Marketing your event is even more important today than ever with so much competition and so many marketing channels available, as well as the hundreds of events that your potential attendees can choose.
Whether you’re planning an intimate VIP event or a large-scale conference, there are a wide variety of details and logistics to coordinate to ensure you meet your objectives, obtain the expected ROI and provide an impactful and memorable experience for all attendees.
Even before the advance marketing and during the initial planning phases of your meeting, be sure to take into consideration the destination and the time of year. The location will be a key element to help draw attendees to your event. Working with your host hotel and reaching out to the CVB are some great ways to get compelling city images. The saying is true, it’s all about location, location, location. Does your event take place in a destination with nonstop or direct flight access? Does the location offer a large portfolio of hotels and meeting spaces? How about unrivalled entertainment and dining experiences? The attendee list will most likely be larger than in a destination where transportation and hospitality options are more limited.
Advance marketing is crucial to a successful event or conference. Identify your potential attendees, identify what will resonate with your target audience both from a messaging standpoint as well as content and format. It’s also important to book your conference as early as possible, which allows you to market the event with a longer lead time. Find potential sponsors and partners, as they can help enrich your programming, help you market your conference and offset any costs.
In today’s digital world, electronic marketing is the most common way to communicate about your event, including save-the-date notices, registration notifications, e-newsletters with updates, branded videos, interviews and much more. Although more costly, printed invitations and programs can set you apart and at times do make sense.
In your pre-event emails, always link back to your website and remember to include any social hashtags you would like attendees to use. Keep an eye on how the email performs. If it is unopened, don’t be afraid to deploy the email again. Emails have a way of getting lost in an inbox!
The video can be a teaser for the conference activities or any message you would like to get out to the attendees. It’s also a great sponsorship opportunity that you can sell to offset costs of the event. At check-in, ask if you can have your logo or conference message on the room key or key packet. Once your attendee arrives in their room, ask if the hotel can offer you a dedicated TV channel with your logo and messaging. The TV should be on to welcome your attendee. If budget allows, or you have a co-sponsor, provide a branded room gift. This could be something useful or something edible, an item that will provide you with additional exposure.
Remember that it’s all about face-to-face meetings during the actual conference. Face-to-face meetings and in-person networking builds trust and ultimately creates personal relationships that cannot be replaced by emails, virtual meetings or the phone. If appropriate, have your staff wear branded clothing and make sure your badges and lanyards have your logo.
Another cost-effective way to maintain brand presence during the event is Gobos either in your general session or on the exterior of the building, which is great for social media. During the site inspection, ask to see what items you can brand and ask to see examples of other conferences to get inspiration. Keep an extra eye out for any digital screens. This is a great, cost effective way to get some branding in the venue.
In addition to your meeting attendees, marketing your meeting through the media is extremely effective and ultimately provides a third-party endorsement. Targeted trade press should always be invited to the event in advance, and editorial coverage during the conference with in-person interview opportunities and news stories should be leveraged. In the increasingly digital world, social media platforms and event hashtags also provide an excellent opportunity for audience engagement and organic brand exposure in real time.
Be sure to pay attention to social mentions, re-tweet positive posts from event attendees and always be responsive. Always ask speakers, vendors and sponsors to use their own social channels to post about the event. It’s helpful to pre-craft messages and share it with them. Always encourage speakers to repeat hashtags during the event. Consider hosting a Q&A session through Twitter. It’s a low-cost way of getting your hashtag in front of your audience and a way to engage with them. A video wall during the event is also a great way to increase engagement. Attendees love to see images of themselves up on the video wall having fun and it encourages others to post.
Post event it is a great idea to include a video recap and key pictures of the event. If information about the next event is available, include it in the email as it will get attendees excited and create a buzz. Marketing efforts don’t stop once the event ends and attendees depart. Continuing to foster a relationship with attendees (and future attendees) well after the event is important and can be executed through thank you email distributions, as well as a digital recap of the conference. It’s also never too early to send out save-the-dates for next year’s conference and details for early registration as a call-to-action, coming off the heels of a successful event and since you already have attendees’ attention. Don’t forget to send a post-event survey! Ask where attendees saw your branding and give them a way to opt in to your email distribution list. A survey is also a great channel to ask for testimonials. It’s never too soon to plan for next year!
Whether you’re planning an intimate VIP event or a large-scale conference, there are a wide variety of details and logistics to coordinate to ensure you meet your objectives, obtain the expected ROI and provide an impactful and memorable experience for all attendees.
Even before the advance marketing and during the initial planning phases of your meeting, be sure to take into consideration the destination and the time of year. The location will be a key element to help draw attendees to your event. Working with your host hotel and reaching out to the CVB are some great ways to get compelling city images. The saying is true, it’s all about location, location, location. Does your event take place in a destination with nonstop or direct flight access? Does the location offer a large portfolio of hotels and meeting spaces? How about unrivalled entertainment and dining experiences? The attendee list will most likely be larger than in a destination where transportation and hospitality options are more limited.
Advance marketing is crucial to a successful event or conference. Identify your potential attendees, identify what will resonate with your target audience both from a messaging standpoint as well as content and format. It’s also important to book your conference as early as possible, which allows you to market the event with a longer lead time. Find potential sponsors and partners, as they can help enrich your programming, help you market your conference and offset any costs.
In today’s digital world, electronic marketing is the most common way to communicate about your event, including save-the-date notices, registration notifications, e-newsletters with updates, branded videos, interviews and much more. Although more costly, printed invitations and programs can set you apart and at times do make sense.
In your pre-event emails, always link back to your website and remember to include any social hashtags you would like attendees to use. Keep an eye on how the email performs. If it is unopened, don’t be afraid to deploy the email again. Emails have a way of getting lost in an inbox!
Capture Attention of Event Attendees
Once your meeting is taking place, it’s important to shift your focus and be sure to effectively capture the attention of your attendees. There are a number of ways to do so, from the moment your guests are picked up from the airport to the final farewell. It’s crucial to add branding and curated hospitality elements throughout the attendee’s entire experience to make a lasting impact and to give you and your sponsors as much exposure as possible. For example, upon arrival at the hotel, consider human arrows with branded clothing. If your attendees will be taking a shuttle, ask if you can play a video.The video can be a teaser for the conference activities or any message you would like to get out to the attendees. It’s also a great sponsorship opportunity that you can sell to offset costs of the event. At check-in, ask if you can have your logo or conference message on the room key or key packet. Once your attendee arrives in their room, ask if the hotel can offer you a dedicated TV channel with your logo and messaging. The TV should be on to welcome your attendee. If budget allows, or you have a co-sponsor, provide a branded room gift. This could be something useful or something edible, an item that will provide you with additional exposure.
Remember that it’s all about face-to-face meetings during the actual conference. Face-to-face meetings and in-person networking builds trust and ultimately creates personal relationships that cannot be replaced by emails, virtual meetings or the phone. If appropriate, have your staff wear branded clothing and make sure your badges and lanyards have your logo.
Prominent Branding of Your Event
When attendees step into an event space for the first time, branding should remain prominent throughout the space. Consider what video elements will be presented behind a speaker and what can be shown through transitions. Having a logo on a podium is another easy way to get some brand exposure. Also consider having something at each seat placement with branding. This makes a great photo with your brand front and center. Signage is important. It’s not only functional but another way to provide brand exposure. At CAESARS FORUM—our new, 550,000-square-foot conference center opening in 2020 in Las Vegas with the world’s largest pillarless ballrooms—event marketers will have the ability to market their brand via a huge indoor digital wall with video capabilities.Another cost-effective way to maintain brand presence during the event is Gobos either in your general session or on the exterior of the building, which is great for social media. During the site inspection, ask to see what items you can brand and ask to see examples of other conferences to get inspiration. Keep an extra eye out for any digital screens. This is a great, cost effective way to get some branding in the venue.
In addition to your meeting attendees, marketing your meeting through the media is extremely effective and ultimately provides a third-party endorsement. Targeted trade press should always be invited to the event in advance, and editorial coverage during the conference with in-person interview opportunities and news stories should be leveraged. In the increasingly digital world, social media platforms and event hashtags also provide an excellent opportunity for audience engagement and organic brand exposure in real time.
Be sure to pay attention to social mentions, re-tweet positive posts from event attendees and always be responsive. Always ask speakers, vendors and sponsors to use their own social channels to post about the event. It’s helpful to pre-craft messages and share it with them. Always encourage speakers to repeat hashtags during the event. Consider hosting a Q&A session through Twitter. It’s a low-cost way of getting your hashtag in front of your audience and a way to engage with them. A video wall during the event is also a great way to increase engagement. Attendees love to see images of themselves up on the video wall having fun and it encourages others to post.
Post event it is a great idea to include a video recap and key pictures of the event. If information about the next event is available, include it in the email as it will get attendees excited and create a buzz. Marketing efforts don’t stop once the event ends and attendees depart. Continuing to foster a relationship with attendees (and future attendees) well after the event is important and can be executed through thank you email distributions, as well as a digital recap of the conference. It’s also never too early to send out save-the-dates for next year’s conference and details for early registration as a call-to-action, coming off the heels of a successful event and since you already have attendees’ attention. Don’t forget to send a post-event survey! Ask where attendees saw your branding and give them a way to opt in to your email distribution list. A survey is also a great channel to ask for testimonials. It’s never too soon to plan for next year!
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