By Elizabeth Boineau
Marketing Matters

Are events a good tool for winning customers and influencing prospects, even year-round?

Or are they just a waste of precious resources when not carefully and thoughtfully planned for maximum return?

It’s that time of year, for better or worse, and whereas event planners love it and some clients expect it, there is still some debate about whether the big ticket, typically low-tech, tried and true events pay off on the bottom line. Or is it better to look at them as the goodwill, feel-good forums they often are?

Holidays or no, it’s easy to be a skeptic and also important to set realistic expectations as part of the event plan, especially if your company chooses to do an event when there are many competing ones vying for the same crowd at the same celebrative time. Add to it that there are so many organizations chasing after the same dollars. One’s calendar, and wallet, can only hold so much.

Whether for seasonal fun or basic fundraising, even the die-hard party boy/girl knows it’s essential to put events through a fine filter to assess what return they may bring to your business.

Whether hosted from the living room of the CEO or the ballroom of the finest facility in town, it’s the smart company that puts events to the test before deciding if it is wise spending big bucks and major resources just hoping for the desired outcome.

Speaking of which, it’s best to define early what your desired outcome is to be sure you can measure against it when deciding whether to take on the same event next year. Most events are meant to build brand awareness and name recognition, to rub elbows in a more casual setting
with those sometimes unapproachable prospects and to thank customers for their business.

When the party’s over, take a hard look at what came from it to feel comfortable making the investment again. If the primary aim is just good, pure fun, then party on. If resources are limited, then before you put down that deposit and pull out the finery, here are some questions to consider:

• Why are you hosting the event? Prospect generation and client gratitude, milestone celebration or brand-building?

• What might your event conflict with? Scour the local calendars and those of trade shows, if that’s the venue. Set your date early and get those invitations out ahead of the pack.

• Will it be public or private? If the former, be sure there’s a strong news angle and ample notice for calendar announcements and audience generation, particularly if there’s a fundraising agenda too. Be sure key constituents and supporters will attend; tap their loyalty and following to gin up attendance from their prospect base.

• Does the invite speak to you? Does it conjure up emotional appeal and intrigue? Does it set the tone? Is all the key information there? Is the brand making the necessary statement in the invitation? Is your logo prominent?

• What are your media expectations? There are legitimate reasons—ritual, ceremony and tradition—to craft special events around company and organization milestones, but have reasonable expectations around media coverage. Hire your own photographer and send the best pictures to the weekly papers and zone sections of the daily. If there’s a charitable cause tied in, you may be more likely to get coverage.

• If it’s a milestone event, is there an effort to get a profile or feature coverage for what your organization is celebrating? Is there an e-blast going out to a target list or an ad running to crank up the buzz about your event?

• What will your guests leave with to remember you by? I am mixed on giveaways, but in certain situations they can be effective to reinforce brand identity. Just aim to make yours more treasure than trash.

• Do you have a follow-up plan? For smallish events that are fundraising or more pure new business generation, someone should follow up three to five days after the event to take the lead to the next step. Bigger events make that more difficult and make interaction more challenging as well. Consider breaking your event into two timeslots or more or over a few days if generating more one-to-one encounters is the objective.

So when the urge to party bites, gather your co-workers, and maybe an invitee or two, and run a reality check to be sure your event is worth the time, effort and expense.

Did you build brand recognition, generate new business and thank those clients you’re blessed to have? Best of all, did it leave you and your guests longing for more?

Elizabeth L. Boineau runs E. Boineau & Co., a Charleston-based strategic marketing communications and public relations firm. E-mail her at eboineau@eboneauandco.com.

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