Should Your Events Marketing Team Have a More Strategic Role?
As an attendee at last month’s Sam Lippman’s Attendee Acquisition Roundtable (AAR), I couldn’t help but notice the depth of insight to be found amongst marketing professionals within the events industry. Unlike salespeople, under most circumstances marketers often don’t readily divulge what they’re thinking. But once engaged, their perspectives are enlightening, reflecting both expertise and experience. This led […]
Some Reflections on Our Experience as an Exhibitor at Your Recent Event: An Email from a Dissatisfied Customer
Note: this is an imagined email based on an amalgamation of actual comments from industry colleagues and does not represent the situation at any one event. Dear Event Leadership Team, Subject Line: Some Reflections on Our Experience as an Exhibitor at Your Recent Event As VP of Marketing for our company, I feel compelled to […]
Is Passive Event Attendee Marketing Viable?
Certainly, attendee marketing which is more about messaging the same information frequently to a fixed internal list (what I would call Passive Marketing) has been employed successfully by many top events. Yet, doing this carries significant risks when external factors, such as aggressive competition or the market or wider economic conditions come into play. As Seth […]
What Does an Exhibit Sales Manager Actually Sell?
The conventional notion is that exhibit sales managers peddle booth spaces and sponsorships. And that’s what shows on purchase orders. But insights from Stephen Pia, Dan McGrath, as well as the Freeman Trends Report Q2 2023, make it clear that the true business value of an event is in access to a qualified audience. This point of view […]
How to Find New Attendees for Your Event
I recently attended the Attendee Acquisition Roundtable intending to continue my education in how to help my clients grow their attendee audiences. It’s clear to me that without a clear strategy as to how to find and engage new attendees, events will not reach their full potential. Reflective of my own 30 + years of experience in […]
Are You Turning Your Employees into Zombies?
In the fast-paced, high-pressure world of modern workplaces, it is common for employees to feel overwhelmed and stressed. However, there is a concerning trend that is emerging in the corporate world – the danger of turning employees into zombies. No, we are not talking about the supernatural undead that seem so popular on television these […]
How to Save a Dying Event: The Event Mechanic! Checklist for Turning it Around
Pulling an event out of a death spiral is extremely difficult, requiring a full commitment that many times will fail. If you are determined to try, here’s what I would recommend: 1) If the problem is poor attendance, identify your previous ‘best’ customers and do everything possible to speak with them. After you’ve engaged with a number, […]
Should You Raise Exhibitor Prices?
Every event manager wants to make more money from their events. There are two ways to get there on the exhibit side: attracting more exhibitors or raising the prices that you charge them. Since it is easier to make money by raising exhibit fees than finding new customers, increasing prices is often the more attractive […]
Who Determines Event Attendee Quality? (Hint: It’s not the Organizer)
Attendee quality for any event is determined by its exhibitors and the results they get from your events. Despite the often grandiose exhibitor prospectuses that promote demographics as to how great their audiences will be, the real news is that exhibitors have become increasingly unhappy with the ROI they get from our events. According to the Freeman […]
Avoiding Event Killers
Perhaps an odd title, as well as an odd subject. But if I can help you avoid the fatal mistakes – the event killers – that are within your control, everyone wins. Here they are, as well as how to avoid them. 1) Allocating too little time between an event’s announcement and when it takes […]