Back in medieval times
before Event Planning was an official job description, I landed a great job coordinating
events and conferences. I wasn’t called an event manager or anything fancy like
that. I was simply a marketing assistant tasked with coordinating a myriad of
details for corporate events across the country. I thought, not bad for a
pretty young thing with no experience!
I remember calling
my mother, giddy with excitement, to share the news.
But like any loving
parent concerned for her child’s financial future and perhaps lack of good
judgment, she said, “Oh, honey, you might want to look for something else. I
mean, how much money can there be in throwing parties.”
Well, we now know
that the events and meeting planning industry contributes over $395 billion
dollars to GDP totals and requires advanced
management skills equal to an engineering project manager.
Sorry mom, but special
events today are nothing like the swanky little soirees that you and dad use to throw for your friends.
Don’t get me
wrong, my parent’s den parties were pretty epic. Lots of dancing, drinking, and tasty hors d'oeuvres which my mom
spent all afternoon making. But if you share my mother’s belief that events are
just about throwing parties with fancy finger foods, you’re ignoring one of the
most powerful marketing tools on the shelf.
Events are one of
the best marketing channels to reach your target
audience.
In this
impersonal digital age where customers are demanding more authentic
connections, here are four reasons why
event marketing works and should be at the top of your ‘to-do’ list:
- A well-produced event allows your brand to get intimate with customers and create moments. There is nothing more impactful than standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a client, as they experience your product or service or talk with you one-on-one. This is a chance to engage with clients and share details and insight that you couldn’t possibly do online. The bonus is you usually reach more than one client at a time.
- Special events provide a stage for telling your story and a place to demonstrate what the brand stands for and let people know the people behind the brand. There is no better platform for telling the “why” of your business and to create unbreakable bonds than breaking bread together. Remember, facts tell, but stories sell – and this alone can grow your business.
- If branding is the sum total of the customers’ experience, and it is, then events are an essential key to branding. Immerse your customers in unique and transformative experiences, and they will remember your brand forever. People are no longer coming out for long presentations with wine & cheese. By invoking all five of a customer’s senses, you’re guaranteed to receive, ‘thank you from the bottom of my heart’ responses – these moments cannot be duplicated in a print ad or digital medium. Engaged customers will post, share and talk about their experience with others.
- Events are the perfect binding energy for
people to coalesce around – creating an ideal environment for collaboration with
others. The gathering of a cool brand, customers,
and a worthy cause will spark conversations and create synergy. I often partner
my event with a charity to create a buzz that also attracts media attention – a
win-win for everyone involved.
Even if you produce
just one or two stellar events a year, this can intensify the effectiveness of
your marketing – increase your SEO and boost your social media presence.
Special events should be part of every savvy
marketer’s integrated marketing strategy, complete with targeted goals and
sophisticated messaging.
The people of
Spain have a beautiful, almost untranslatable word called, sombremesa. This word
embodies the concept of lingering table talk after a meal, digesting and
savoring both the food and the friendship. My parents were the experts at
excusing the kids and creating an atmosphere for adults to connect after
dinner. And in dating, as in business, this intimate time is where the ‘make or
break’ of the relationship is determined.
If you want to cut through the noise in a
crowded marketplace, gather people together for an event and entice them to
stay for a little la sombremesa.
