If you think showing up is enough, you’re already behind. In this special episode of Ten Minute Talks, Brena Nath sits down with Allison LaForgia to unpack the real playbook behind successful conference strategy, from pre-event positioning to post-event execution. This is the framework for professionals who want to turn their experience at The Gathering into a competitive advantage.
From leveraging LinkedIn and the Event Ap to scheduling high-impact meetings, to using insights as conversation starters, Brena outlines how to navigate The Gathering with intention. She also dives into the importance of authenticity in networking and how to ensure the insights you hear don’t fade by Monday morning. If you want to take your experience at The Gathering to the next level, this is your blueprint.
#HousingWire #TheGathering #EventMarketing #RealEstateEvents
From leveraging LinkedIn and the Event Ap to scheduling high-impact meetings, to using insights as conversation starters, Brena outlines how to navigate The Gathering with intention. She also dives into the importance of authenticity in networking and how to ensure the insights you hear don’t fade by Monday morning. If you want to take your experience at The Gathering to the next level, this is your blueprint.
#HousingWire #TheGathering #EventMarketing #RealEstateEvents
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NewsTranscript
00:02I'm Alison LaForgia, and I have a very special episode of 10 Minute Talks today coming to you
00:09on a Saturday morning. I am joined by Brenna Nath, the VP of Events and Community with HousingWire.
00:17Brenna, thank you for joining me for this special episode.
00:20It's an honor to get to be a special guest, especially ahead of something I'm so passionate
00:24about. So thank you for having me. Well, I have been doing so much prep work personally for the
00:32gathering that I thought it would be a good time to have a conversation for people who aren't in all
00:38the meetings and aren't in on the back end of all the prep calls and maybe are attending for the
00:44first
00:44time this year. So I want to get the full blueprint for the gathering. I want to know all of
00:50the
00:51details, and I want to start with exactly where I just started, event prep. How would you recommend
00:57attendees start preparing for the gathering ahead of the event next week?
01:02I selfishly am glad you asked this because it's so important, but also what I've noticed,
01:07and I'm not just saying this because I lead events, but I think there's a movement going on in the
01:12industry that we're all very excited about conferences, but we also know that there's
01:17an importance out. It's not just attending. There is prep work that needs to be done to ensure that
01:23you maximize the event and have it feed different parts of business KPIs that you have to hit. It's
01:31not just attending. There's so much that you need to do to amplify your being in the room.
01:37So the number one thing I would say, which I'm excited about because we had really good response to
01:42this was we just sent an email last week to all attendees saying, Hey, reach back out to us.
01:48Send us your headshot if you want. And I'm attending graphic to post on LinkedIn. This industry is very
01:53active on LinkedIn. We're very active on Instagram as well, but start there, whether it's when we gave
01:58you or you posting on your own self, let people know you're going to be in the room, whether it's
02:03our conference or other conferences. We have an event app that you can download, see all attendees.
02:09One important call out for anyone who does download our app. You can't see yourself in that because you
02:13can't message yourself in the app. So that is something that I will call out logistically,
02:17but that's just, that's key. Number one is you need to be known. You need to get loud about where
02:23you're going to be. And that starts by letting people know. And then from there, the step two
02:28is reach out and start scheduling the meeting. Start having not an automated mass email that goes
02:35out to everybody, but a one-to-one direct communication. And I call that out for this
02:39event specifically due to the high caliber decision makers that are in the room, but like
02:43have an authentic conversation. I think side note, we're in a world where AI is getting more
02:49important and people do question, is this a human talking to me or is this an AI talking
02:52to me? Break through that. Let them know that you are there, you care, and you want to meet
02:56up. So those are the two call outs that I would flag.
02:59I think that's fantastic. And I can tell you, I have been digging through the app and what
03:06stands out to me is that there are so many different types of panelists. You have, you
03:11have housing economists, you have analysts, you have operators, people who are dealing with
03:17one of the most complex markets that can seemingly change with an announcement that happens Friday
03:23evening after markets close, whatever happens over the weekend. So things have just been
03:29increasingly complex. How do you recommend for those attending, approaching, planning their
03:36sessions or their content as we approach the event?
03:39I'm glad you're in the app because that's definitely the number one place to go. There
03:42is like a save it feature in there to ensure that you go to the sessions and you're bookmarking
03:47in essence, the people you want to see, the sessions you make sure that you don't want
03:51to miss, which is important because I mean, the first question you asked my answer to you
03:56was schedule meetings, let people know you're there. The last thing you want to do though
04:00is schedule a meeting during a session that you're like, this is a must. Listen, we have
04:04some very important people coming into the room. You have the CEO of Cross Country Mortgage,
04:08Ron Lenhart. You have the CEO of Keller Williams, the CEO of Remax, the CEO of Penny Mac. These
04:13are sessions where they, I mean, take last year, for example, last year at the first time on
04:19stage that after the acquisition from Rocket, Mr. Cooper and Redfin all through on stage together,
04:24that session was a moment that a lot of people were talking about afterwards. That's not a message
04:29you wanted to miss. Last year, we had a handful of people just announcing their M&A acquisitions
04:35right after they're on stage. This year, we have Sue Yannacone on stage with Compass.
04:40That's a really big thing in the news. So I call these out because these are the sessions that like,
04:43it's the first time they're talking about something post-merger, post-announcement,
04:48post-game plan. And so start the sessions, make sure that you're taking the time to figure out
04:54where that content is that you need to be in, and then kind of move the meetings that you have
04:58around that. But that would say is probably the most important thing is figure out what you're
05:02looking at the year ahead. Who are the people who are my competitors that I'm here from? Who are the
05:06people that I want to model their business? They're doing strategic things with AI. They're doing
05:10strategic things with technology, strategic things with servicing right now. I want to hear from them
05:14to figure out what is their playbook that they're using. Figure that how applies your business and
05:19then kind of do the rest from there. I have a follow-up question. I've noticed that there are two
05:25forms listed on two different days and there is a women of influence form on the last day of the
05:33event.
05:34Can anybody go to these? Are these separate? What are the logistics there?
05:39I'm going to start every answer back to you with, I'm so glad you asked. Can you tell? I'm excited
05:45if I respond with, I'm so glad you asked every single time. Big thing I want to call out there,
05:50which is why I'm so glad you asked, is it does not require an extra ticket. I've had a couple
05:55people
05:55get back to me and just like say, hey, do I need to purchase something else for this? No, you
05:59do not.
06:00The Marketing Leaders Forum, the Vanguard Forum, and the Women of Influence Forum are built off of,
06:05the live in-person activation of our awards around that. Everyone's invited to the room,
06:12but it is important to remind people what is the theme of those sessions. That's kind of how I've
06:16been wording about it. Marketing Leaders Forum, everyone's allowed in the room. It does lean
06:20towards the marketing expert. Vanguard Forum, people are invited into that room, but it's really for
06:25executives, which is most of the audience. I just created a pie chart. We're talking 66% of the
06:30audience is VP level or higher. So not a small amount, which is why I say a lot of people
06:34are allowed
06:35into that room or wanted into that room. That tends to go more playbook, leadership,
06:411% of your story that you don't hear everyone else anywhere else. And the last day is the Women
06:45of Influence Forum. Once again, I'm a big believer that change starts with everyone in being in that
06:50room. So I hope people come, they stay, we'll have brunch, we'll have mimosas. For anyone who knows
06:56Texas and knows the check stop, I'm a really big check stop tan. We'll have check stop within that room.
07:01And so yes, everyone's welcome to attend all three of those.
07:05Now, one of the really magical things about this event is there are so many fortuitous
07:12situations where you run into someone. So there's really a lot of value that happens outside of the
07:18session. So you have content and then you can run into someone as you're going to pickleball or going
07:24to a reception. How would you recommend turning something that you learn from a session, be it a
07:31keynote session or a presentation from Logan or an analyst, into a conversation? What's your framework
07:39for taking, I learned something to, I did something at this event?
07:44My immediate thought is, yes, that will happen. So be prepared for it. There are going to be some
07:49interesting things set on stage that will turn into conversation stars the rest of the day.
07:54So it's a great thing to have in your pocket. If you're like, I don't know where to start.
07:57If you heard that interesting thing on stage, they heard that interesting on stage. Talk about it.
08:01When you see them at pickleball in the hallway at the bar, don't be afraid to say hello.
08:06And then the second thing I would call out is remember who's in the room. Like the stat I said
08:10earlier, 66% of this room is VP level or higher. What that looks like is they don't necessarily want
08:16a transactional relationship where you come in and try to sell for them. They want a relationship
08:22that is authentic. Someone who actually gets to know them that says, hi, that's why I always say
08:27it's great to play pickleball. It's great to play golf because you put on a different hat
08:31and you get to let them know maybe what's one thing you want to learn about them in the course
08:34of normal 60 seconds, but you're at a resort. You're going to run into people a lot. That's why we
08:38have these conferences at resorts. So you can have authentic connections throughout the period of the
08:45event. So that's probably what I would call out is be ready, take notes. I'll kind of go into it
08:49a little bit more with my final thoughts before we wrap. But I did want to call out that we
08:55have
08:55a really cool activation on site through our event hub that there'll be a QR code on stage the whole
09:00time. We're taking live notes for the whole event. That's one of the coolest things of AI
09:05is that if you scan the code, you go to the session afterwards, we have an editor dedicated fully
09:10to editing the transcript and the notes from the session and putting on there. So if you're like,
09:14I know something is interesting, but I really don't want to butcher it. What was said,
09:18go to live notes. Everyone who's an attendee gets three months free subscription. This is for
09:22subscribers, but everyone there can be a subscriber. Figure out the notes and share it.
09:27That is amazing. And I want to specifically double down on the networking piece of this because we know
09:35that networking is critical at an event like this, but some people approach it maybe with a flawed
09:43execution plan. They don't connect. They're focusing on collecting additional LinkedIn connections.
09:52What does intentional networking actually look like at a conference that covers the whole housing system?
10:01Yeah. The first thing that I try to set stage for, which I mean, their connection has different
10:09faces throughout the event. So as someone planning this event, I try to keep in mind,
10:15not everyone is an extrovert. Some of you guys are introverts. So we do have dedicated moments at the
10:19beginning to help you ensuring that you're not just collecting LinkedIn's, but you're forming an
10:24authentic relationship. So we have like day one, welcome reception, a really cool networking game
10:29that does involve Logan and Sarah and turns into like a bet. So whoever gets the most votes has to
10:33do X, Y, Z thing. I E maybe Sarah has to start every sentence with. So basically at the beginning
10:39of housing wire daily, if she gets the most votes, really fun execution where hopefully we all can
10:45collectively have the same mission. But from there, what that looks like is when you see someone say,
10:50say hello, ask them about them, learn to listen, learn to ask questions, be curious. And that's,
10:56I mean, that's life advice. Be curious about people, learn to ask questions, but that's what
11:00I would call out. You know, everything else I just said is making sure you're learning who's in the
11:04room, letting people know you're in the room. And once you're there, don't act like, okay, I'm just
11:08checking a box, get to know them and remain curious on who they are. Now let's address the Monday
11:13morning problem. You had an incredible three days, great conversations, great energy. Then you get back to
11:19your desk and it all just fades. What's your system for making sure that the gathering actually
11:25shows up in your business three, six months later? How do you turn this into a catalyst?
11:30Two, two calls that come immediately to mind, maybe a third will form. The first one is I mentioned
11:36that events hub, take those notes, write them down, save them, um, and follow them, figure out what
11:42they're doing and say, okay, this is what they're, they're doing in their business here is how I'm going
11:45to apply that to my KPIs or just gut check it against the competition. The second thing I would
11:49say, sometimes I'm old school, sometimes I love a business card. Lately, I've been really into
11:52screenshots of someone's LinkedIn page. If I do add them, we just mentioned don't collect LinkedIn, but
11:56it is important to ask someone something, um, for our women of influence forum on Thursday, we have one
12:03call up where you're like, Hey, take a photo with your table that we have something that you can
12:06remember them by. And so there is a line there. We don't say don't just collect LinkedIn, meaning don't get
12:11any connections, but also just be authentic about it. It is important to, you know, check in one
12:15other call that came at the end of the gathering. So maybe it was that third thing that I mentioned
12:18earlier, which is follow up with people, you know, like every day, give yourself a good habit. I met
12:23these five people every day, check in, Hey, how are you doing? What's going on? And don't let those
12:27connections just be the one time thing, but keep checking in with them. And so those are probably the
12:33three things that I would say is keep in touch, look at the notes, um, and figure out how you
12:38can apply
12:38them. Brenna, thank you so much for giving us the blueprint on how to plan for the gathering and
12:44how to get the most out of the event. I can't wait to see you in Austin on Monday. Thanks.
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