As the CEO of Cart Basel, I’ve experimented with countless formats to facilitate meaningful growth and connection at my events.
Here are intentional collision points formats that lead to better business outcomes for your guests and sponsor.
Table of Contents
Unstructured Networking During Meal Time
This free-flowing time allows us to nourish the body and soul—increasing your guests’ blood sugar.
Fueling their conversations with food naturally allows your guests to physically be their best and create low-pressure uniformity through action among the guests.
Additionally, it eliminates the possibility of having guests stand around awkwardly by simply giving them something to do! Similar to the relaxing comfort of having a drink in your hand, holding a plate of food while networking brings out our vulnerable humanness.
Don’t feel self-conscious about how you look when you chew—we’re all doing it!
Unstructured Networking Without Food
In between mealtimes, you can allow guests to focus on the goals/topics at hand without any distractions.
Your guests are more likely to be locked-in to their thoughts as nobody is worried about refilling their plates.
Make sure non-alcoholic drinks are available to keep hydration levels up, but sometimes a 30-minute foodless general networking session will stimulate intensely productive conversations.
Keynote Speakers
Create segments in your event agenda to have specific topic-driven conversations presented by a keynote speaker—an industry expert or thought leader.
For example, an audience-wide 40-minute crash course on implementation of AI tools, leadership training, or running high ROI ad campaigns etc. will jam more knowledge into your guests than watching videos about the topic on YouTube ever could.
Make sure your speaker makes the segment engaging and leaves time at the end for practical Q&A.
Collaborative Discussions
To build on top of the “1-to-many” approach of a keynote speaker (like mentioned above), break your audience into smaller groups, and give them 15 minutes to discuss a specific topic between themselves.
Ideally, keep these groups under 15 people to allow maximum engagement between the participants. Your guests are intelligent, capable and experienced — let them share wisdom with one another; the results are astounding!
Conclusion
The magic happens when you stop trying to control every interaction and start creating the right conditions for authentic connections to flourish.
Key Takeaways:
- Unstructured networking with meals creates natural, low-pressure interactions while fueling productive conversations through shared action and increased energy levels
- Unstructured networking without food allows for focused, distraction-free discussions that can lead to intensely productive conversations in shorter timeframes
- Keynote speakers deliver concentrated knowledge transfer through expert-led sessions that engage audiences more effectively than passive content consumption
- Collaborative discussions in small groups (under 15 people) leverage your guests’ collective intelligence and experience to create peer-to-peer learning opportunities
- Strategic restraint works better than micromanagement—success comes from designing the right environmental conditions rather than controlling every interaction
Trust in your guests’ ability to create value for one another, and watch as your events transform from networking obligations into catalysts for genuine business growth.