The following is a quick list and of twenty different ways to plan for fun at your next meeting:
1. 2.
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4. 5.
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Engage an entertaining speaker/humorist- Speakers and humorists provide more than just entertainment. By defi nition a speaker/humorist provides some percentage of meaningful message that is delivered with humor.
Engage a comedian- Comedians normally provide 100% entertainment with little or no message.
Announce a mystery guest- A mystery guest could be a real celebrity, a top industry fi gure or a celebrity imperson- ator. Keep your eyes open for celebrities who may be in the area at the time of your meeting. These people may be willing to stop by for some extra publicity.
Plant shills in the crowd- Hire an actor or enlist a boister- ous friend to heckle the speaker. Of course, this should be coordinated with the speaker. Funny lines and responses could be written for both the speaker and heckler.
Plan audience gags- Solicit fun audience members to participate in funny situations. For instance, audience members could be recruited to jump up and run out of the room when it is announced that IRS investigators have just entered the building.
7. 8. 9.
Plan icebreakers- Icebreakers are activities designed to get members of the audience interacting and meeting one another. A simple one would be to hand out several decks of cards (depending on the size of the audience). Each per- son takes a card. Then each audience member goes around introducing themselves. At the same time they are seeking out four other people to make the best poker hand. Give out prizes to the winning hand(s). A great resource for icebreakers is the four volume set of Games Trainers Play.
Convention updates- Things happening at the conven- tion are highlighted (usually by a comedian using a news- caster format). These updates are a few minutes each and done at each general session. This is done every year at the National Speakers Association Convention and brings down the house.
Pass out beach balls- Audience members will toss the balls around in large general sessions before the program starts. You see this being done all the time at large sporting events. Don’t do this in rooms where tables are set because things will get knocked over.
Hold a “safe” murder mystery- “Safe” means that no one commits a murder which scares the crowd to death. You simply announce that one of the staff, association members, employees etc. is missing and the audience will
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10. 11. 12. 13.
14. 15. 16.
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19. 20. 21.
all become detectives during the time of the conference. Give prizes to the best detectives.
Stuff helium balloons with special prizes- Everyone loves balloons, especially if they can pop them and get a prize. They also make a festive atmosphere in the room.
Build large balloon sculptures- The sculptures could be your company logo or some other pertinent symbol. (This will require a team of balloon experts).
Hold contests- Karaoke and lip sync teams are lots of fun and very popular. Other examples could be indoor minia- ture golf, bowling, fi rst person seated at sessions, etc.
Do the opposite- Hold an indoor picnic when it’s freezing outside or hold a holiday party in July.
Set up carnival games- Many companies make complete indoor carnival setups available for conventions and meet- ings.
Set up weird attractions- Human bowling, Velcro® jump-
ing, and cash cubes are all goofy, but fun attractions for your participants.
Hire costumed theme characters- Ben Franklin is perfect for Philadelphia, George Washington for DC, etc.
Hire other characters- Strolling mimes, jugglers, stilt walk- ers and clowns always draw lots of attention.
Plan for fun foods- Caterers can make special candies, cakes or other foods that match the theme of your confer- ence. I stayed at The Peabody Hotel recently. This hotel has ducks march to and from the lobby. Everything in the hotel including the butter is shaped like a duck. Of all the hotels I’ve ever stayed in, this is the only hotel that I can really remember.
Give everyone lightsticks- This would be fun in a large general session or if the attendees are going to a nighttime attraction.
Print t-shirts- Each division could be issued a different color. Put some fun design or company specifi c saying on each shirt.
I’m sneaking in an extra one because it’s my policy to always give you more than expected- Distribute a conven- tion or meeting newsletter. Always include funny items that are happening during the convention.
Tom Antion is a veteran of over 3,000
speaking engagements and knows what it takes to jazz up a meeting. He can be reached at www.AmazingPublicSpeaking.com or www.GreatInternetMarketingTraining.com
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