HOW TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF ACCEPTANCE

The PAYMENTS 2011 Conference Planning Committee will work from an extremely selective set of guidelines for reviewing and rating this year's session proposals. To ensure your proposal ends up at the top of the "accept" pile, please take a few moments to ask:

Originality - Is my focus on information that is not easily accessible elsewhere? Are the concepts being presented new or emerging thoughts?

Compelling Content - Am I offering a salient message, thought-provoking concept, or a controversial issues has great appeal to attendees.

Co-Presenter Recruitment - Am I able to bring a customer/end-user or un-biased industry expert as a co-presenter?

Educational Value Proposition - Is my session title clear and specific? Am I able to relate tangible benefits to specific market stakeholders and segments?

Direct, Bottom-line Implications - Can business relevance, ROI, metrics, and results be measured?

Use Clear, Concise Language - Are the focus and relevance of the proposal clear? Is the value of the proposal readily understood?

Avoid Sales Pitches - Have I ensured that I am not conveying commercial pitches for particular companies, products, or services?

Case Studies - Am I able to provide real-life examples? Sessions involving case studies are typically the best attended, and receive the highest evaluation scores. People want to hear lessons learned and insights from their peers.

Take-Away Value - Am I able to offer a concrete technique, tool, practice or information that attendees can take back to their organizations?