Meeting Expectations

Meeting and event planners put a lot of thought into the particulars of each function that they organize. Whether it’s the choice of venue or the selection of an appetizer, every detail matters. But the detail that may matter most is what attendees think of the event. Getting feedback from guests can help measure the success of the event and may dictate what happens at the next event.

“Taking the pulse of your group, knowing what they want, listening and learning about what a particular audience wants is really just good common sense,” says Elizabeth Sjobeck, president and owner of Meetings & Eventures, a Shoreview-based event planning firm.

Jane Stubblefield, events and community relations specialist for Minneapolis law firm Leonard, Street and Deinard, agrees: “It’s very important for us to get feedback about these events for a number of reasons. First of all, to make sure that they’re going to be worthwhile for the participants, and secondly, to make sure that they are going to be worthwhile for us also in terms of our marketing purposes.”

Asking the Right Questions

How do you solicit useful information from attendees? Every two years, Andrea Marfell, marketing and event coordinator for Minneapolis law firm Robins, Kaplan, Miller and Ciresi, plans a trial advocacy seminar for 500 attorneys. “I usually ask about what topics they would like to see for future events,” Marfell says. Those in attendance earn Continuing Legal Education credits, so Marfell believes it’s especially important to choose relevant topics.

Sjobeck, whose clients include medical and insurance associations, says her clients are focused on value. “For the medical-related conferences especially, we want to know what the take-home value is for them,” Sjobeck says. “Did they enjoy a particular topic? Did they enjoy a certain speaker? We want to know if we’re on the mark with that.”

Stubblefield says her surveys also attempt to get at the substance of the event. Her firm holds an annual Construction Update Seminar for construction, housing, and real estate professionals. “The questions really do get at something that we can do something about. It isn’t just ‘Did you like it?’ It’s ‘What about it did you like? What about it was the most important to you?’” Stubblefield explains.