Slido to ask your audience questions throughout the day, up the ante with a little prize incentive or use an event app to add a live leader board and challenges at your event. You'll be surprised how into it people get! Give delegates the opportunity to participate in challenges such as networking or social posting for the chance to win prizes. Not only will they benefit from this fun and competitive element, so will your business as you guessed it engagement equals returns!
For help from our expert conference organisers at your next event please reach out we'd love to chat!
If you found that interesting here are some suggestions from us to find out a bit more about Blackberry Events and our events management services.
Take a look at our news, industry insights and our thoughts and opinions on a range of current topics.
.webp)
