In a recent Trade Talk, I invited you to submit story ideas and was happy to receive such a great response. Well, I’m back this time with a new entreaty: speak at one of our Quirk’s Events!
For 2019 we are adding a Quirk’s Event in London (February 12-13) to go along with our two U.S.-based events in Brooklyn, N.Y. (March 5-6) and Chicago (April 2-3), which means that our need for presenters has expanded by quite a bit.
Specifically, we’re looking for client-side researchers who are interested in sharing their knowledge and experiences with the hundreds of their peers who attend each of our gatherings. With this being our first time in London, I’d especially love to hear from any Europe-based corporate insights pros who would like to help us deliver the same kind of content that led 94 percent of the 2018 Brooklyn attendees we surveyed to say they were “likely” or “very likely” to recommend the event to their peers!
As with the articles in our magazine and e-newsletter, just about any topic related to marketing research is of potential interest, from case studies of successful projects (or, if you’re brave enough, unsuccessful ones!), tips and tricks for using certain methods or techniques, the thrilling tale of how you raised the profile of the insights function within your organization or how you reworked your company’s outdated approach to b2b segmentation.
As I often tell prospective authors or presenters who are searching for suitable topics, think about what you would like to read an article on or see a peer speak about. Odds are, if you’re interested, you’re not the only one.
And don’t self-edit. You may think your topic or story is potentially boring or uninteresting to anyone else but you’re wrong. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had conversations with client-side researchers about the fascinating work they’re doing, only to have them invariably add, “But that’s probably not worth writing or presenting about…” Uh, yes it is!
Also, don’t worry if you’re not the Tony Robbins of marketing research presenters. Being an engaging speaker is obviously a plus but I’ve sat through scads of talks where the presenter was polished and charming and clearly knowledgeable but offered very little of substance. (Actually, that pretty much describes the majority of keynotes I’ve seen in recent years.) On the flipside, I have also witnessed speakers struggle through their talks but still deliver valuable insights. To me, what makes a solid presentation boils down to a few key things but primary among them are the quality and usefulness of the information you’re imparting. If you’ve got a good story to tell, you’re halfway there.
While we can’t cover your airfare or hotel, as a client-side speaker at a Quirk’s Event we will certainly comp your entry into the conference (though when it’s usually under $150 to attend our events anyway, perhaps that’s not a huge enticement!) and you’ll end up with a nice achievement to add to your CV.
Even if you’re not interested in speaking, I’d love to hear your input for topics you would like to see covered at our conferences. Our team does its best to assemble the tracks at each event and we aim for a wide mix of industries (from CPG to entertainment to financial services, etc.), techniques and topics but we are always looking for new ideas.
Drop me a note at joe@quirks.com and let’s get the ball rolling!