As the meeting industry gears up for a strong and exciting 2024, we sat down with Georgina Flores, the new chief marketing officer for Encore, for a conversation about making events more immersive, leading the charge on inclusivity and the customer journey before, during and after an event.
Flores joins Encore from Aetna, a CVS Health company, where she was VP of marketing for commercial and specialty markets following 18 years developing teams and championing marketing campaigns Allstate.
Tell us about Encore’s approach to customer/team experience. What can other companies learn from this approach?
Among all I have learned since joining Encore, two major differentiators stand out: 1. The unequivocal understanding that our team members are our biggest strength, and only they bring the magic to the work that we do to serve our customers; and 2. The relentless focus on delivering excellent service to our customers, with a hospitality mindset. Encore has achieved quite a growth rebound and brand transformation since the height of the pandemic, which required restaffing quickly and investing in training and technology to enable us to be better. The lesson that might be valuable to other companies is to always start with the people. When it comes to your customers, know their needs and figure out how to not just deliver, but delight. When it comes to your team members, remember they are your greatest asset, always. They are the heartbeat of your brand and your experience, and their experience is the foundation for everything else.
As the meeting and event industry has recovered from the pandemic, how has our workforce changed? And how do you see it evolving as we move forward?
We know that the industry had an influx of new talent and an exodus of talent. That was a hot topic for the last year or so, but in my mind change is OK. Reinvention can be a strength for any company if you make it so. At Encore, we embraced the unfortunate circumstances of the pandemic and decided to rebuild differently, with a greater focus on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB). We knew that the employee experience would be foundational to build the best possible customer experience. As we move forward in a world that experiences faster change than ever, we will have to keep evolving.
How is the meeting and event industry doing in terms of creating inclusive environments? And how can we keep improving in 2024 to ensure everyone feels like they truly belong?
While I wasn’t yet with the company, I was incredibly impressed with IMEX America 2023 and inclusivity as the main theme. It makes sense for our industry to be enthusiastic and leading the charge on inclusivity; we’re in the hospitality business, after all. At Encore, our goal is to keep improving our commercial offerings that support meeting professionals’ DEIB goals, from lighting packages with consideration for a breadth of skin types on stage to ADA compliant and colorblind-ready art and creative. The best thing I’m seeing is that we’re all leading in a DEIB-centric way, asking more questions and considering vantage points that are not our own, and that will enable more inclusivity.
Encore has a strong partnership with MPI and IMEX, as demonstrated by innovative booth experiences offered over the past few years. Can you tell us how you plan to reach meeting professionals in 2024, either through live events such as these or other avenues?
My hope is that Encore is part of the event professional’s day-to-day journey before, during and after events. That comes to life through sharing our best practices, insights and new innovations at an educational conference or through digital and social media channels. It is most valuable through our longstanding relationships and one-on-one conversations with customers, including our customer advisory board. We’re constantly looking for ways to fine tune our relationships and in 2024 you can expect big moves in how we approach the customer journey overall. It will lead with service excellence and be based on deep insights.
What meeting and event trend are you most looking forward to in 2024?
I’m excited to see how events are becoming more immersive. They’re engaging all the senses, thinking about how to keep the audience’s attention and creating bespoke experiences overall. If an event didn’t create a lasting memory, did it make the necessary impact on the organization and their stakeholders? That’s the question we should be asking ourselves as we plan and execute.
