There are plenty of good things that typically come out of conferences and events, including important new contacts and a lot of new interest in your company. However, there are some fails that have come up so often that they’ve practically become clichés. The best way to avoid the most common mistakes is to know what they are and prepare for them. We’ve selected five of the most heinous – see how many of them you’ve come across before.

“There is no Internet connection”

It’s time for the star speaker to start their presentation. The venue’s packed to capacity and the speaker’s up on stage. Unfortunately, so is the tech support guy because the Wi-Fi’s decided that this is the ideal time to just stop working. Technology failures are the bane of important presentations, often either delaying the start or, if no solution can be found, sometimes cancelling it entirely. To avoid this, look out for Phuket conference venues that keep up with modern technology and always personally check the tech before finalising the booking.

“This slide says…”

Creating a compelling PowerPoint presentation is a skill and, quite frankly, it’s not a skill that many people have. It’s far too common for slides to be massively overloaded with irrelevant data, to the point that it’s impossible to see what’s important. Or, worse still, for the speaker to just read the slides out verbatim, using them as a script. If you’re planning an event and want it to be compelling and entertaining, consider offering guidance to your speakers in how to make the best use of their presentation.

“We’ve run out of food”

Catering is a very important aspect of a good conference or event. Hungry attendees will not be able to focus on what your speakers are saying, not least because their minds will be as full of bitterness as their stomachs are empty of food! It’s important to pick a Phuket conference venue that you’re confident can meet and exceed your expected catering requirements. Ideally, food should be prepared and served in waves so that there are no long waits for sustenance and so that there’s a regular flow of refreshments.

“It’s a healthy lunch”

Yes, there is an increasing trend towards conference attendees wanting healthy options, but there are still those who want unhealthy options, too. Not everyone can be satisfied with a salad. If you’ve got a big crowd, it’s best to offer as wide a variety of food as possible to keep everyone happy.

“Are there really no questions?”

Q&A sessions at the end of a presentations are so common that they’re practically expected. However, if your speaker fails to flow naturally into it, you can often find the call for questions met with a stony silence. People need time to think about what to ask, so it’s important to remind attendees that there will be the opportunity to ask questions at the end of the presentation. You could also have some questions prepared in advance to help ease more nervous crowds into the process. You could also consider using a system like Sli.do to allow people to ask questions anonymously, typing them on their phone throughout the presentation so that there’s a selection ready when Q&A time arrives.