Conference & Meetings World Issue 111 | Page 8

Analysis

Re-thinking economic models

MICHELLE FANUS-ST HILL POINTS TO A FRESH WAY OF DOING BUSINESS IN THE EVENTS INDUSTRY
his health crisis has highlighted our events industry ’ s heavy reliance on face-to-face activities , however , it has also shown our resilience and creativity – forcing us to pivot and embrace doing business online . So much so , that 75 million attendees logged into more than one million events in 2020 via Eventbrite alone in 2020 .
The global events industry was valued at $ 1.1 trillion in 2018 , a figure projected to double to $ 2.33 trillion by 2026 . Coronavirus has certainly stunted this growth , impacting B2B brands , marketing , and sales activity . Virtual events were , in 2020 , our saving grace , so what is on the horizon for the rest of 2021 and beyond ? How do we get back on track and what is our post-pandemic game plan ?
A staggering 97 % of event marketers believe we will see more hybrid events in 2021 than ever before ( Bizzabo , 2020 ). Hybrid , multi-channel and omni-channel events are the way forward , without a doubt , but what does that journey look like ?
Time to explore a different way of doing business ? Pre-coronavirus , most of our industry worked around a transactional event-by-event approach , jumping from one event to the next , but what if there were a different way of doing things ?
Imagine taking a longer-term view . Instead of large-scale annual events , how about exploring a series of engaging , informative ‘ interactions ’ over a 12 or even 24-month period ? We would save on venue hire and logistics planning , not to mention saving our planet . Quite a mindset shift . but do consider :
• Slicing and dicing your larger events into more focussed pieces of content delivered as a mix of digital ideas e . g ., targeted live events , newsletters , or podcasts ;
• Consolidating your smaller events into more substantial experiences ;
• Viewing your stakeholders as the community that you serve ;
• Setting aims , objectives and ROI with extended timeframes ;
• Identify the community ‘ binding interest ’ and discover what they really want ;
• Explore an ‘ always on ’ model . 24 / 7 content and engagement . We need a re-definition of our game plan and a re-design of our engagement that will bring value to audiences , amplify activity , and build stronger propositions .
1 . Build strong , engaging communities The first place to start is always with content and tackling the perception that online content is free .
Not everyone will be comfortable
Above : Michelle Fanus-St Hill
If you want to delve more into exploring the business model re-define , identify and build your community and unlock sponsorship , then check out Michelle Fanus-St Hill ’ s course Post Covid-19 Event Strategies That Make Money . More information : www . theconfdirector . thinkific . com /
returning to live events , so an omni-channel strategy is going to be critical to retain your audiences . What do your audiences want ? What will they pay for , spend time watching and leave their offices for ? Remove the guesswork and spend time finding out . This will build your community .
2 . Develop compelling monetisation strategies Establishing what your community values will boost your engagement , grow event attendance , and unlock revenues . Where audiences go , we know sponsors closely follow .
Service providers will want to keep their brands front of mind and post-pandemic there will be pent-up demand for lead generation and a pipeline of new prospects . Webinars have global reach so there is the potential to sell sponsorship . If you find hot topics and areas of interest for your community , you can then explore how brands or sponsors can be integrated .
3 . Create viable economic models Starting with a pool of great content ideas leads you to build out a subscription-based model ( like the publishing industry approach ) for your events . Explore a tiered pricing approach that offers access to free material but where other business-enhancing features come at a price . Virtual event costs are low compared to live , with no venue hire fees and marginal costs close to zero for additional days .
Conclusion The post-pandemic era offers the events industry an opportunity to change . We need viable bounce back ideas . Live events will come back , however , online events are here to stay . Audiences will not always want to travel so virtual events are the gateway . Our focus needs to be on quality and on serving our audiences .
Keep calm and build community .
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