How Strategic Comms Partners Can Maximize Conference ROI

For biotech and life science companies, medical meetings, congresses and industry summits are rare opportunities to build credibility, connect with key stakeholders and elevate visibility when it matters most. 

To truly capitalize on these moments, it helps to bring in a strategic communications partner early. The right support can sharpen your pre-event plan, guide real-time engagement, and strengthen post-event outreach to turn interest into opportunity. 

Strategy Turns Presence into Performance 

Strategic communications partners can turn a conference presence into real performance by aligning your goals with audience needs. They work across teams to surface priorities and uncover high-impact moments, before, during and after the event. 

It starts by asking the right questions: 

• What’s the business objective of attending this meeting? 
• Are you meeting with KOLs, advocacy partners or investors? 
• Where are you speaking, exhibiting or hosting? 
• How can we optimize those moments to drive the most impact? 
• What are your competitors doing and how can you differentiate? 

When you bring in a communications partner early, we can map the full opportunity across medical affairs, advocacy, corporate and commercial, and ensure your presence is cohesive, intentional and memorable. We also help identify where the meeting fits into the larger communications calendar and how it can ladder up to long-term goals like fundraising, or M&A positioning. 

Think Beyond the Booth 

Standing out starts with having a clear strategy that guides every move you make. 

From incorporating the patient voice—as we’ve explored in rare disease drug development—to developing creative symposia or spotlighting leadership in social video content, we help clients break the routine and bring fresh ideas to the table. And when you know what competitors are doing, you can position differently; whether that means hosting a more compelling session, organizing a memorable activation or timing announcements to avoid getting buried. 

It’s also about consistency. When you are aligned across all touchpoints—from the booth to social to sessions—it reinforces your brand story in a lasting way. 

Make the Most of Your Moment 

Medical meetings gather your most important stakeholders all in one place, which is increasingly rare in a remote-first world. Your comms team can help capture that value in real time by: 

• Recording content to be used across channels 
• Digging into and capturing KOL or advocate perspectives
• Educating media or analysts 
• Building team alignment and comradery 
• Featuring company culture and accomplishments 

And yes, social media still matters. A 2024 Spectrum Science analysis of X (formerly Twitter) activity across major conferences found that overall post volume dipped just 2.36% year-over-year, and engagement declined by 2.32%—showing that while usage has shifted, X remains an active space for healthcare professionals during meetings. Some meetings, like the AMA Annual Meeting, even saw increases in both post volume and engagement. You can read more about these trends here. 

Every Dollar and Minute Counts 

Whether you’re looking to generate buzz ahead of a funding milestone or stay visible in a crowded market, medical meetings are a big investment. A smart communications partner helps ensure they’re also a big return. 

Looking to get more from your next conference? Let’s talk about how Spectrum Science can help you drive results.