Organizations devoted to legal matters face a series of important choices right now. One of the most important is to how to hold a legal conference. Conferences devoted to legal matters a chance for people to get together in person, discuss issues pertaining to the legal field and make connections. With the advent of COVID-19, organizations such as International Legal Technology Association or (ILTA) have faced the challenge of figuring out how to navigate in a deeply changing world.
With that in mind, such organizations have chosen to cancel their conferences. Instead, they are holding events such as “ILTA>ON” and Clio Cloud Conference where all interaction is taking place online. While the online conference can seem the ideal response to the need for safety measures today, it too poses challenges. A well managed conference is a must for anyone in the legal conferencing field. It is important to keep in mind the kind of specific issues that make any kind of conference a true success in the modern world. Attention to detail is key. Everyone at the conference even at a distance needs to feel relaxed. The same is true of any vendors. Timing of each session also needs a great deal of attention.
New Connections
One of the goals of attending any legal conference is making those all important legal connections. Legal connections can help expand any business and provide people with a better pathway to the legal career they want. Anyone who is planning a legal conference today should keep this in mind when it comes to the virtual world. It’s still possible to make such connections even at a distance. Allowing chances for people to interact in a low key way can facilitate their ability to make the conference a success no matter where they are.
Working With Vendors
Vendors offer products at a conference that can help lawyers do business more efficiency. New developments are always being made. For those planning a legal conference, legal product development can open new fields of legal practice. Any legal conference organizer should work closely with legal vendors in order to help them figure out how to better reach their potential clients even when they’re in another place. Vendors should be allowed to consider ways to reach out via the use of the conference. In doing so, they can help the organizer fund the conference and make it a success.
Pay Attention to Time
It can be harder to keep track of time when working online. People may not have the same cues they have in person that helps them pace a presentation. Those who are watching the conference at home can rapidly feel a sense of burnout. The conference organizer should look for ways to ensure that the presenters and the people attending are not taxed too much. Think about keeping any presentations to an hour and a half a most. That will help people concentrate on the work they’re doing and help them avoid feeling tired as the conference goes along.
Standing Out
As more and more conferences head online, standing out can be tough. This is why so many conference organizers are looking for ways to make it clear they have something special to offer. Consider ways to provide something extra for people at the conference. The use of distance learning makes it easier for organizations to book a number of otherwise hard to get guest speakers. A speaker may be hard pressed to take time out from a busy schedule to fly all the way to Nashville or Los Angeles. However, they can find it very easy to take an hour or two to show up and speak to people directly via remote conferences. An organizer can make sure their conference is deeply memorable.
True Engagement
Flying to an entirely new location is one way to get out of a rut. When people are attending a conference online, it can feel like just another day spent in front of Zoom screens. The savvy planner needs to think about new ways to help people connect and feel this a wonderful opportunity even when they’re sitting at home in their kitchen grabbing a cup of coffee. Ideals like music that keyed to this specific conference can make this a conference people will enjoy even if they’re not in a hotel room. Other ideas like interactive polls can offer the experience people want today in a legal conference.
Source: https://www.law.com/legaltechnews/2020/07/30/5-challenges-to-overcome-before-taking-a-legal-tech-conference-virtual