GATHERINGS MUST BE THE MAIN EVENT

Whether you are a start-up or a growing business, events are a powerful way to connect with existing and new customers. Firms can spend up to 25% of marketing budget on them, so it’s important to get an event right.

Brad Gillespie of Cvent – a market leader in meetings, events and hospitality technology, says:

„ Engage with your audience before the event Don’t just guess, find out what they really want from it through email and social media to gauge what format and content will work. That may be a guest speaker from outside the industry, or a panel discussion. You’ll create a bigger impact and your audience is likely to keep coming back.

„ Feedback and follow up Gathering feedback via an event app means you can fix or address issues at the time. Afterwards, ask for feedback from guests. It will help you improve future events.

„ Maximise networking People at events want to network, so ensure there is ample opportunity to do this. But get creative with networking ideas. Our recent research found 60% of bosses don’t look forward to networking opportunities. So ease them into it gently. Maybe use a colour badge system to match up like-minded guests, or organise a mobile event app with a chat service to make it more appealing.

„ Gather and act on leads Forward data about guests from your event to your customer relationship management system, so your sales team can follow up on leads with personalised information. This kind of detailed information can ensure an even better return on investment for future events – not to mention nurturing a more engaged customer base.