Sponsored Meals
* The following applies only for sponsors that have a sponsored breakfast or lunch in their contract *
Sponsored meals are one-hour panel discussions created by sponsors and hosted during one of the main event's breakfast or lunch times. These sessions are open to all attendees and give them an opportunity to learn about the sponsor's newest sustainability initiatives, products/services, or partnerships while enjoying their breakfast or lunch.
📆 Sponsored Meal Deadlines
Sept 6 - Submit session items
Oct 11 - Submit speaker info & Book speaker hotel rooms
Oct 18 - Register speakers
IMPORTANT
🔄 Sponsored Lunches vs VIP Lunches: Please note that sponsored lunches are different from VIP lunches. The main difference is that sponsored lunches are open to all attendees, whereas VIP lunches are invite-only. Please refer to the VIP lunch kick-off email sent by your customer success manager for more details on VIP lunches.
Action Items
Submit session items - Please submit your session items (listed below) via the VERGE 24 Sponsored Meal Form by 📆 Sept 6 at the latest.
Session date - Sponsored breakfasts can be hosted on Oct 30 (7:50-8:50am) or Oct 31 (8:20-9:20am). Sponsored lunches can be hosted on Oct 29 (11:45am-12:45pm) or Oct 30 (12-1pm). Please confirm which date you prefer and note they are reserved on a first come first serve basis. Please note sponsored breakfasts held on the last day (Oct 31) are expected to have lower attendance (likely ~30 instead of 50).
Session title - 90 characters with spaces max. The word "(Sponsored)" will be added to the end of the title to mark it as a sponsored session (this is required for all sponsored meals). We recommend using forward-looking phrases and avoiding words that are too niche or generic. Your title will be reviewed by our content team once submitted.
Session description - 750 characters with spaces max. Please make sure to check our online program to ensure your description/topic does not conflict with other sessions. We recommend including clear takeaways in the description so attendees know what they will learn. Your description will be reviewed by our content team once submitted.
A/V needs - Please confirm if you have any A/V needs for this meal. Trellis will cover the costs of essential A/V items such as a monitor, mics and sound system. Please note that your team will need to bring your own laptop if you plan on showing any slides, images, or videos. If you have a Mac, please bring your own Mac HDMI adapter.
Submit speaker info - Please submit your speaker info by 📆 Oct 11 at the latest. Once you have submitted the above session items, your customer success manager will provide a form for speakers to submit their information. Please note your session must have at least one speaker from outside your company and panels of three or more people cannot be all-male. We also recommend including at least one BIPOC speaker.
Book hotel rooms & register speakers - Please make sure your speakers book their hotel rooms by 📆 Oct 11 and register for the event by 📆 Oct 18 following the directions on this page. All sponsored meal speakers get complimentary Speaker All-Access passes.
Read prep-materials - Please have your speakers read through the sponsored meal tips and logistics listed below to ensure your session runs smoothly.
Create Slides, Polls, Q&A: A title slide is required and you are welcome to use the poll and Q&A features as well. Please see more details on each item below.
Slides - We require that all sessions use at least a title slide that lists the title of the session along with all speakers, their titles and affiliations. You can use the VERGE 24 template (please download before editing). Please note it is the sponsor’s responsibility to create the slides and set them up with your own laptop onsite (Mac users will need to bring their own HDMI adapter). Any slides/video assets should be created in the standard 16:9 aspect ratio.
(Optional) Polls - Live poll questions can be added to your session through our conference app, Whova. This allows the audience to take polls through the app and the moderator is able to read out the results live or display them on the screen. Note one of your speakers will need to add the poll questions to the app themselves (directions here).
(Optional) Q&A - Live Q&A can be administered through our conference app, Whova. This allows the audience to submit questions through the app and the speakers are able to view all questions and respond to them verbally or in the app (directions here).
Logistics
Timing: Sponsored breakfasts will be hosted during the event's main breakfast times - from 7:50-8:50am on Oct 30 and from 8:20-9:20am on Oct 31. Sponsored lunches will be hosted during the event's main lunch times - from 11:45am-12:45pm on Oct 29 and from 12-1pm on Oct 30. Each sponsored meal will only occur once.
Format: Sponsored meal rooms will be set in rounds for 50 people and we will have stools available at the front for speakers. We will not provide head tables or stage risers as this creates a barrier between the speakers and the audience and discourages interaction.
Menu: Sponsored meals will have a full buffet in or near the room. Trellis will be managing the menu.
Signups: There is no advance sign-up — participation is first-come, first-served. All participants will have their badges scanned so we can track attendance and the attendee list will be sent to sponsors after the event.
Session info: Sponsored meal information will be available on the event website and conference app for attendees to see before and during the event and will be labeled as sponsored. We will also have onsite printed signage and a conference app notification sent the day of the meal to direct people to the session.
Feedback: Our conference app contains a survey feature — please encourage your participants to provide feedback following your session.
What Makes a Great Sponsored Meal?
🤝 Engage your audience. The best sessions are those that are interactive and participatory. Including a hands-on exercise in your session enables your participants to meet one another, work collaboratively and helps them get to know you. At the very least, include plenty of time for Q&A and feedback during the session (at least 20 minutes is recommended).
📚 Focus on tangible knowledge and skills. The most effective sessions are those that present data, metrics and case studies to help us ground an aspirational circular economy in the reality of what’s actually happening today, uplifting actionable insights and success stories (and failures we can learn from).
🎯 Set a specific outcome. Participants appreciate knowing they’ve used their time well, especially when they have other options on how to spend it. Give them a specific goal or outcome — “Today, you will learn how to make smart choices in choosing energy-efficiency projects.” That will give everyone a clear vision of what success looks like for the hour.
🪟 Be transparent about controversies/challenges. If your session topic is controversial or it has caused your company challenges, it’s best to address this upfront with the audience. This will help your company gain credibility and attendees will appreciate the opportunity to learn how your company is managing the issue.
👔 Be clear when selling. If you’d like to focus your session on a product or service, it’s best to be clear about this in your title and description. Communicate who should come to the demonstration and how they would benefit from your offering.
📈 Use slides wisely. Slides can be very helpful in presenting your ideas to your audience, but it's important to keep them visual rather than text-based. Make sure you're not distracting attendees by using text-heavy slides that they'll try to read as you speak. Visual slides are a great way to support your presentation and guide the audience.