Thoughts on Thought Leadership
Using Events to Generate Business
Professional services firms increasingly are viewing self-sponsored marketing events such as seminars and conferences as a way to generate demand for their services. And for good reason. Done right, an educational event can be an extremely effective way to move individuals from “prospect” to “buyer” status.
However, many firms fall into two traps in their event-planning efforts: They overlook the groundwork that must be laid before holding a conference or seminar, and underestimate what it takes to successfully develop and stage such an event.
The fact is that events should not be used as an awareness-builder. We’ve seen numerous firms make the mistake of inviting to an event executives who have never heard of the firm or its expertise, or using an event as the initial tool to help them launch a new service offering or gain access to a different buyer within client companies. The result generally has been the same: few attendees. This makes sense when you think about it from the prospects’ view. An event can be a major commitment of time for executives, and dozens or hundreds of events compete for that time.
The real role of an event is to build relationships— to provide prospects with a chance to learn more about the firm, its people, and its qualifications after they’ve had their interest piqued. Executives will be much more likely to consider attending a firm’s event if they are familiar with a firm’s ideas and client work. That’s why firms must create awareness of their ideas and client successes (through articles, press mentions of studies, public speaking at industry conferences, etc.) before they hold an event.
Once it has laid the appropriate groundwork, a firm
then must decide what type of event best suits its needs. A marketing
event can take many forms including: a “breakfast briefing” in which
the focus is on a single topic; a half-day seminar that covers several
aspects of an issue; or a full-scale conference that spans two or three
days and features a mix of session formats and presenters (including
clients). The type that’s ultimately chosen depends on many factors,
including budget, timing, available resources, and target audience.
Regardless of format, an event must incorporate the following nine elements to improve its chances of success:
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Compelling Content. Your ability to attract attendees and increase prospects’ interest in your services at the event is directly tied to the strength of the expertise you present. Few executives will commit time away from the office to listen to sales pitches. Thus, the tone of the event must be educational (problem/solution), not promotional (“here’s why our approach is superior”). One of the most successful event organizers we know forbids even leaving sales brochures in the room. Presentations themselves must be free of blatant sales messages and, instead, discuss through real-world examples proven ways for addressing key business problems. The best way to do this is have client executives present their business issues and how they (and you) solved them—i.e., case studies. Without such case studies, a firm’s services may be perceived as unproven.
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Top-Notch Presenters. Compelling content is only part of the equation. Presenters must have superior speaking skills. They must have an accessible style that engages the audience and conveys authority on the topic. They also must be intimately familiar with the presentation and its content. This requires diligent preparation before the event and possibly a few sessions with a professional speaker coach. Just one example of how such preparation pays off: After extensive speaker coaching, the CEO of one of our consulting clients, an inexperienced public speaker, gave the highest-rated presentation at the event, which attracted more than 60 potential buyers. You also may have to bring in an outside keynote speaker with “marquee value” to attract attendees. Such a keynoter is most effective when his or her expertise and presentation relate directly to the event’s theme and help make the “case for action” for the firm’s services.
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Relevant Topic. Given the vast number of business conferences on the market today, competition for attendees is fierce. Getting senior executives to attend an event when their companies have slashed travel and training budgets has become a major challenge. In these circumstances, the theme of the event must be compelling and address a major problem or opportunity that the target audience already recognizes.
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Presentation Variety. If your event is more than an hour breakfast meeting, you’ll need a mix of session formats—keynote talk, lectures, client case studies, panels, interactive workshops, etc.—to keep attendees engaged. Several hours or days of one-way communication (speaker to audience) will reduce the degree to which the audience is connected with the content and erode their learning experience.
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Presentation Quality. Presentations themselves—their flow, graphics, and overall “look and feel”—must be easy to follow, logically unfold, and stick to the topic. To hold attendees’ attention, the visuals should not distract them from the core messages. Presentations must be visually clean and appealing, and have a consistent graphic identity.
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Strong, Coordinated Marketing. A well- designed event will fail if nobody knows about it. Getting the word out early, often, and to the right people is vital to generating strong attendance. Key to doing so is developing a database of a sufficient number of target buyers or influencers of your services (which can require doing extensive research to create your own list); producing and disseminating effective promotional materials (including printed and electronic direct mail pieces) on a timely basis; and telemarketing follow-up. Marketing materials must clearly emphasize the event’s educational nature and benefits of attending. For instance, the invitation to the event must articulate the business issue or problem that the event will address, and not focus on the firm’s solution to the problem.
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Excellent Project Management. Even small events such as a breakfast meeting have myriad details to manage. Selecting the venue, managing venue logistics and the marketing campaign, developing presentations, and registering attendees take time and attention to detail. The person or group in charge of running the event must have excellent project management skills, be able to make decisions quickly, and relate well to impatient, demanding people.
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Convenient, First-Class Venue. An event must be easy to get to from the regions you are drawing from, whether that’s less than an hour’s drive across town or a direct flight of fewer than two hours. Regardless of the length of the event, facilities must be superior to ensure that attendees have a positive experience and associate your brand with excellence.
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Timely Follow-up. All attendees should be sent a letter thanking them for their participation the day after the event’s closing. This letter should not be a sales entrée; rather, it should express your gratitude for their taking time out of their busy schedules and give them a contact for further discussion. For longer events, a summary of the event’s presentations can reinforce what attendees learned and inform other key prospect executives who couldn’t attend.
Events provide an unparalleled opportunity for a firm to demonstrate to prospective buyers that it truly has the experience, knowledge, and approaches to solve their business problem. By laying the necessary groundwork before an event and incorporating the nine elements critical for success, a firm can capitalize on that opportunity and ultimately boost its revenues.