BIO on a Budget
By Michele Parisi, BioComm Network
With a
bit of planning and “pre-work”, attendance at the annual BIO meetings and
conferences can be a very valuable investment for your company. But between the
registration fees, airfare, hotel and “on the ground” expenses, industry and
trade show attendance is never cheap, and BIO is no exception. Whether you're
wondering how to make BIO work on a very limited budget or just want to ensure
you get the most for your money when you attend, here are some tips that can
help you reduce your BIO budget and maximize the return on your company's
investment in this important annual meeting.
TRAVEL
Don't pay full price for airfare: BIO offers discounted
airfare rates for international meeting attendees. For the BIO 2006 meeting
in Chicago, you can receive a 10 percent discount off any United, Lufthansa
or United Express published fare (excluding First Class) when tickets are
purchased subject to applicable restrictions. Or, you can receive a 15
percent discount on a full coach fare booked in Y class of service. For more
information, go to www.bio.org/events/2006/hotel.dev/travel.asp. To obtain
discounted flights, call United Meeting Plus Reservation Center toll free at
1-800-521-4041. Refer to meeting ID 557QX.
Book your hotel room early: Always plan to book your BIO hotel room three
months in advance. If you haven't already booked a room in one of the
official Chicago meeting hotels, do so today! BIO has negotiated reduced
room rates at selected hotels near Chicago's McCormick Place convention
center. All of these hotels offer free shuttle services to the center,
thereby saving you money on cab fare. For a list of official BIO hotels and
their amenities, go to www.bio.org/events/2006/hotel.dev/rates.asp. To save
even more money, select one of the hotels with complimentary Internet
service.
Whenever the hotel you want is “sold out”, ask to be put on the waiting list
and notified as soon as a room becomes available. Then book a room in one of
the overflow hotels (for Chicago, go to www.bio.org/events/2006/hotel.dev/).
Many times these hotels do not offer shuttle service, so use your networking
skills to reduce cab expenses: Introduce yourself to anyone who looks like
they're going to the convention center each morning and suggest that you
share a cab ride. You'll save money AND expand your network of biotechnology
contacts!
Be aware of cab fares: Investigate shuttle and mass transit options before
you depart for BIO. Download the mass transit schedules and maps, and be
prepared to use them for the often long trip from the airport to your hotel.
In Chicago, it is approximately 21 miles from O'Hare International Airport
to McCormick Place convention center. For an inexpensive and convenient
alternative to cabs, Chicago's Blue Line light rail provides 24-hour access
between downtown Chicago and O'Hare International Airport. Trains run
approximately every eight minutes from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through
Friday, and approximately every 10 minutes from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. on
weekends. A one-way fare for the 45-minute ride is $2.00.
The Blue Line station is located at the lowest level of the O'Hare
International Main Parking Garage (next to elevator center 4) and is
accessible by pedestrian tunnels located in Terminals 1, 2, and 3. From
Terminal 5, take the Airport Transit System (ATS) to Terminal 3 and follow
the signs.
MEETING FEES
What level of access do you need? Carefully consider what
you want to get out of each BIO meeting before purchasing your registration
packet. Do you want or need to attend all of the scientific sessions, the
breakfast and lunch plenary sessions, the business forum, exhibit hall AND
evening receptions? If so, you'll need to purchase a full registration for
each person attending. For the 2006 Chicago meeting, this will cost $1,995
for non-members and $1,495 for members. (Note that if you haven't already
registered for the 2006 BIO meeting, you'll now need to do so on-site).
You can save money on registration fees if you can accomplish your
objectives without attending the breakfast/lunch plenary sessions and
evening receptions. For Chicago, “Option 2” registration type includes
access to all sessions, the business forum and exhibit hall only. The cost
for this packet is $1,195 for BIO members and $1,695 for non-members – a
savings of $300 either way.
Finally, if you plan to conduct your business primarily outside of the BIO
scientific and educational sessions, but would like the opportunity to
network with meeting attendees and companies, you should considering
purchasing a very cost-effective exhibit hall pass. For $350 (non-members)
or $250 (BIO members) you can purchase three days of access to the BIO 2006
exhibit hall (during regular hours only). With this package you can also pay
for and attend individual events and sessions from an “a la carte” menu of
meeting options. Go to www.bio.org/events/2006/reg/options.asp for more
information about registration packets and options.
If you want or need to hear the information presented in the scientific
sessions but don't actually need to attend them, consider purchasing CD-ROMs
from the meeting. With this option, everyone in your company can share and
benefit from the information presented at BIO without having to attend the
meeting.
Making the Most of Your Time in Chicago
Plan ahead! Traveling to BIO conferences with no plan of
action is the biggest way to waste money, because your time there will not
be used effectively. Here is an outline of steps to help you prepare:
Outline your objectives. Do you want to identify potential partners?
Discover one or more acquisition candidates? Check up on the progress of
competitors?
Invest in one-on-one partnering (see the articles in this newsletter for a
description of partnering and its many benefits)
Enlist the help of a Business Development Firm, such as DNA Gateway, to help
you with your profile development, messaging, your corporate and technology
presentations and the identification of potential partners.
Review the BIO meeting schedule and determine which sessions or events will
help you accomplish your goals. Do you need to attend the scientific
sessions? Or can you accomplish what you need in partnering meetings and the
exhibit hall?
Develop a schedule for each day. Schedule time for travel to and from the
convention hall, partner meetings, checking e-mail messages, etc.
Give yourself time: Don't take the last flight out the evening before you're
supposed to be at a conference. If there are problems with your flight, you
could miss your first meeting and throw your entire schedule off track. In
addition, you will want to arrive with enough time to get some rest, catch
up on e-mail and other messages, and be fully prepared to get the most from
your time at the convention.
And finally, prepare for each day: Take time before leaving your hotel each
morning to review your schedule and jot down your objectives for the day.
Organize the business cards you collected the day before, and make notes
about any opportunities you will pursue once you are back in your office.
Pack yourself a small “care package” to ensure you feel your best throughout
the day: This might include a bottle of water, a packet of aspirin and/or
antacid, a small snack or change for vending machines, etc. Also, you'll be
shaking a lot of hands, so think about bringing hand sanitizer or a package
of anti-bacterial towelettes.
With a
bit of planning and “pre-work”, attendance at the annual BIO meetings and
conferences can be a very valuable investment for your company. But between the
registration fees, airfare, hotel and “on the ground” expenses, industry and
trade show attendance is never cheap, and BIO is no exception. Whether you're
wondering how to make BIO work on a very limited budget or just want to ensure
you get the most for your money when you attend, here are some tips that can
help you reduce your BIO budget and maximize the return on your company's
investment in this important annual meeting.