#9. Things To Do On the Way To the Conference

Whether you’re flying, driving, training or busing to your next conference, I have compiled some ideas of things to keep you busy and make your commute less painful!

Review your conference checklist to make sure you are as prepared as possible prior to arriving at the conference. This will help you to hit the ground running once you get to the show.

• Look at the conference agenda and map out your conference game plan. Research the attendee list to see which companies and which speakers have sessions that you don’t want to miss.
• Map out the conference and find booths to visit. Identify which companies will be exhibiting and who you would like to meet.
• Finalize and practice your elevator pitch so you are ready and prepared when someone asks what you do. Conference pro and Affiliate Summit Co-Founder, Missy Ward, has written a great article with some ideas on how to craft the perfect pitch.
• If you have the ability, get caught up on as much daily in-office work as possible. Once you are at the conference, chances are you will want to take advantage of as many networking opportunities as you can. So you may not has as much down time to check in at the office as you usually do.

Get educated on the current events and issues in the industry. This way you’ll be familiar with a lot of the conversations, questions, and concerns that are likely to come up. As an added bonus you will also have a nice arsenal of topics that you can use to start a conversation as well.

• ShareASale’s Merchant Catalog 
• FeedFront Magazine, Official Magazine of Affiliate Summit
• Geekcast.fm, Affiliate Marketing podcasts
• PMA Blog, The official blog for the Performance Marketing Association

* reading not recommended for drivers

You’re going to be on your feet for the next several days talking to dozens, if not hundreds of people. So take it easy and rest your voice before the chaos begins! If you are looking for some ideas on how to kick back, you could:

• Listen to your favorite jams. My own personal favorite road trip playlist always includes: Jake Owen, Luke Bryan and OAR.
• Watch a movie. What better way to kill a few hours than to be engrossed in a belly aching comedy or a glued to the edge of your seat suspense thriller.
• If you have a travel buddy, play a game! There are some classic crowd pleasers out there that are easy to pack too, such as I Spy, 20 questions and Mad Libs are oldies. You also can never go wrong with a deck of cards.
• SLEEP! – something you may not be getting much of at the conference. So might not be a bad idea to squeeze in as many zzz’s as possible.

I wish you all safe and fun travels, and hopefully I’ll be seeing you at a conference this summer!