Events are having their moment in the sun. According to a GDS survey of B2C and B2B global sales and marketing leaders, 93% have included events in their 2024 strategies. The findings are echoed in the UK by the latest IPA Bellwether Report, that saw 2024 Q1 event budgets expand at the fastest rate on record, a trend expected to continue into 2025.
After a period of digital dominance, in-person events offer the human interaction we all crave. There’s huge scope to create bespoke event experiences to reach specific audiences and deliver against a variety of marketing objectives.
Here’s why we think events should be part of your marketing plan.
Relationship building
Whether you want to build a connection with a brand or between people, there’s a huge value in face-to-face interactions for attendees and marketers alike. Two-way engagement is immediate, with the ability to ask and answer questions, to read body language and visual cues, to build relationships by finding common ground. Plus, studies show that our emotional responses are heightened during group experiences, likely due to the impact of social proof. The ability to deepen relationships at events will help at all stages of the sales cycle – building trust in the awareness stage, speeding up purchasing decisions and embedding loyalty.
Brand recognition
Most events are designed to attract people with shared interests – that could be related to our work, our hobbies or the things we find entertaining. That makes them a highly targeted way to raise awareness of your brand with ideal customers, in an environment where there are more meaningful opportunities for engagement. Being visible in the places where your buyers hang out will mean they are more likely to remember you – and think positively about you – when they need the thing you sell. Familiarity fuels trust, credibility and sales.
Content creation
Events are content machines. As well as designing the experience to meet the needs of those in the room, think about how you can capture content to reach a broader audience – both during the event and afterwards. Film any presentations to live stream and edit shorts for socials; install a TV-style studio or a podcast recording kit to capture interviews with attendees, speakers or talent; use a video crew to capture highlights, case studies and the behind-the-scenes stories; and create attendee photo opportunities with clear mechanisms for social sharing. Alongside your own content capture, encourage attendees to create and share user-generated content too. Competitions, event experience upgrades or post-event rewards can encourage engagement. You might even find your next tribe of influencers.
Market research
With so many buyers in the same place, events are a great place to gather insights about customers and competitors. There are tons of technology tools to gather quantitative insights – registration or sign-up forms, QR codes linked to information or downloads, event app engagement metrics, RFID tags to exchange information, heatmaps to assess foot traffic patterns, exhibition lead retrieval platforms with pre-set questions and more. The face time allows you to get qualitative feedback too. Use surveys, interviews, booth conversations and roundtable discussions gather more granular insights. Don’t forget to take a walk around the event so you can see how your competitors show up and spot examples of best practice that you can copy.
Communities
As well as creating an environment focused on a specific topic, attendees love events because they can connect with their peers. The 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer shows that we have similar levels of trust in ‘someone like me’ as we do in scientists. Use existing customer ambassadors and those with lived experience to support your event storytelling and facilitate ways to bring buyers together to share stories, learnings and best practices. Social media followers, online forums, user-groups and advisory boards can all benefit from in-person moments as part of community marketing efforts that drive word-of-mouth growth.
Want to talk about how to make the most of your events? Drop us a line, we’d love to hear from you.