STUDY. Note the HOW-TO classes and tutorials at Big Data TechCon focused on the latest Big Data technologies, especially those that are best aligned with your company's existing IT infrastructure. Say that this is your first, and most practical, opportunity to bring Big Data to your business.

PREPARE. Download the course catalog and circle the classes you want to take, and explain why the topics relate to your Big Data technical efforts. Show that you have found many sessions that fit your specific needs - and your company's strategic goals.

JUSTIFY. Go in armed with all the necessary materials to make a good case for how your attending Big Data TechCon will help your company make money, save money or improve productivity by helping you capture and analyze the data that drives your business.

SHARE. Promise to come back from Big Data TechCon and hold a brown-bag lunch session to share what you've learned with your colleagues - or even conduct formal training within your department. In fact, maybe you'll want to schedule a series of brown-bag lunches.

PLAN. Tell management that after you attend Big Data TechCon, you'll make definite action plans and recommendations to implement new Big Data plans, and to improve how your company uses all of the data it captures.

RELATE. Show how problems or issues you've recently encountered fit with the classes at Big Data TechCon, and discuss the types of technology discussions you'll have with the conference faculty and other IT professionals.

SAVE. The tuition and travel expense of attending Big Data TechCon is less than many other conferences. The earlier you sign up, the more you save, so explain the benefit of signing up early, and for booking your hotel room before the cutoff.

TEAM. Save even more with group discounts. Send three or more employees from your company, and save $100 off per person. Each person can take different classes and bring back even more valuable tips and techniques. (Sending 10 or more? Contact us for arrangements.)

GROUP. User groups, government employees, non-profits and professionals employed by or attending educational institutions can also receive special savings. Check the website or ask Stacy Burris, sburris@bzmedia.com, about custom options for your group.

LAUNCH. Classes at Big Data TechCon help you get a jump-start on every aspect of Big Data that you have been talking about implementing - but haven't - for months. Whether it's Hadoop, graph databases, NoSQL or another new technology, explain that you'll find the answers here.