Planning a conference involves hundreds of moving parts across months of preparation. This checklist breaks the entire process into phases so nothing slips through the cracks.
Define conference goals, set target audience and attendance, choose dates, establish a total budget, select and book your venue, identify keynote speakers, decide on conference format, and form your organizing committee.
Finalize the speaker lineup, open your call for proposals, launch your conference website and registration, set ticket pricing, begin sponsor outreach, arrange accommodation blocks, and confirm catering.
Build your detailed day-of schedule, collect speaker bios and presentations, order signage and printed materials, confirm AV requirements, arrange photography, and brief volunteers and on-site staff.
Arrive at least 2 hours before registration opens. Verify room setup, run a final AV test, brief registration staff, confirm speaker arrivals, and keep a real-time issues log.
Send thank-you emails within 48 hours, share recordings and slides, distribute a satisfaction survey, settle all vendor invoices, debrief with your team, and begin planning the next event.
Easy Planning Tracker lets you manage your full conference schedule, assign tasks to team members, and track your budget in one shared workspace. Start your free trial.