Conference contact exchange: a practical checklist

Before you leave

1. Choose what to share. A direct contact card may be enough. If someone needs company background or a specific resource, prepare that destination too rather than presenting every link at once.
2. Check the information. Confirm the name, role, company and contact details are the ones you intend to make available.
3. Test access. Open each resource while signed out. A link that works because you own the document may ask someone else to request permission.
4. Prepare a fallback. Keep the normal page address available. Agree an alternative way to exchange details if the venue connection is unreliable.
5. Rehearse the whole outcome. Use another phone, not just the code on your own screen.

For a manageable aim, think about the conversations you would find useful rather than a target number of contacts to collect. UKRI’s guidance on building knowledge-exchange contacts likewise recommends achievable goals in its research-networking context.

Rehearse with two phones

The test is complete only when the receiving phone reaches the intended information and the chosen action works.

1. Display the intended QR on phone A.
2. Scan it with phone B and open the link.
3. Check that the correct person or company appears first.
4. Try the relevant website or resource link.
5. If saving a contact is the goal, confirm the import and check the receiving phone’s contacts app.

A camera prompt, an open browser tab and a saved address-book contact are three different outcomes. Apple’s scanning instructions describe recognising the code and opening its content; saving a contact is a separate action.

For scan checks and troubleshooting, read how to share a digital business card with a QR code.

During the conversation

Ask what would be useful: your direct details, the company overview or the resource you have discussed. Show that destination and give the other person time to open it on their own device.

Do not require a return exchange just because someone has opened your card. Agree the next step in ordinary language, such as “I’ll send the document we discussed.” If you keep a reminder about the conversation, record only what you need for that purpose, not unnecessary personal information.

If scanning fails, try the normal link. If the receiving phone has no working connection, agree another way to follow up; repeated scans will not repair the network.

After the event

Send the material you agreed to send and make it clear who you are. Keep one-to-one follow-up separate from adding someone to a marketing list. A one-to-one message can still be direct marketing.

For UK business contacts, the rules depend on the message and the recipient. The ICO’s business-to-business marketing guidance distinguishes corporate subscribers from sole traders and some partnerships. It also explains that UK GDPR applies when personal data is processed, even in a business context.

A contact exchange is not blanket permission for every later use. Check the ICO guidance for your activity, explain intended marketing use and respect objections. This checklist is practical preparation, not legal advice or a claim that one consent rule fits every business.

Source guidance checked 22 September 2026.

A safe Company Share Deck rehearsal

Follow the two-phone preview instructions with a made-up name and fictional optional details. Check that the test return appears on the original sharing device.

It is not a permanent address book. Public accounts, hosted editing, AI enrichment, cross-device saving and a company inbox are not available. The AI and company-wide checkboxes record inactive preferences only.

Use the current product guide to check those limits. If your organisation is interested in later access, register interest rather than putting real event contacts into the test exchange. That separate form does not create an account or unlock editing.

Use fictional contact details only.