20 Tips to Get the Most Out of NamesCon - Part 1

NamesCon is the domain industry’s premier event where the industry gathers to learn and do a lot of business with one another. I’ve lost count of the number of different conferences I’ve attend over the years and I’ve found there are some techniques that I’ve found really useful in getting the most from them.

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1. Have a clear objective
Don’t attend NamesCon because it’s a great event for parties (they are great!) but attend because you have a clear business objective in mind. It could be you want to achieve a certain amount of domain sales, buy a portfolio, meet specific people or take your registrar account manager out for dinner to thank them for a job well done. Whatever your objective is, write it down and hold yourself accountable to it at the end of the conference.

2. Attendee List
Download the NamesCon App and check out the attendee list. Reach out to  people you want to meet with and with any luck you’ll get a response.

3. Check out the sessions
I know that many people act like they are almost proud of not attending sessions but there’s some really good sessions that shouldn’t be missed. For instance, I’ve been asked to do one of the keynotes (shameless plug) this year and I will literally being putting days of work pulling data together to ensure that its valuable for NamesCon attendees. So always check the agenda and ensure you schedule sessions your interest you in.

4. Your Schedule
Whatever you do…..keep a schedule! Every second is precious at NamesCon and it’s regarded as really bad form if you’re late to a meeting. Everyone is busy so if you’re late then it quite often messes up the other persons schedule and they won’t be happy about that.

I’m typically up at 7am each day and after checking emails I’m at a breakfast meeting at 8am. Unless it’s the last night of the conference I don’t stay up later than midnight. I’ve found that it’s very rare that good deals are done after midnight…..especially if the person you’re speaking with has had a few drinks.

5. Time Zones
Managing time zones for a conference with people flying in from all over the world can be a little daunting. There is ONLY one time zone and that’s the time zone for the conference and in this case it’s Austin, Texas. In Outlook there’s a really good feature where you can turn on another time zone in calendar to help get over the trauma of having 2am meetings in your local time zone!

6. International travellers
Be aware that traveling to the other side of the world can be a gruesome experience. Since I’m from Australia, I’m typically more awake in the evenings compared to the mornings. The reverse is true for people traveling from Europe. If you happen to be from the USA, be aware of the time zones travellers are flying in from and try to schedule meetings in a time where they are more likely to be awake.

7. Always stay at the conference hotel
Yes, I know the hotel down the street may be a lot cheaper but the cost of heading out to get that forgotten item is way more than the cost of a room in the conference hotel. Besides, sometimes you just need a breather for thirty minutes to catch your breath before plunging into back-to-back meetings for the rest of the day.

8. Fly in a day early
This point is especially true for international travellers, but it still has merit if you happen to be more local. Flying in a day earlier allows you to get the “lay of the land” and also setup meetings with other early travellers prior to the hubbub of the conference itself. These more relaxed meetings are often the ones that will yield more positive results for your business.

9. Meeting in a restaurant
I have one bit of advice for meeting in a restaurant. Find out which server will be on duty for the duration of the conference and at the beginning, have a chat to them and tip them really BIG. If the restaurant is packed (like it was for the LA ICANN meeting) then the server will look after you and ensure you get a table for your meetings.

10. Where to meet?
There are only two locations that you will know will always be at a conference. The hotel lobby and the conference registration desk. I don’t recommend setting meetings in the lobby as it could be a LONG way from the actual conference itself. Make sure that you are crystal clear with not only the time for a meeting but exactly WHERE you will meet. I personally always set my meeting point as the conference registration desk….you can’t go wrong with that.

Well, there's the first ten things that I consider that help me make NamesCon a successful event for my business. I will be publishing the next ten early next week.....so stay tuned!

Also, if you haven't booked your tickets as yet then don't forget to click on the above NamesCon banner to get 20% off. I don't get anything if you book tickets in this way as I made the decision to pass 100% of the savings through to readers.