devopsdays Washington, D.C. - Sponsor Information

Thank you for sponsoring DevOpsDays DC 2023! The organizing committee is excited and happy to welcome you as sponsors. This event could not exist without your support.

• Sponsor Information
  • Contact
  • Important Dates
  • Happy Hour
  • Registration
  • Hotel Block
  • Ticket Donations
  • Code of Conduct
  • Social Media
    • Note to sponsors about social media
  • Venue
    • Shipping
      • To the Event
      • From the Event
    • Internet
  • Logos for Slideshow
  • Floor Plan
  • Sponsor Tables
  • Sponsor passports
  • Tables and AV
    • Table
    • AV Rentals
  • Sponsor Pitch
    • Sponsor Pitch Schedule
  • Thursday Afternoon Raffle
  • Evening Events
  • Other FAQs

Sponsor Information

Contact

Email: [email protected]

Please use the above email address for all pre-event contact. One of the organizers will respond promptly.

If a matter is particularly urgent, you can call Google Voice for Peter Burkholder at +1-240-696-2545

Important Dates

August 30: Last day to register for the event and get badge with name printed

September 1: First day the venue will accept packages for the event

September 5: Last day to order A/V equipment

September 8: Last day venue will accept packages for the event

September 12: Pre-event setup, 6pm - 8pm

September 13-14: DevOpsDays DC 2023!

• Set-up starts at 7 am, registration at 8 am

Happy Hour

The American Red Cross venue is alcohol-free, so our evening social hour, 5:00 pm - 6:30 pm, will feature mocktails and appetizers.

If you (or with another sponsor) wish to host a happy hour either evening, you have options:

• Tonic @ Quigleys, 0.5 miles away, packages start at $1,750, still available as of August 25.
  • Email: [email protected], Phone: +1-202-296-0211
• Blackfinn DC, 0.6 miles awaw, packages start at $2,000.
  • Phone: +1-202-429-4350

If you are planning to host a party or happy hour, etc after either day of the conference, please let us know the details! We will include this information in communications to attendees. Please send the details to [email protected].

Registration

All attendees, including sponsor exhibitors, are required to register for this event and wear the conference badge while in conference space. All sponsors should have received a coupon code that can be used to register your attendees. If you did not receive this code, please contact [email protected].

Hotel Block

For 2023, we do not have a hotel block.

Ticket Donations

Please notify the conference organizers if you will not be using all of your allotted tickets. We will donate unused tickets to underrepresented and marginalized groups in technology.

Code of Conduct

Respect and empathy are core DevOps values. All sponsors and attendees are required to abide by the Code of Conduct listed on our website. If at any time a member of the organizing committee finds that any attendee (associated with a sponsor or not) has violated the Code of Conduct, the organizing committee has the sole discretion to take any appropriate action up to and including asking that attendee to leave without a refund.

Please ensure all marketing materials and swag are appropriate and in line with our Code of Conduct Sponsors with handouts, prizes, or other swag that organizers find in violation of our Code of Conduct will be asked to remove those items immediately.

Social Media

The conference Twitter hashtag will be #devopsdays. Please tweet, blog, and otherwise share what you learn with everyone who isn’t able to attend but could benefit from your experience! 

Join us: 

Twitter: @devopsdaysdc

Mastodon: [@[email protected]](https://hachyderm.io/@devopsdaysdc]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/devopsdays-dc

Note to sponsors about social media

Please note that sponsors are responsible for collecting their own leads and contact information for participants. If a sponsor abuses the social media at the event to harvest contact information, the organizers have the right to ban the organization from future events.

Venue

American Red Cross
Hall of Service
431 18th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006

Shipping

To the Event

Please address your boxes and materials to:

Matt Cascio
American Red Cross
c/o DoDDC meeting, Hall of Service
431 18th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006
(703) 505-8700

The box MUST be addressed to “DoDDC meeting, Hall of Service”.

Ensure the package label also includes:
FROM:

Vendor Name: YOUR COMPANY
Contact Name: YOUR NAME
Contact Number: YOUR PHONE NUMBER
Number of boxes: ____ of _____

Items can arrive any time after September 1.

Please also email the tracking number for your shipment to us at [email protected].

From the Event

Still under development: We will email all sponsors when we have this information.

Internet

Sponsors will have access to the same free wireless access points as the attendees. No hardwire ethernet connections will be available. We strongly encourage local demos as we will be unable to guarantee speed or function. Login details will be given on the day of the conference.

Logos for Slideshow

Please provide the high-resolution logo for a white background 16x9 aspect ratio slide to this Google form. Use either a) an attachment or b) the URL link to your logo.

Floor Plan

Click on the floorplan for a larger version

Sponsor Tables

Table allocation note: We have assigned tables based on the order in which sponsorships were secured, and sponsorship tier (Table Rank). We have assigned LaunchDarkly and Datadog (#1 and #2) to tables S5 and S6 near the entrance/exit. The other tables seem mostly equally desirable, but if you feel your table assignment is not in line with your Table Rank, let us know.

Silver Sponsor note: The first day we will have 1/6th table allocated for your marketing materials to accommodate registration, then 1/3rd table the second day. We regret that we don’t have sufficient table space the first day.

Sponsor passports

We have re-configured our sponsor and social spaces to ensure sufficient booth traffic, and we don’t think a Sponsor Passport is needed. The Sponsor Passport raffle mentioned in August will not be held.

Tables and AV

Sponsors will be located in the Tiffany Circle Hall of the American Red Cross. Coffee and snacks will be served in the sponsor area, as will the Wednesday evening social event.

Table

• Total “booth” space will be an 8’ x 6’ area.
• Platinum sponsors will be provided a 72" x 30" table with a black tablecloth, two chairs, and a power strip access.
• Gold sponsors will be provided 1/2 of a 72" x 30" table with a black tablecloth, one chair, and a power strip access.
• Sponsors will be allowed into the venue at 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Tuesday, Sept 12.
• Sponsors will be allowed into the venue at 7:00 am on Wednesday, Sept 13
• Doors open at 8:00am for attendees; talks start at 9:00am.
• Teardown must be complete by 4:45 pm on Thursday, Sept 14.

AV Rentals

Rentals are from the event A/V provider, items are priced for the event:

Monitors:

• 32” $300
• 42” $400
• 50” $500
• 60” $650
• 70” $750
• Laptop ($300)

Please submit a completed order form to [email protected] by September 5. Please use the contact information on the form if you have any questions.

Sponsor Pitch

Each Platinum Sponsor will have one minute and each Gold Sponsor will have one-half minute to address the main hall and the listening audience during scheduled blocks between talks. Please ensure that the content of your pitch adheres to the Code of Conduct.

This is a simple verbal pitch. No slides banners, or other materials. We will display your company logo on the main screen during your pitch. Most folks mention their job openings/company overview rather than a product pitch.

For each Silver Sponsor, the M.C. will introduce sponsor representatives and deliver a sponsor-provided pitch up to 20 seconds (about 40 words), with sponsor slide.

Sponsor Pitch Schedule

Thursday Afternoon Raffle

At 1:30 pm on Thursday we have time allotted for you to give away any raffle/prizes on stage in front of everyone! Please be lined up on the side of the stage starting at 1:20pm. To move things along please follow these guidelines:

• You should already have the names of your winner(s) selected before coming on stage. If the person must be present to win, please have a few alternate names to go through if they aren’t here!
• After announcing your winner(s), proceed to the other end of the stage where you can have a photo taken with your winner(s)

Evening Events

The first evening will have a social hour from 5:00 pm until 6:30 pm in the Tiffany Circle Hall. If you are planning to host a party or happy hour, etc after either day of the conference, please let us know the details! We will include this information in communications to attendees. Please send the details to [email protected].

Other FAQs

How many people will be attending the conference?

We are expecting 300 - 350 people at the conference.

What are the demographics of the attendees?

DevOpsDays conferences typically attract software, operations, infosec, QA, and build engineers, as well as architects and technology managers.

These folks are attending to your learn and to share learnings about the DevOps movement. They most appreciate sponsors who engage with them with that in mind.

Will sponsors get an email list of attendees? Do we get a dedicated email blast?

No, we will not be sending out a formalized list.

Sponsors will have their logos in all conference emails to participants. We cannot send out emails on behalf of sponsors and will not share contact information or lists of attendee names.

We are considering follow-up email to our attendees after the event. If you are interested in have a Sponsor Blurb/Update in that newsletter, please discuss with us at the event.

When can we pick our booth spot?

Booths are assigned accordingly to sponsor level, then prioritized by when payment was received. We try not to place competitors next to each other and try to accommodate any requests.

What is the booth set up? Can we bring 1m roll-up as our back wall?

Booths are long tables ( 72" x 30") with a black tablecloth and power strip and 2 chairs. We recommend bringing/shipping: signage, handouts, pop-up banners, giveaways, etc. Banners must fit behind your booth.

How many scanners (and which type) do we get?

We do not provide scanners. This is not your typical conference. The booth is a place to interact with people during breaks.

Sponsors​ ​benefit​​ ​most​ ​when​ ​they actively​ ​participate​.

You are responsible for collecting any information in person. Raffles with a business card draw work well. Just let us know and we will give time on Day 2 to announce raffle winners between talks and lunch. We have seen that sponsors benefit the most when they bring engineers to the conference, attend talks, and actively participate in open space sessions with the other attendees.

What is the 20% off code for additional sponsorship tickets?

You should have received custom discount codes in your welcome email. Please contact us if you have not.

Who should staff the booth? What are expo hours?

If your goal is recruiting, consider sending engineering managers. If you are a vendor, send your sales engineers as well as your technical product marketing, and even some engineers. DevOpsDays are about quality, not quantity - it’s about active participation!

Can we do a giveaway on stage?

Yes. If you want to do a giveaway, you will need to collect your own information (e.g. business cards, entry slips, etc.) for whatever drawing mechanism you want to use. After the ignites on the second day, we will give you a short time slot on stage for your giveaway activity. Just let us know.

Can I sponsor a talk?

Absolutely not. Devopsdays does not sell conference speaking slots; sponsors’ employees are welcome to submit talk proposals. You can, as a participant, suggest an Open space topic within your problem space.

Can I get a discount for sponsoring multiple DevOpsDays?

All DevOpsDays events are independently organized, so no multi-city sponsorships are available.

Who organizes DevOpsDays DC?

Your DevOpsDays DC organizers are DC-based technology folks who volunteer their time for this event.

All money collected from sponsors goes towards the conference and its related expenses. Contact us at [email protected]  to get our W9.

For any other questions, email all of us at [email protected]

Version Information:

• 2023-08-25 v0.9 - First cut at copying over from Google Doc FAQ, with help from Chicago’s sponsor-info-
• 2023-09-12 v1.1 - Fix table assignments, add sponsor pitch times.