3) BE PREPARED! The Boy Scouts were on to something. Meetings and conferences require much more preparation than you might expect. Once you have picked a location, start recording everything. You might make hundreds of decisions, but if everything is in writing, you can avoid problems (and disputes) later on. Make a checklist of everything you need to do, overlay a timeline, attach relevant contact information and keep the list up to date. The Wartburg can help you work through these many details.

4) KNOW WHO IS COMING. Your registration kit should be clear, easy to fill out and brief. Don't bury the registration form under a pile of flyers from sponsors. The registration kit will set the tone of the event, so make sure that you communicate your objectives. Don't forget to ask about dietary requirements, mobility impairments and so forth. In addition, use registration kits as if they were direct mail. Don't be afraid to send out several of them until you get a response. Once people register, confirm this with a package that includes the program, as well as accommodation and transportation details.

5) STICK TO AN AGENDA. Provide the agenda in advance and stick to it. If the meeting starts going off track, summarize what has been said and move ruthlessly to the next topic. One person's meandering shouldn't ruin the event for everyone else. Further, if you are running a conference with multiple events in multiple locations, don't let events run long. Nothing makes people angrier than the logjams that build up behind a slipping schedule.

6) TEST THE AUDIO-VISUAL EQUIPMENT. Projectors seem to have an intuitive appreciation for Murphy's Law and an evil sense of humour, to boot. Put all the AV equipment through its paces beforehand, in the facility itself, and make backup plans if something fails. Internet connections can be especially fickle. If you can afford it, have a technician on hand and give this person a script of the event.

7) START WITH A BANG. The first impression will last the longest and will set the tone. If you have a registration desk, keep it neat and make sure that you have enough friendly people to handle the rush. The first event should impress as well. It is tempting to leave your star speaker, or your most anticipated seminar, for the last day or hour of an event. But by that time, many of your participants will be tired, or preoccupied with plans for getting home, or will have already left.

8) BRIEF THE SPEAKER. If you are using a "star" speaker, make sure that this person knows your audience. A serious-minded audience will not appreciate a hip comic, for example, and a speaker who makes obvious gaffes will lose credibility. Make sure the speaker knows the demographics of the audience and your objectives for the meeting. And give the speaker your phone numbers. If he or she is stuck at O'Hare Airport ten minutes before your event starts, you'll need to know.

9) MAKE THE AUDIENCE PARTICIPATE. The longest anyone can listen to a speech is 20 minutes, if it is presented well, and 10 minutes otherwise. Break things up to keep the audience's attention. Have the speakers ask for feedback from the audience, using open-ended questions. "Let's have a show of hands. How many of you have had this problem?" Find out up front, out loud, what people are expecting that day. Consider using speaker panels and Q&A sessions to break the monotony of having one speaker drone on.