So what should we be thinking about as we plan our events ? Over the next four or five months , we will learn at speed the true impact of the life changing effect of the pandemic on our ‘ post Covid-19 audiences ’ and their changing appetites when it comes to event content . Past the initial elation we ’ ve seen of getting back to face-toface events , there ’ s one thing I ’ m confident we can assume now .
Just as travelling into work is no longer the expected daily norm for many , one day away from the desk or an evening away from the family to attend an event in person is a bigger emotional decision and energy investment than it was pre-pandemic . To tip our audience into making the decision to join us at events , we need to deliver even better value for their time investment .
So this wutumn and winter we all need to make sure weve raised our game , and not just filled that stage with a name or gimmicks . We need to blow our audiences away by ensuring we offer ‘ significant impact and outcomes ’ like never before .
But what does that mean and how do we do that ? In the past , event attendees will have either turned up because they were expected to by their employer or because they were attracted to an interesting name or title of a session .
To turn around the no show rates , to get people out of their homes , and most importantly to get them attending and left wanting to come back for more , we need to redefine the ideas we develop for audiences , think through the promises we make when we promote our event and , most importantly , work harder – both on the client brief and the talent brief – than ever before .
Priorities I firmly believe other life priorities have made our audiences choose to physically attend less events and expecting better content when they do . So it ’ s time to really apply some strong marketing thinking to our content development and our briefings .
For us we ’ re a relatively new business . To date we ’ ve had our best feedback and greatest outcomes not from the biggest names we ’ ve placed , but as a result of nailing the brief by pushing back on the assumed big name speaker that might fit , even if their name seems ( on the surface ) impressive enough to fill the room .
Impressing audiences now is about considering the personal outcomes they expect , to commit to taking them on a journey ( whether that ’ s a day or an hour ), and engaging them into action .
To figure that out , a great place to start is with these four simple questions . Apply them to each panel or slot and to your event as a whole . 1 . How will this be different ? 2 . How will this be better ? 3 . What do we want our audience to think ? 4 . What do we want them to do ? At first glance this might seem overly simple . These planning questions certainly aren ’ t new ( I first came across them 15 years ago working with brand genius Simon Gulliford at emap and Barclays ).
In the spirit of raising your game , whether planning learning sessions or entertainment for our
Karen Lynch
Steven Bartlett now more demanding audiences ; �you need to : � Give them the people with the lived experience , not people talking about people with lived experiences .
� Immerse them in the experience , don ’ t just tell them about a great experience .
� Walk away from the gimmick . Instead , pull out rubies of inspiration from the post-pandemic rubble .
Sebastian Coe
Kate Bottley
Karen Lynch is the CEO of Expert Impact Speakers , a new kind of talent agency that uses all profits to support charities and social enterprises . She has previously worked in several other business sectors , including finance , FMCG and media as a brand builder and audience driver . Karen is also vice chair of The Conduit Club in Covent Garden , a purpose driven members club with a busy daily events calendar of internal programming and client events .
Their speakers include Dragons ’ Den ’ s Steven Bartlett , Lord Sebastian Coe , Gogglebox ’ s Rev Kate Bottley , former F1 driver David Coulthard .
To enquire about speakers to appear at your event , please contact venita @ expertimpact . com EN
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