Finding your target audience in a busy room

Written by Alex Bey - General Manager of Meet Aandi

I recently had the privilege of attending the Education 2.0 Conference in Las Vegas. A big city calls for a big conference, and it certainly was that.

My colleague Belinda and I were there to represent Australian innovation and to launch Meet Aandi in the American market. We were excited to share our mission and service offerings, as well as treats in the form of Australian made Darrell Lea Licorice Allsorts. After all, Meet Aandi is the accessibility solution for all sorts of people.

A conference with thousands of people in attendance can be quite overwhelming, and not every potential conversation is going to bring the same level of value. So many people, and so little time. So, I thought I would share my top tips for utilizing the time you have and finding the right people to talk to first. 

1. Spend a few minutes over breakfast to plan what you want to achieve in the day, and then search for people who are involved in what you are targeting that day. Having two of you there is a bonus because you can split the plan up and attack from two sides.
2. Engage with the person before engaging with their role. Asking someone what brings them to a conference before asking what their job is shows you are interested in them and their needs before your own. You can also gain information about what they are trying to achieve, and tailor your approach to matching that.
3. Know the difference between your elevator pitch and watercooler summary. That is, identified targets should get your elevator pitch while unvalidated leads can be validated with the less formal watercooler version. This will save time giving the harder sell to someone who is not your target, but means you will have enough of a ‘chat’ to determine if that person could be a target or a source of another lead.
4. Keep an eye out for who your competitors are talking to and take the time to find out about these people. Remember that true competitors often want the same thing you do, so they can help you validate leads unknowingly. Once you have scouted them, go and find them and present your elevator pitch. You have nothing to lose, and potentially a whole lot to gain.

Attending the conference was a terrific opportunity for us to get the measure of the size of the US market and its potential for Meet Aandi.

There is still much to do, however we are confident that Meet Aandi will help educators meet their accessibility and inclusion requirements.

Our goal is to remove the barriers for educators who are looking to remove the barriers for their students. That is, to make accessibility accessible!

If that’s your goal too, I would love to talk to you - whether it be the elevator pitch or a water cooler chat.

Reach out to me initially at alex@meetaandi.com.au

Or check out more about Meet Aandi at www.meetaandi.com