Why Conference Producers Need a Personal Brand
Conference production has long been a career path that you will hear people say they “fell into.” With many producers coming from research-heavy, academic backgrounds, it is no surprise that they so naturally excel at desktop research and agenda writing, but a new path for producers is arising, and that is the one of personal branding. The concept of personal branding can often be an overwhelming one for producers, who tend to be comfortable letting their events speak for themselves. One producer who has taken personal branding in her stride is Hayley Nicholson. Since starting in events in 2019, she’s moved through in-house roles at GDS Group, Forum Business Training and Incisive Media before founding her own agency, Nuff Said, in November 2023, and within two years won Startup Agency at the CN Agency Awards.
Hayley has worked across a number of portfolios throughout her career, and prides herself on her versatility. Starting Nuff Said allowed her to apply her diverse experience, bringing what she’s learnt to each event she produces:
“I describe myself as a sector agnostic producer… I like to be challenged and research new industries, but then also take lessons from other industries and ideas and formats, to put into new projects that I’m working on.”
Hayley was quickly rewarded for her ambition, with Nuff Said winning Startup Agency at the CN Agency Awards:
“I was up against some really fantastic full service agencies. So to be coming in as a niche, with event content, it was absolutely surreal.”
Alongside her company, Hayley launched Speak Easy, a Nuff Said podcast, with two of her ex-colleagues, Jenny Arnau Cattanach and Mia Breading. The idea for the podcast came from a business development initiative, with most of Hayley’s recommendations coming from word of mouth at the time:
“Social media only reaches people at a particular moment in time. I wanted to create something people could come back to, something I could point clients and producers towards that had a bit more longevity.”
The other driving factor was the lack of quality content for producers. Despite the sheer amount of content producers work on for others, there is hardly any designed for their own consumption:
“There really isn’t much content specifically for conference producers. At industry events, we might get one or two sessions that are relevant to us. But for such a central role in the conference team, I felt there wasn’t enough being said about what we actually do, or how to do better.”
Building the podcast was no easy feat; however, Hayley drew on her conference production skillset, approaching audience building like speaker recruitment:
“Building the audience was a task, but I approached it like speaker recruitment: I did a lot of LinkedIn outreach. I messaged people I knew, emailed conference producers, Heads of Content and contacts across the industry, saying, ‘This is a new project, I want to shine a light on conference production, I’d love you to give it a listen.'”
Not only did the podcast do what Hayley intended it to, but it allowed both her and her co-host, Jenny, to share their expertise and solidify their status as leading voices in what they do.
Hayley’s desire to develop was what led her to freelance, and ultimately start Nuff Said:
“After working in house for a number of years, I knew I wanted to become a consultant, although that evolved over time. I also realised I needed a much broader understanding of the events industry. Working in house, I felt quite siloed, and unless you’re exposed to the wider industry, it’s easy to stay within one corner of it.”
Hayley began looking beyond her day job, leading her to discover International Confex and then the Fast Forward 15 mentoring programme:
“I joined in 2022 and was incredibly lucky to be paired with Martin Fullard, who was Editor at Conference News at the time. Interestingly, our conversations weren’t really about delivering events. They were about building a personal brand, networking, developing confidence and making the right connections. Those were the skills that ultimately gave me the confidence to start my own business.”
Hayley spent twelve months of the programme developing those areas, and six months after finishing it she launched Nuff Said.
One thing Hayley especially enjoys about being in control of her personal brand is having a platform to share her genuine opinions on the industry, rather than staying silent on the topics that matter to her:
“Everything I’ve done with my personal brand has been intentional… I want to be a leading voice in event content, because we need more people shouting about our brilliance. That means sharing my opinions, even when they’re a little controversial. Whether it’s diversity on speaker line-ups, poor keynote quality, how we treat conference producers, or the systems we use to manage content, I think it’s important to contribute to those conversations and share the reality of our job.”
Despite her success, Hayley is not afraid to admit she hasn’t perfected the art of personal branding; it is something she continues to learn about and grow from:
“Within the conference production world, people know exactly what I do. But when I speak to founders of agencies or leaders elsewhere in the events industry, I’m still working on getting my reputation known in that space.”
When asked what advice she would offer to producers wanting to build upon their own branding, Hayley said this:
“If you genuinely have something valuable to say, don’t let the fear of feeling a bit cringey stop you. Share your work, share your opinions and share what you’re learning. Over time, that’s what builds your reputation.”
Personal branding takes time, dedication and confidence, particularly for those used to working behind the scenes. But as Hayley’s career shows, it can be learned, and it pays off.
Hayley Nicholson shares insights on conference production, speaker management and the business of events on
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/hayleynicholson
Instagram: @hayleyinevents
Nuff Said Events is a UK-based event content agency specialising in conference production, agenda development and speaker management, helping organisations create conferences people actually want to attend.
Website: https://nuffsaidevents.co.uk
Speak Easy, a Nuff Said podcast, taking listeners behind the scenes of conference content production. Hosted by Hayley Nicholson and Jenny Arnau Cattanach, episodes are available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4yALKuidCZtanuUVrvxVwi?si=BMSEy6hnQ2aLYMI-PSMFGg
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NuffSaidEvents
Visit Jackson Barnes Recruitment’s website www.jbrecruitment.co.uk to learn more about how we connect top commercial talent with world-class media and events organisations.
About Jackson Barnes Recruitment
Jackson Barnes Recruitment delivers international recruitment solutions within the events, media, and publishing sectors. Jackson Barnes recruits Graduate to MD level in the following positions:
• Sales – delegate, sponsorship & Business Development
• Editor
We recruit for organisations in the UK and overseas, with success in London, Dubai, New York, Singapore and Australia.