With 2022 just around the corner, many of you will be busy finalising your marketing
strategies, allocating budget, and defining planned activities. You’ll no doubt be including a wide range of ideas; some new, some proven, but all innovative and designed to promote your brand or product in its best light and to its most relevant and engaged audience. It’s likely your 2022 plans will include live events. After the COVID-19 induced event drought, 2022 presents a terrific opportunity to get back to the coal face of live events and to put your products and services in front of an engaged audience.
Throughout the pandemic, when live events could not take place, companies took to the
virtual arena to encourage customer and prospect interaction. With the world embracing all things virtual by necessity, this approach worked well. Product launches were still held, conference audiences got together in the ether, internal communications events were able to disseminate messages online via Intranets. Generally speaking, the events world carried on turning. However, whilst virtual events served a purpose, they were no real replacement for face-to-face, human-to-human contact.
The ability to engage on a personal level cannot be substituted by a computer screen and 2022 should see live events return with a level of self-assurance only held by one who knows they have been missed. It is going to be a busy year in live events.
What’s your live events strategy for 2022?
Events will, no doubt, be part of your 2022 marketing strategy. You will have defined your goals and objectives, you’ll know which events you are going to attend or host, and which
products or services you are going to promote. Our question is, have you considered how you are going to promote your events activity and to whom? Do you have a strategy for event promotion, event marketing and delegate communications pre- and post-event?
There are clear routes to event marketing success; follow these and you will give yourself the best chance of success and return on investment.
Firstly, you need to ensure you define the right audience acquisition process, which starts with identifying your target market and obtaining the right contact data.
Once you have your audience data list, undertake relevant promotional activity to engage with these individuals. In so doing, you’ll begin the process of building relationships with your target audience
which will allow you to communicate with them from the first engagement right through their pre-event communications journey, nurturing each registration from the very beginning of their voyage to the very end.
During the event itself you should provide adequate digital support communications to make sure the delegates know what is happening and when. Think social media and push technology providing them with up-to-date information on the agenda, speakers, and sponsor promotions. The onsite communications you have with delegates will give insight into those attending, allowing you to verify attendance figures to help understand ROI.
And it's not over when the event is over. A final, important task is ongoing nurture of attendees, and we don’t just mean a post-event evaluation questionnaire. It's vital to keep the relationship going, staying in touch, building trust, and getting to know your audience,
thereby ensuring that your next event will be similarly well supported and successful.
7 simple steps to event success
Step 1: Target your audience
Your target audience data list is approached by expert telemarketing agents. eMarketing & digital assets are also broadcast to raise awareness of the event.
Step 2: Telemarketing
Contacts are qualified and registered via the telephone and contact details are entered into registration landing page.
Step 3: Say thank you
A “thank you for registering” email is automatically sent to each contact’s email address, which also provides additional, relevant event information.
Step 4: Shout about it!
Weekly communications are sent to each registered contact, keeping them updated on the event agenda, guest speakers, logistics, etc.
Step 5: Stay connected
In the run up to the event, reminder courtesy calls are made and reminder email alerts are also dispatched.
Step 6: Event day
On the day and post-event activity commences; to include lead generation reports, event feedback and surveys.
Step 7: Post-event catch up and comms
Keep in touch, stay connected and build loyalty for future events and sales.
To be confident of event promotion success you need to throw a lot into the marketing mix. Focus on brand awareness, event advertising and event promotion via marketing
approaches such as:
Obtaining the right contact data
Broadcast eMarketing to a mass audience
Follow up telemarketing
Ongoing digital marketing via email and digital offerings such as TechKnow.Online
Post-event surveys and market research
Use a multi-touch marketing approach to ensure your message hits as many of your target audience as possible. Even doing all of this cannot guarantee bums on seats but it will give you the best chance.
Find out more about event promotion marketing services here or get in touch with one of our Account Managers for more information on kick starting your 2022 event strategy.
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