Partner comment
When designing Gateway , our recently launched event interaction platform , one of the key questions we asked event organisers was ; ‘ how essential is it for event organisers to build an online community around their event ?’. The common mindset of an event marketer is that if you can build a community , it is then easier to convert that online group into bigger footfall . That is of course true . But a growing number of organisers now believe that in reality , building and maintaining a community is a costly and time-consuming business - not to mention hard to achieve when your event isn ’ t the only horse in town . For most shows , potential visitors are coming to an event website as they want to be provided with important information ( the date of the show , who is exhibiting or speaking , for example ), to contact potential suppliers , arrange to meet peers and to view content that is relevant to them . From the research we
The future of events is personalisation
ASP ’ s MD Jon Benjamin reveals how improving an individual visitor ’ s experience of your event online is fast becoming a cornerstone of a successful show
carried out during the process of creating Gateway , it became clear that event organisers are now focusing on improving the experience of each individual potential visitor as well as trying to build that elusive community . The reason ? Quite simply , the more engaged an individual is with an event , the more likely they are to turn up . Organisers are realising that by personalising each individual visitor ’ s experience of the show , they are in turn helping to develop brand loyalty towards their event and in the process , are building a bigger and more engaged audience . So how do you improve online engagement and ultimately increase footfall ?
Empower Visitors We all love making a list and that very much applies for your audience too . We recommend using a platform that allows potential visitors to search for exhibitors and create personalised lists of exhibitors they like , products they want to find out more about as well as speaker and session content they wish to save and share that is relevant to them . These lists are essentially the forming up of compelling reasons for your visitors to attend your event . The more detail a potential visitor puts into their profile and the more content they like , will enable an event interaction platform to provide a more personalised experience of a show by
offering up exhibitors , fellow visitors and content that is likely to be of interest to them .
Involve Exhibitors Yes , getting content out of your exhibitors can feel like dragging a dead horse to water to try and make it drink , but according to some of the clients we speak to , the results are well worth it . By posting content online , be it products , news or even blogs if they are inclined , unsurprisingly exhibitors will often see a far greater ROI and feel more of a loyalty towards your show . Their fuller profiles and more content pages will improve your SEO , making your event far more discoverable and engaging for your audience . Exhibitors are also picking up business after the event as their online offering is improving their customer reach and audience interaction all year round .
Keen to request a demo of ASP ’ s Gateway ? Visit asp . events / gateway
Autumn — 53