(Photo: Zach Warren/ALM) (Photo: Zach Warren/ALM)

Doing some last minute prep for ILTACON? Below are helpful tips from savvy legal marketers to make the most of the show.

 

Valerie Chan, Plat4orm PR

ILTACON is a great opportunity for the legal community to both meet and network with the right people, and to see firsthand how different technologies are reshaping the industry. In addition to e-discovery players, we look forward to seeing innovative security, payment and contract lifecycle players, insight/predictive tools, and expertise automation companies. To make the most of the show, do your homework. Decide in advance who you want to meet and go into ILTACON with an objective and a plan. By starting with a clear sense of purpose and prioritized objectives to accomplish by the end of the show, you are far more likely to make the most of your time.

Other important show tips include:

  • Know whom you are meeting with by looking under the hood and focusing on the technology. With several companies touting AI-based technology as part of their value proposition, pay attention to those companies providing more advanced capabilities that help your organization’s business goals. With so many vendors at the show, it’s important to have those technical and business-related conversations.
  • Understand what tech you need and what tech is nice to have. Instead of becoming distracted by the promises of the next best technology, think about how the technology that you are seeing at the show might realistically fit into the technology plan for your organization. Use your time wisely. The week will fly by.
  • And lastly, don’t forget to have fun! ILTACON offers several opportunities to network and unwind. See you in Orlando.

 

Ed Colandra, Mindful Marketing Solutions

Feet Essentials/Comfortable Shoes: Ladies save the heels for the banquet(s) and/or meetings with clients. For your time on the show floor switch to flats or a minor wedge and make sure they are comfortable before you leave home. Guys, same idea, but with a twist: get some Dr. Scholl’s footwear inserts. In addition, pack a pair of jogging/tennis/sneakers for booth set-up and tear down. Don’t do what a colleague did once and wear new wingtips without breaking them in, you will be in excruciating pain.

Simplify Packing: Black khakis and logo polo. When building your booth be prepared to be on your hands and knees and wear anything you like, such as t-shirts and jeans. Prepare to perspire, and unless you want to pay the conference staff at union rates, plan for the same exercise by tearing down your own booth before heading home. Finally, pack one more “street casual ensemble” so you can switch out of the sweaty clothes, maybe grab a quick shower, and enjoy a relaxing ride home.

More Essentials: Obviously business cards are critical, but if possible print links on the back of your cards to your website, whitepapers, product info, testimonials, etc. Don’t waste money on paper, people will likely toss. While you should always scan the badges of people you meet, if you also get a business card it will help you prioritize that individual for purposes of follow up, especially if you make a note or two on the back. Bring pens, Sharpies, packing tape, breath mints for after lunch, and of course, toothbrush, toothpaste and floss. Ladies, you know your usual make-up. Vitamins, aspirin, band-aids and eye drops.

 

Jennifer Marsnik, Edge Legal Marketing

An important part of preparing for ILTACON or other events is to ask yourself, what do we want to achieve with this investment?

To maximize your ROI from this or any marketing activity, always identify and prioritize your objectives and then communicate them internally.

First, stay focused and purposeful throughout your planning and preparation. Concentrate on what you most want to achieve so that every strategy you employ works toward those goals. From pre-show marketing communications and promotions, to your exhibit display and giveaways, and even to who is on-site representing your company, make sure all your choices are intentional. Don’t spend time or money on anything that doesn’t actively work toward your defined goals and objectives.

Second, ensure everyone involved understands what the organization is trying to accomplish with its participation. Buy-in and support are critical so clearly communicate organizational goals and encourage your team to share ideas on to the best way to achieve them.

Stay strategic in all your planning; don’t just go through the motions and assume something good will happen. Desired results are the measure of success and the best way to determine whether ILTACON was successful is to know what you were trying to accomplish in the first place. But don’t forget to have some fun in the process!

 

Ken Gary, Baretz+Brunelle

ILTACON 2019 officially marks my 10th annual pilgrimage to the epicenter of legal technology. While Orlando may not be my favorite venue—particularly in August—once you have arrived within the halls of the conference none of that matters because you are now in an ideal situation to have meaningful conversations with legal technology experts, influencers and technology titans from around the globe. I plan to be an integral part of those discussions—so should you.

Content, sessions and the trade show halls aside, ILTACON offers infinite opportunities and possibilities. Look past the sponsored product commercials and showcases, the news trumpeting corporate mergers and acquisitions, and remember to look at the big picture. In my experience, the key to having a productive and enjoyable conference is simple: Be present. Live in the moment and remain open to meeting new people and learning from them. More often than not, this practice leads to valuable bridge building—the identification of common or perceived problems that inspire collaboration and, in many cases, begins to drive industry change.

We can all respect and appreciate that the modus operandi for law firms and corporate legal departments is to support, develop and effectuate innovation across legal technologies. Become part of the conversation, solve a problem or add some other value – join me in creating new opportunities for us all to thrive.

That’s my ILTACON. I look forward to seeing old friends, colleagues and to meeting many of you this week!

 

Ari Kaplan, Ari Kaplan Advisors

ILTACON is a great and very large event. As an attendee, therefore, it is critical to identify your objective in advance. Whether it is to gain substantive knowledge, meet your peers, connect with prospective clients, take a break and get out of the office, or some combination of these goals, there are a variety of things you can do to enhance the experience:

  1. Review your existing LinkedIn network to identify individuals in the same industry and ask each about meeting at the event.
  2. Search for second-level connections on LinkedIn with job titles similar to yours in the legal industry and send each an invitation asking whether they are attending the conference.
  3. Ask your clients if they are attending.
  4. Send LinkedIn connection requests to the speakers.
  5. Study the exhibitor directory to determine which vendors you will visit.

When you are attending a session, make it easy to strike up a conversation with a neighbor by sitting one seat off of the aisle to ensure that someone will sit next to you in the aisle seat or position yourself near an outlet for the same reason.

If you are a speaker, send LinkedIn invitations to your fellow panelists and share a brief LinkedIn post highlighting your participation with tags for your colleagues and ILTA. You may also want to let people know which other sessions you are looking forward to attending, with tags for those participants as a means of increasing the visibility of both programs.

Finally, bring thank you notes with stamped envelopes so you can mail the people you met, or collaborated with immediately from Orlando or on the flight home.