Ideas / Around big conferences / Abroad
The breakfast before the doors open
A customer advisory breakfast. Twelve customers, one question about where your product should go next, done by half past nine.
How it runs
- 07:30Arrival and coffee.
- 07:45Your product lead frames one question.
- 08:00Discussion over breakfast.
- 09:15Wrap-up. A summary goes to everyone that day.
What to know
- Your best customers are already in town. That's the whole idea.
- The product team listens; sales doesn't pitch.
- Closing the loop within a few weeks is what makes them come back.
Good for
Customer retention, product input, advisory boards.
Not for
Prospects. This is for existing customers.
Questions planners ask
How do we pick the twelve?
A mix of your largest, most vocal and most recent customers. Variety beats seniority.
Who should host?
Your head of product or a founder. Customers want to be heard by someone who decides.
Can it become a recurring advisory board?
Yes. Many teams start here and repeat it at every big conference.
Thinking of doing this?
Borrow the idea, it's yours. If you'd like a hand, or just a second opinion on whether it suits your group, write to me. I produce ideas like this one at Sorry, No Polar Bears, a Helsinki studio I co-run.
Also strangely doable
Abroad
The morning run
An easy 5 km at seven, breakfast at the finish. The executives who skip every party turn up for this.
15–60 people · Conference week · €
Abroad
The roundtable with no slides
Fifteen seats, one sharp host, one question worth arguing about. No deck, no recording.
10–20 people · Conference week · €€
Abroad
The quiet base
A suite near the venue set up for 30-minute meetings, booked by your sales team all week.
1:1 meetings · Conference week · €€