Dont Just Sow Up, Show Off!

Lets face it, advertising has changed.

Thanks to social media, ads are everywhere. Consumers are constantly bombarded with ads, memes, and more. It can be very difficult to grab a consumer’s attention. 

Perhaps the best new approach to marketing is the old-fashioned way.

Face to Face! Enter Event Marketing! 

Event marketing offers a unique opportunity to meet with your prospects one on one.  No other marketing channel can match the unparalleled, immersive user experience. So use it wisely. Don’t just show up, show off. 

Show what your brand has to offer, and don’t be afraid to be flashy. Live events can be an extremely effective way to grab attention and draw it towards your brand. To get the most bang for your buck out of live events, be sure to keep these key aspects in mind. 

Know Your Audience.

The most basic, but still important aspect of effective marketing is to know your audience. You need to keep in mind who you’re advertising to. Think about it like this – you wouldn’t talk to your grandma the same way you would talk to a friend. Knowing your audience is crucial in effective event marketing. Use your knowledge of who will be attending your event to create personas and cater your events. For example, if your attendees are professional businessmen, you should cater your event towards them. You can do this by making modifications to the way you speak, show your products, and the tone of the event overall. By conforming your style of event marketing towards your audience, you will begin to create a steady customer base.

Make the Experience Welcoming.

For some attendees, this could be their first impression of your company. So keep your design open and inviting. 

Consider pre-event marketing to your attendees, whether through email, phone, or social media, pre-event marketing is a good way to make your attendees feel wanted at the event. At the event you can engage attendees in friendly conversation to make them feel comfortable. After the event, be sure to following up with attendees for feedback and thank them, which is an effective way to show them how much their attendance means to you. 

Give Them Something to Take with Them.

Give them something besides knowledge to take away from the experience. Whether it is a sample, a product, or even just an information packet, something physical to take home will keep your brand in people’s minds.  Make sure your giveaways are relevant. For example, giving IT prospects a thumb drive is a useful tool that they will use and keep your brand relevant to the attendee. 

Present Your Products.

Show and tell is a great way to keep events interesting. You should not only demonstrate how products work but explain how they can be beneficial to attendees. Doing so will help the audience relate what is being shown at the event to their own life. This is what is going to help your audience feel a connection to your company.

Teach your audience something new.

Studies have shown that attendees come to events to find something new.

Offer your attendees the latest and greatest concepts for your particular industry. You should aim to get to a deeper level of information and teach your audience something they did not know before.  Your audience is there to learn, so make it worth their time. 

Make it Fun!

Your event needs to be engaging and keep your attendees focused. Although your event may be in a professional setting, it needs to be something people will remember. You should aim to make your event as fun and enjoyable as possible, without losing the informational aspect. The use of games, competitions, or technology is a good way to keep your audience engaged. 

Overall, your attendees should leave your event feeling satisfied, and feeling like the event was worth their time. Keep in mind that the attendees took time out of their day to come to your event. You need to make sure that the experience was enjoyable to the attendees to ensure that they will become buyers in the future. Integrating these strategies into your live events will help to improve the impact you make on attendees, and increase your ROI for event marketing dollar.

One of the newest concepts in marketing I have seen is mobile marketing via themed event trailers. I recently visited a mobile escape trailer and was so engaged in the experience I forgot it was all a sales pitch!  A properly themed escape trailer can provide an enjoyable experience while subtly building brand awareness.