Idiot Marketing Messages
Here are some examples of what I consider to be idiot marketing messages: Last chance to sign up is Friday! Hours left to save – register today! Early bird pricing extended! High-level content at ABC Conference! Elite Expertise at XYZ Summit! Breaking News: XYZ to keynote Acme Conference You may ask why I […]
Six steps to avoid event marketing disaster
Can your events marketing staff pivot away from disaster toward success? For most event companies, the answer is mostly no. They have staffs that were trained by ‘the book’ and struggle with the proper and timely response to negative results, often persisting with plans that are not working. Or, as the event looms ever closer, […]
How to Master Attendee Acquisition When Launching a New Event
I have a few event launches under my belt, having been in the business for the past 28 years. Many elements of a launch are the same, regardless of the event, and there’s a proven formula for success. But first-time events are a different story. What is unique there is the need to get enough […]
Whose Attention is the New Currency?
The more attention you can commit to things, the more value you will derive. Unfortunately, it’s not a matter of awareness; attention spans are now shorter than ever and paying attention is a challenge. With the many information inputs available, people are easily distracted in ways that interfere with the focus needed to understand what […]
How to Get Your Freebies to Pay
Many of my publisher clients offering events have found that one of the main hurdles they face when launching an event is the challenge of converting customers – often accustomed to free content – into paying conference attendees. You may have also have this problem as a non-publisher if you are trying to upgrade expo […]
The secret to success is……
The secret to success is the ability to stand in another person’s shoes. That’s particularly true if you are trying to do business with that person. An Old Tale Still Rings True Remember the story of the two brothers who had to share a piece of cake? The elder brother managed the situation in […]
Six things that you must do between shows
The show is over, and you can breathe a sigh of relief. If you are smart, you’ll also do these things before taking too long of a pause. 1. Clean your database You’d be shocked how many event companies don’t ‘sanitize’ their contact lists on a regular basis. Cleaning out the bounced emails and returned mail (if you […]
Is There an Attendee Acquisition Disaster in Your Future?
Having just read an article on GDPR that suggests a silver lining for the events business can be found in that new EU regulation, I’ve concluded that the author is right for the most part, if you have a solid data strategy. But if you don’t, welcome to the nightmare. Why? If you follow good […]
Are You Running a Reactive Event?
Unfortunately, the answer is likely to be ‘yes.’ If so, it’s likely that your event will be entirely forgettable for your attendees as soon as they leave. They’ll have learned nothing new and will be dreading the meeting with their boss when they must explain why they’ve spent $2 – 3K of the company’s money […]
Are Event Marketers About to Become Extinct?
Imagine that you’ve missed another attendee goal for an event. Or, possibly worse, your attendee revenue number is short of the target. Why? Some questions to ask are: Did you do the same things that you did the previous year? Was that because your marketing staff chose the familiar route rather than changing things […]