Management teams of all micro cap companies share common goals: increase the share price, increase the company market cap and generate higher liquidity. These three goals are usually a bi-product of each other, however, to achieve these goals, management must market the company. Companies may not realize the benefits of pro-active marketing immediately but by building an audience in conjunction with positive company developments, higher liquidity, increased share price and higher market capitalization are sure to follow.

Teaming up with a reputable investor relations firm is one way to generate interest. Support from the sell side and investment banking community will assist in expanding awareness. Aside from coordinating road shows, sell side firms and independent third-party companies host conferences geared towards the micro cap community. Attendees at these conferences range from portfolio managers, analysts, investment bankers, venture capitalists to family offices and high net worth private investors. A quick Google search reveals several conferences put out by various firms. Some conferences are invite only while others involve a fee. A key question CEOs ask themselves is: “Which conference is worth it?” For the purposes of this blog, we will focus on conferences that require a fee to have the opportunity to present. All CEOs prefer quality over quantity when presenting their company. Given the significant resources required (flights, hotels, conference fee, time away from the office) companies can walk away from a conference frustrated if the meetings lacked quality. Below are some tips to ensure the next conference you attend is worth the resources required to present:

Experience – Reputable firms will have several references from past companies that have attended their conference. This is a very effective way for management to perform diligence and see if a conference is worth attending. If your company works with an IR firm, have them reach out to the conference coordinators and ask for a list of past presenting companies that can be contacted to give an opinion on their own personal experience. If several prior presenting CEOs express dissatisfaction, then you might want to think twice before deciding to present. Experience is a two-way street. Not only will a reputable conference have a list of past presenting companies, they will also have a list of prior attendees. Personal information is not required, but fund names should be made readily available. A glance or review of the prior attendees will give you an idea as to the quality of investors who are attending and whether they are serious about looking for new investments or whether they are looking to pitch their own products or services. Any conference coordinator that hesitates or is unable to share a prior attendee list should be a factor before deciding to attend a conference. Does this mean you should avoid any “Inaugural Conferences”? No! However, you should ensure that a presenting and attending list is available, and the fee being charged should reflect the Conference’s Inaugural status.

Service – It is a given that a CEOs time is limited. Before committing to any conference, you must ensure that the service the conference provides is top notch. You need to ensure that you have a dedicated rep to reach out to if you have questions or if there are changes to your schedule. Since most meetings are limited to 30 minutes, you cannot afford to be situated in a wrong meeting room, experience technical issues or have a shortage of company power points. With so many moving parts and bodies, a smooth transition from meeting to meeting is critical. In fact, conferences should ensure that you present in one room and have the meeting attendees come to you to hear your presentation. Any conferences that have you presenting in several areas across a hotel or event center might be something to consider before signing on to present.

Sponsorship – All of the top rated or highly reputable micro cap conferences are littered with different levels of sponsorship. Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze sponsors are advertised throughout the conference on several platforms. Why do these conferences attract such sponsors? Audience. It’s not for the tax write off purposes. If you pay close attention, highly rated conferences typically have the same sponsors. The reason for such duplication is because the sponsoring firms realize that there will be many people representing several companies attending these conferences. It is not unusual for a conference to have thousands of attendees. Before you secure your spot at any conference, ask for a list of sponsors. Any conference that does not have reputable or does not have many sponsors, you must ask yourself why? Chances are these firms realize that there will not be many attendees and their marketing dollars are better spent elsewhere. Low attendance does not necessarily mean low quality. As mentioned earlier, quality vs quantity is always best. But the probability of having quality one on one meetings at a conference that has very little visible sponsorship decreases substantially. Do not overlook sponsorship when deciding on which conference to attend. Chances are if the industry’s top companies wish to be associated with the conference, professional quality investors will want to be as well.

Presenting Companies – You cannot overlook the competition. However, what if the competition is not really any competition at all? Before committing yourself to any conference, be sure to find out who is presenting. Specific sector conferences make’s it easier to decide if involvement would be of benefit. If you are a biotech company, you stand to benefit by presenting at a biotech conference. However, for general micro cap company conferences, it would be wise to see if your company fits into a certain demographic. If most presenting companies are energy or utility companies, perhaps your biotech company is better suited at a different conference. Although some companies market their conference with a general theme, a review of the presenting companies and the attendees should be taken into consideration before deciding to present