Later this month I will be speaking at Day of .Net, a local developer conference here in St. Louis. The topic of my presentation is ‘UX != User Interface’. I hope to clear the room on what User Experience is and how it helps developers effectively do their jobs. Since I don’t have nearly all the answers, I am hoping the User Experience community will provide me with a few talking points that are important to them.

What are some of the top things you would want to get across to a room full of developers? What are the common pain points you have when working with developers? How would you ‘define the damn thing’?

Thanks in advance!

It is obvious to say that times are tough financially. Every business is trying to control its costs in order to best weather the storm, which makes asking for money difficult. What can you do to convince your manager that it is worth the time and money to send you to a conference like IDEA 09? Here are some tips to help you sell the idea of going to a conference.

What is the conference?

Provide a general overview of the conference, topics being covered, and how it differs from other conferences. Some managers haven’t been exposed to the many user experience conferences, so giving them a bit of history helps put everything into context. The best selling point though is pointing out how this conference differs from others. For example, IDEA is relatively low cost compared to similar conferences of the same quality.

What do you get out of it?

Many companies are starting to focus on the continued education of their employees. In some cases, there isn’t any formal education for user experience professionals continue to grow, and conferences are the best we have. Highlight some of the key topics or talks that directly relate to your responsibilities and how you will be able to improve your skills. Anything you can do to point out the ROI for you by attending the conference helps your case.

What does <Your Company> get out of it?

This conference trip can’t just be about you, it’s important to also point out what your company gets out of it. Showcase some speakers, or even other attendees, with expertise that directly relate to your industry. How can meeting or learning from these people benefit your company? If you are a member of team, offer to do some lunch and learns when you get back. This is one of the best forms of ROI you can provide to your company, and a great way to give back to your team.

How much is this going to cost?

Now that you have shown what you get out of the conference, and what how your will company benefit, it is time to talk dollar signs. Detail what the early bird costs are, and what it will cost once the early bird date has past. It’s also good to point out important dates here too, so your manager knows how long they have to approve your request. Pull up current prices for travel costs, I recommend Kayak for finding the best prices for flights or hotels. Extra fees and food costs are going to be an unknown, but still offer a reasonable ballpark figure.

Selling the trip can be hard, especially if the coin purse is tight. But, this shouldn’t stop anyone from asking, you just need to make sure your argument is solid. Even if they come back with a ‘No’, don’t give up. Start negotiating by offering to cover some of the costs. It never hurts to put a little skin in the game.

How do you sell conference trips to your company? What are some other methods you have used to go to conferences? I look forward to your comments.

photo credit: RobotSkirts