“The thing about events is that they are expensive to produce and hard to establish their value”
If I was handed a ten pound note every time I heard this statement, or similar sentiment towards events, I could probably retire; which would mean I wouldn’t have to sit here writing about the value of events.
As much as I would like to introduce a form of ‘wild statement tax’ that meant I could retire, I don’t have the necessary political power or unscrupulous morals to do so.
So, here I am to try to help you, the reader, understand the value of events.
Which will then allow you to justify spend or obtain the buy-in and funding from those who matter within your organisation, to allow you to create events that add value for all.
Before we dive into the value of events, here’s some thoughts …
We’re living in a world where authenticity is becoming harder to demonstrate, certainly in the digital sphere. AI, fake news, auto generated content, social media, targeted advertisements, the list goes on.
We’re bombarded with information on an hourly basis from all angles.
It’s a struggle to understand what is reliable, and this influences our decision to respond or interact with received communication.
Trust is becoming an issue.
When we want to get a deeper understanding of a topic, industry or business we seek out face to face interaction, which in turn builds trust.
And this is where events come into the mix, whether this be physically in a created environment, or online.
An opportunity to interact direct with individuals, establish relationships and build trust.
But just creating an event won’t make people come.
You need to understand the value you want to extract from your event and build an experience that incorporates the value your audience wants from the event.
Every event will have a different value to you depending on the type of audience you want to engage with.
And different event types work for different stages in your audience relationship.
To help demonstrate this let’s use four categories, which you might recognise as the traditional marketing funnel, and highlight the types of events you can create to meet your objectives.
Awareness
Trade shows, conferences, product launch, social media events, sponsorship activation, webinars.
Consideration
Workshops, panel discussions, educational, demos, seminars.
Decision
VIP events, incentives, product test events, exclusive access events, solution days.
Retention
User group meetings, customer/partner events, online communities, introductory network events, training, ambassador programmes.
And if you’re wondering how you measure the value of event types, here are some areas to consider.
Return on reputation
Attendee numbers (existing contacts and new contacts), social media sentiment, sharing of content, session rating.
Return on engagement
Interactivity/audience engagement, connections made, content consumed (online and at event), social media interaction, time spent at event.
Return on investment
Original content generated, SQLs, memberships, re-bookings, cost per attendee, post event interaction.
Last of all, and this is really important if you truly want to gain value from your events; to understand the value of events, stop thinking of the event in isolation; think in broader terms.
What insight can we capture at the event? - opinion pieces, attendee viewpoints, future insights, data analysis
What content can we re-purpose from the event? - video/social/stories, blogs/posts/newsletters, podcasts, infographics
How can we understand our attendees at a more personal level?
What sub-stories or topics can we discover through engagement?
What do our audience want to hear about in the next 6, 12 or 18 months?
Can we co-create with partners for future events?
How do we create engagement opportunities pre, during and post event? How do you keep the conversation going until the next time?
Yes, events done properly, considering an engagement plan, can be seen as expensive, or as I prefer to look at it, a measured investment.
When the term ‘expensive’ next pops into your mind, remember; the price is what you pay, the value is what you get.
Trying to gain trust through digital interaction is not going to get any easier.
Events are the best way to build trust, and once that is built, you’ll start to see the value.
