Marketing
Andrew White, MD, Triggerfish
These six weeks of toxic shock have
been a game changer for events, and
will potentially rewrite the way the
sector operates. We’ve confirmed we
can adequately work from home and
we’ve proved we can communicate via
webinars. Equally we’ve highlighted our
needs as people to be connected, and
most tellingly for the business of face-
to-face, we’ve underlined our human
need for personal touch and interaction.
The question is how this will play out
when lockdown is lifted and how can we
start marketing for the still unknown
landscape of face-to-face meetings and
live events?
For many organisers, venues and
suppliers the corporate client is the
target market. And without a doubt,
the corporate will come back to their
workplace balancing the need to re-
boot their company culture through
employee engagement while also paying
heed to the facts that budgets are
going to be tight; and more pressingly
they have a heightened duty of care
to their employees and stakeholders.
Controversially, will their client and
employee face-to-face events even be
the right forum?
From a PR perspective these
considerations, and hopefully worst-
case scenarios, need to be worked
through, solutions found, and positives
presented on the demonstrable impact
that face-to-face communications has,
had and will continue to have.
The key for any supplier in the event
sector is to revisit their tried and tested
USPs as these may well be outdated,
even ludicrous, after social distancing
and in this new era for society. The
event sector’s core vocabulary with
claims such as ‘10,000 visitors’ at a
trade show, or the ‘ease of bringing
delegates together over sharing platters’,
or ‘theatre-style seating for 250’ may
not even be legal lexicon if many of the
mooted restrictions become a reality.
It’s also widely reported that there will
be changes in the supply chain; from
venue operators, caterers, AV suppliers,
team build companies to professional
organisers. Only time will tell. One
thing for sure is that when we are on a
more even keel, supplier integrity will
be a new benchmark. The ‘big bucks’
business value of integrity. Therefore,
it’s key to start talking about your
values, your actions and the impact they
have had, and will continue to have, on
the wider event sector. Did you continue
to pay your creditors? Were you flexible
in your terms and conditions? Did
you become involved in helping the
NHS? Did your furloughed employees
volunteer their time for charitable
purposes? For so many in the events
industry relationships are built on the
cross sell between ancillary suppliers
and actions speak louder than words.
When lockdown is lifted, the events
industry is going to be awash with
communications from suppliers;
discounted hire offers, offers to thank
the NHS, short lead offers and the
inevitable January offers. However,
corporate and other organisations won’t
necessarily be buying off discount – it
will be health and safety and adherence
to new legislations that will get noticed.
Savvy operators are already sharing
their newly learned best practices
amongst their target markets and
without doubt it is an informed and
intelligent way of marketing unlike
the short-lead scattergun day delegate
discount and increased commissions.
Cleanliness certifications, a
heightened use of technology while
reducing the dependence on shared
devices and a greater reliance on voice
control on your devices are all coming
to the fore as we migrate from the
traditional handshake, to the new wave
of the hand.
It goes without saying that, when
building a reputation, the landscape has
transformed in the last few years due to
the digitisation of the media. Consumer
and trade print media remain key,
however, today’s buyers are as likely to
be influenced by what they read online
and across social media. Press releases,
editorial, commentary and awards build
a brand, its digital and social media that
keep your brand alive and as a constant
reminder to potential buyers.
Therefore, look at the channels
your target market engages with:
LinkedIn for thought leadership,
association newsfeeds to maximise your
relationships with your ancillary supply
chain, trade publications to drive home
your standing amongst your peers,
Instagram to bring some personality
and reality to your organisation and the
consumer media to put a nationwide
stamp on your brand.
We are fortunate that the business of
hospitality (and, in turn, live events)
is on the national agenda through the
ramifications from so many cancelled
sporting occasions, music concerts,
consumer occasions and the decimation
of the eating out market.
Collectively we have a duty and an
opportunity to keep this story going
and to keep the events sector profile
raised by highlighting how we are
compensating and finding solutions,
and ultimately innovating in order to
navigate a new era of face-to-face.
Andrew White, MD,
Triggerfish
May — 47