sociable . You need to be able to see people , at a cocktail reception , for example , to make new connections and learn more things . Virtually , existing relationships can be maintained but it ’ s hard to develop new ones .

EW : What has gone into your marketing strategy for this year ’ s event ? JF : This year was a continuation of a big change for the symposium ; more so than any other JD Events event . We ’ ve relied heavily on direct mail for a long time ; other events would have made the change sooner . For the symposium , the nature of our attendees is very sociable and design oriented , so , we were reluctant to get rid of direct mail or cut down on it .

Coming out of the pandemic people weren ’ t necessarily back in offices - that was a consideration for us we had to look at . In 2021 , just like in 2019 , we printed a four- or six-page brochure . But for this year , we printed only a postcard instead . That was a huge step for us .

On the flip side , we focused much more on digital advertising . Buying advertising on associations ’ and publications ’ websites , social media , doing boosted posts , and more . For other JD Events ’ events , we had that experience . But , for the symposium , it was a learning curve .

People are always surprised that it takes a year to plan an event – you don ’ t just turn up , it ’ s hard and it ’ s never the same . I ’ m already excited for 2023 because of the lessons I ’ ve learned in digital marketing for this year ’ s event , and because of the impact it ’ s had on our attendees .

EW : What has the feedback been on the change in marketing strategy ? JF : It ’ s been interesting . Our salesperson is hearing from people who had never heard of our event before . Even though we ’ d focused on attendee marketing , brand-new

leads for an already established event were responding to the ads .

Our attendees were responding positively to seeing the ads wherever they went online . For them , interest in the event extended beyond ‘ it fell on my desk ’. Additionally , we were legitimised by the fact our event has been around for over 20 years , and so many people have already heard about it .

EW : What was the process behind deciding on your content ? JF : For this event , we have an advisory board of about 30 volunteers . They represent a mix of our audience : large architectural firms , hospitals , contract construction firms , and engineering firms . They ’ re very involved in helping me source information , which sets the course for all of our marketing – and content especially .

Going into this event , the process was a bit different to usual as 2021 ’ s event was in December . This year we had a nine-month turnaround

“ For exhibitors , virtual doesn ’ t allow them to showcase their products , especially in the healthcare industry which is so sociable .”

instead of 12 . So we held a quick Zoom board meeting right after the 2021 event . To source content topics , in the meeting , I usually ask them : “ What ’ s keeping you up at night ?” regarding the industry and compile the feedback .

EW : What new lessons or processes came about this year ? JF : Firstly , this year the show is widening its scope to include topics just outside traditional healthcare . We have speakers returning to talk about global homelessness and other underserved communities such as indigenous and native communities .

Secondly , a lot of people in our industry are facing the retirement of the boomers , and a lack of upcoming younger talent . We are focusing on emerging leaders ; each advisory board is given one free registration to invite an emerging leader that they know . A lot of them have embraced it – it ’ s one of our 2023 goals .