How to Convince your Boss to Send you to a Customer Experience Conference in 2016

“Wanna Get Away?” That is what Southwest airlines famously asked in their ads featuring regular people in embarrassing situations. Getting away isn’t only for an amazing vacation in Hawaii, it’s also an amazing professional opportunity that can help you further your career.  Here are some of the benefits to attending a customer experience conference that will convince your boss to buy you a ticket:

1. Sharpen the Saw

While this idea predates Stephen Covey, (he highlighted it as the seventh principle of effective people). The primary idea is that at times you need to take a break from your work and focus on building your skills. No dull axe will ever cut a tree as effectively as a sharp one. Every time you attend a conference, you will gain new ideas which will make you more efficient and effective at your work. You should avoid being a woodcutter who uses dull axes while your competitors are using very sharp axes, therefore, spending lesser time and energy. If the axe analogy is not working for you then simply remember, a new broom sweeps clean.

 

2. Meet Influencers and Experts Face to Face

Many conferences will offer you an opportunity to meet business experts and your chances at being able to pick their brains for a few minutes are always improved when sharing the same space. You will have opportunities to share ideas or to take a selfie with someone who has influenced you.

 

3. Network with your Peers

Social media enables us to meet with people of different backgrounds, both locally and from far away. The chances of meeting these people face to face are always low. In good conferences, you will have opportunities to mix and to mingle, to form new relationships while strengthening existing ones.

 

4. Learn about New Tools

Companies at customer experience conferences will always have new tools to display to attendees. Such tools may include apps which make CX faster and more effective. Others might reduce or even eliminate errors. While you can easily get the products in these companies’ websites, in a conference you will get hands-on demonstration specific to your business.

 

5. Learn in a Different Environment

Why do most businesses meet offsite? It is primary because sitting in the same office or coffee house can prevent fresh thinking and developing new ideas. Sitting in a conference room even for a single day will spark new ideas that will build your business.

 

Some customer experience conferences you should consider going to in 2016:

 

World Business Forum, 2016 New York

After the World Business Forum 2015 ended successfully, in 2016, this forum will explore the idea of business in beta.

Customer Experience Conference, 24th February 2016, London England

After 14 successful years, this conference is now focusing on offering solutions for businesses. It delivers practical insights from front-line customer experiences to enable organizations to raise their game.

Incite Summit, 17-18 May, San Francisco

The fourth time Incite Summit and which will be held in San Francisco in May 2016 will feature many marketing officers and other senior officers of the biggest brands in the world. In the summit, you will have an opportunity to debate on the future of marketing.

MozCon Local 2016, February 18th – 19th, Seattle

With a half day workshops and full day conference, you will get an opportunity to hear from some top local speakers on critical topics such as app search, local link building and content optimization.

 

If you need new ways of developing new CX strategies, you should consider attending a customer experience conference. You should also challenge yourself to find conferences that will fit your business needs. Always remember getting out to conduct business can be as productive as staying in your office.

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Matthew is the Lead Author & Editor of CXperience Blog. Matthew established the CXperience blog to create a source for news and discussion about some of the issues, challenges, news, and ideas relating to Customer Experience.