Get Accepted to Speak at SupplySide West

Six tips to get your speaker proposal accepted for this year’s SupplySide West.

Sandy Almendarez, VP of Content

February 29, 2016

3 Min Read
Get Accepted to Speak at SupplySide West

One of the best way to position yourself or your company as an expert in the natural product industry is to provide education to finished product brands. It shows decision makers that you have the information they need to further their business.

But first, you need to get the platform to get your message out.

The call for SupplySide West speakers is currently open, but it’s closing soon. SupplySide offers the chance to educate attendees of the largest conference for buyers and sellers in the global health and nutrition space. This year, SupplySide West Global Conference & Expo is held Oct. 4 to 8 in Las Vegas.

Here are my top six tips to getting your speaking proposal accepted by the SupplySide/INSIDER content team:

  1. Get your submittal in on time—Don’t delay. Go to west.supplysideshow.com/speakers.aspx  and fill out the application before March 4—that’s THIS FRIDAY. We have a procedure that we use to choose our speakers where the content team discusses and choses speakers and topics based on industry relevance, speaker qualifications, originality and audience demand. Submitting your topic in late is a sure-fire way to be overlooked.

  2. Fill out the entire form—The SupplySide team does a great job of marketing education to our audience before the show so attendees can plan their schedules around the sessions that are most important to them. In order to do this, we need to know everything about you. Well, not everything, but close to it. We need the submitter’s contact information (name, phone and email), the proposed speaker’s contact information (name, professional title, company, phone and email), the proposed speaker’s biography, the working session title, the session abstract and five learning objectives.

  3. Be Specific—We need a detailed and specific description of the topic you want to cover and why the proposed speaker is the best person to present on that topic. We get a lot of submissions, and it’s difficult for us to reach out to submitters to get clarification. Let us know exactly what you’re going to cover. For example, don’t say “botanical testing;" instead, say “A discussion of the of differences between FTIR and HPLC testing methods, and how they can each be used to substantiate claims in case an attorney general comes asking questions." And then, proceed to tell us how the testing methods can be used to substantiate claims.

  4. Be educational, not promotional—Let’s face it, SupplySide West attendees don’t want to waste their precious time listening to a commercial. You need to offer something that’s educational and that will really benefit their business. You will be seen as a subject matter expert, which could lead to new business, but speaking at SupplySide West isn’t the place to roll out your newest marketing campaign.

  5. Consider the audience—Creating a paleo eating plan or learning how to display products on a retail shelf are probably interesting presentations, but they won’t interest SupplySide attendees. Our audience members are the people that create, formulate and market finished products in the health and nutrition industry; they cover the food, beverage, supplement and personal care industries, and cover all types of ingredients, delivery forms and product categories. They are not, however, interested in topics that target consumers, retailers or health care practitioners.

  6. Align your proposal with our wish list of topics—Covering the industry every day allows us to identify trends that are important in the health and nutrition industry, and we’ve listed education topics we’d would love to offer to SupplySide West’s audience. See the full list on the speaker proposal page, but a few of the desired topics are: delivering on the clean label expectation, selecting appropriate sweeteners for confectionery products, gluten-free food market trends, and science vs. perception for pet food ingredients.

I hope these tips help you submit your proposal for SupplySide West this week. I look forwarding to seeing you on stage in Vegas!

About the Author

Sandy Almendarez

VP of Content, Informa

Summary

• Well-known subject matter expert within the health & nutrition industry with more than 15 years’ experience reporting on natural products.

• She cares a lot about how healthy products are made, where their ingredients are sourced and how they affect human health.

• She knows that it’s the people behind the businesses — their motivations, feelings and emotions — drive industry growth, so that’s where she looks for content opportunities.

Sandy Almendarez is VP of Content for SupplySide and an award-winning journalist. She oversees the editorial and content marketing teams for the B2B media brands SupplySide Supplement Journal and SupplySide Food & Beverage Journal, the education programming for the health and nutrition trade shows SupplySide Connect New Jersey and SupplySide West, the education program SupplySide Fresh for industry newcomers and community engagement across the SupplySide portfolio. She is a seasoned content strategist with a passion for health, good nutrition, sustainability and inclusion. With over 15 years of experience in the health and nutrition industry, Sandy brings a wealth of knowledge to her role as a content-focused business leader. With specialization in topics ranging from product development to content engagement, creative marketing and c-suite decision making, her work is known for its engaging style and its relevance for business leaders in the health and nutrition industry.

In her free time, Sandy loves running, drinking hot tea and watching her two kids grow up. She brews her own “Sandbucha” homemade kombucha; she’s happy to share if you’re ever in Phoenix!

Awards:

Speaker credentials

Resides in

  • Phoenix, AZ

Education

  • Arizona State University

Contact:

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