Almost all VOXUS clients want to speak at important industry trade shows. Our success (or failure) in delivering results is dependent on our ability to offer fresh perspectives, interesting (and not always self-serving) topics and high-level executives. Communicating these needs to our clients, though, isn't always easy.

So here's what you need to know about crafting better abstracts for speaking engagements at industry trade shows, straight from someone who is in the best position to know. Kenton Williston is a freelance technology editor, writer and analyst based in New York. He's currently reviewing the speaking abstracts submitted for consideration for the Embedded Systems Conference Boston 2009, being held in late September. He gave us an exclusive, inside look at the decision process -- he says:

"Have a clear problem statement. Too often I see “solutions looking for a problem.” You need to tell me why I should care, and that means telling me how you’ll solve my problem.

Tell me what you’re going to say—and be specific. Too often I see abstracts that say “topic x is important” without explaining what the author plans to say about that topic. This is related to the need for a problem statement. You need to clearly identify the problem you are solving, and then clearly state the solutions you will cover.

Tie the abstract to a hot topic. The importance of the topic might be obvious to you, but editors have to keep track of a lot of topics. We can’t always connect your idea to a big-picture trend. If you can do that for us, we’re more likely to pay attention."

For more on Kenton, visit his profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/kentonwilliston.

-posted by Rachel

Tags: kentonwilliston, embeddedsystems