Learn from Forrester's VP & Principal Analyst, Laura Ramos, and Certain's VP of Marketing, Kristen Alexander, how to convert event buying signals into revenue.
http://www.eventbrite.com/e/storytelling-for-business-people-tickets-9954717829
Getting together with customers remains essential in B2B marketing and selling. B2B sales require a personal touch to build trust and negotiate details so that in-person events remain key elements in the marketing mix. At the same time, buyers and marketers are going digital. 83% believe digital marketing is a highly effective brand building tool and 48% said they plan to spend more on digital advertising. With so much happening online, what does the future of in-person events look like?
*Source: Forrester/DMN 2014 North American Digital Marketing Online Survey and Forrester’s Q4 2014North American B2B Marketing Budget Online Survey
**Source: Forrester’s Q3 2013 North American B2B Marketing Budget Online Survey
†Source: Forrester Q1 2010 B2B Marketing Budgets And Tactics Online Survey With MarketingProfs
‡Source: Forrester Q1 2009 B2B Marketing Budgets And Tactics Online Survey With MarketingProfs
55% of marketers budget for specific in-person events because Sales expects it.
45% attend or sponsor certain in-person events because their competitors do.
5% include rich digital experiences that increase engagement with
attendees.
Only 4% are advanced in use of event-specific tech to manage and enhance the event experience.
623 people in attendance, 519 were active users, bookmarking more than 5,600 activities, participating in gamified contests, and using the app for over a week following the conference.
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WE send them an email after the Summit with a “Trip Report” which outlines all the activities they did, what tags are associated with the sessions they attended, the content that they could be interested in based on those topics.
SAP Swiss event managers used this mobile app to capture participant interactions, analyze their interests, and gather real-time feedback. Armed with information like activities completed per person, session rankings, and event, app, and content reviews, Swiss Events folks at SAP matched attendees to interests and shared this information with each respective sales rep. The result – more deals closed post-event, and with higher average deal sizes – than compared to deals that were in the pipeline but where decisions makers weren’t able to attend the event.
Events have been and will continue to be an important part of the marketing mix. Digital capabilities available today make it possible for marketers to capture event assets and share experiences more widely than ever before. By using technology to tap into audience interests, it is possible to turn events into more durable and strategic assets that deliver value long after take-down crews leave the exhibit hall.
To get there, I have 5 pieces of advice that you should add to your event to-do list, on the strategy side, not simply execution.
1: Attract a well-qualified audience, use the event to gather data about them, and follow up. Turn key event experiences into assets.
2: Leaving the planning and execution of the show schedule to a junior marketer is a recipe for disaster. Don't skimp on talent in this critical position. Find, hire, or promote an events coordinator whose job is to develop, manage, and track the budget; train booth support staff, keep them on task, and make a top impression for your firm.
3: With an abundance of mobile event applications entering the market, it's never been a better time to tune into attendees and find out what turns them on. Event managers should investigate the different options available to help you capture participant interactions, analyze their interests, and gather real-time feedback. Event apps should collect not only activity information but also audience response activity like check-ins, comments, shares, and influence scores as well as preference information like speaker scores, topic popularity, and exhibitors ranked by traffic and ratings
4: Event data can reveal unique insights about attendees' interests. CMOs should ensure that event management investments offer the right combination of visual reporting and real-time analysis to help event managers connect sales with those attendees who exhibit purchase potential. Armed with information like activity per person, session rankings, and reviews, SAP Swiss Events matched attendees to interests and shared this information with each respective sales rep. Insights about the topics that attendees rated or sessions that they attended helped reps tailor conversations post-event and increase the number and size of deals closed, compared with events that did not use the interactive app.
5: To capture the intimacy of small gatherings in large venues, CMOs must learn how to use attendees' data to structure interactions and content around each individual in a more proactive, continuous, and emotionally appealing manner. Social media to community platform. Virtual concierge.
