Event marketing - benefits from organizing corporate events

Event marketing is a great way to promote your brand and achieve other business goals. Many companies use this communication channel to reach large audiences. Check what exactly company events are and what are the benefits of organizing them. 

What will you learn from the article?

Event marketing is a powerful tool that can significantly increase your brand awareness and build its positive image. But what exactly is event marketing? What strategies should you use to achieve success? In this article you will learn how to effectively engage audiences through events, why it is important to know your target group and what benefits come from organizing closed events. We will also look at the future of event marketing and the growing popularity of hybrid events. We invite you to read!

Event marketing - definition

Event marketing is the use of various types of events to achieve specific business or image goals - increasing interest in a company or its products, increasing the involvement of existing and potential customers, or reaching a specific group of customers. It is a very powerful communication tool aimed at increasing customer loyalty and building a strong community around the brand. It is the perfect way to build better relationships with your community and with current and potential customers, and enables you to meet people in their own environment.

Event marketing is used to build relationships with customers because it creates loyalty that goes beyond customer satisfaction. An event can be both a large mass event and a small, intimate meeting for selected guests. The most important thing is that the event should be organized based on the needs and preferences of the participants, not the organizers. Each event is different and teaches us something new. We distinguish events:

• internal and external,
• closed and open,
• free and ticketed,
• one-day and several-day,
• stationary, hybrid and online.

We implement event marketing both in the virtual and real world, using various types of marketing tools. Apart from the event itself, the key to success in event marketing is a wisely thought-out strategy for promoting the event and communicating with potential participants.

Event marketing is one of the forms of direct reaching the representatives of a specific target group. Examples of events are: conferences, fairs, workshops, company anniversaries, special promotional campaigns or company open days.

Event marketing - quotes

Two Danish researchers, - Dorothe Gerritsen and Ronald van Olderen, emphasize that "event marketing focuses on three areas: marketing, events and communication, and it is a concept that aims to support opportunities for attracting public interest by business, organizations and the media. . "

Donald Getz and JJ Goldblatt in the early 1990s described the event as something "special", "special", "unique", "beyond everyday experience", something that distinguishes a given time from other more routine activities, such as work . Goldblatt described the event as "a special moment in time, defined by a ceremony and ritual that meets someone's needs." Getz, on the other hand, considered it to be "a recreational, cultural or social experience beyond the normal range of choice or everyday life."

In event marketing, your network of contacts is one of the most valuable resources. Your ability to build a network, and thus acquire customers, is one of the key skills you should develop. According to Donald Getz, "For the participant, the event is an opportunity to experience a social, cultural or recreational experience that normally lies beyond the reach of his choice or goes beyond everyday experience."

What is event marketing?

Event marketing is a marketing communication tool that is used to promote a brand, increase sales or acquire business contacts. The organization of corporate events is now an important element of brand advertising and is used by many companies around the world. Why is this happening? Because this action is extremely effective and allows you to achieve business goals on various levels. 

Event marketing is a tool that has many advantages and can be used by entrepreneurs for various purposes, depending on the expected results. Below are the 6 greatest benefits of organizing corporate events. 

What to do to increase brand awareness?

The current market situation means that entrepreneurs are forced to implement new and new marketing solutions. Hundreds or even thousands of new enterprises are created every year. That is why appropriate is so important corporate image management. A good product is not enough to attract customers. First you need to let yourself know and stand out from other companies.

The organization of corporate events allows you to effectively increase brand awareness among recipients. Currently, we are all inundated with advertisements and other information every day, which we do not pay attention to in most cases. Therefore, it will be much easier to reach the awareness of potential customers by organizing an interesting event. 

What does building a positive brand image involve?

Build or warming the image branding is a must for successful sales. Remember that the competition in the market is huge. If you want customers to benefit from your services, you need to make them trust you. Event marketing is a great way to show your brand at its best. At industry events, you can build good relationships with potential customers and make them trust you, as well as present the values of your company. 

Event marketing is not only about promoting the brand and building relationships. At industry events, you can also sell directly and offer your products or services to participants. This approach works perfectly because participants of industry events are usually people interested in a given topic. For example: someone who is not interested in purchasing photovoltaic panels is unlikely to attend an event related to this topic. Participants of corporate events are most often people who are at the end of the sales funnel.

Thanks to the fact that you reach your potential customers directly, your sales increase significantly. You don't have to focus on the so-called low touch, which is a short contact with the recipients. You can listen to your customers' needs and tailor your offer directly to them.

Thanks to a better matched product mix, you can certainly notice an increase in sales in a short time. In addition, during the event itself, new opportunities to sell your products and services may appear.

Event marketing and generating sales leads 

The organization of corporate events also allows you to effectively acquire sales leads, i.e. contact details of people who have expressed interest in a product or service. The topic of the sales funnel comes back here. When planning an advertising campaign, you need to know who to target it to. It is a waste of time to offer a product to someone who will definitely not be interested in it. Event marketing allows you to expand the base of potential customers, i.e. create a group to which marketing activities should be directed. 

Why is it important to know your audience?

The success of marketing activities depends primarily on whether they will be tailored to the target group. Some solutions do not reach everyone and can only scare potential customers away. Therefore, before implementing any advertising campaign, it is worth getting to know your audience and think about how you can respond to their needs.

Industry events are an excellent opportunity to gain such knowledge. Knowing the interests, needs and preferences of potential customers can also be helpful in creating educational campaign, which has also recently become an effective marketing tool. 

Talk to your audience. Give them a chance to get to know you and your brand. If you know that you will not be able to reach all of your potential customers, there are two ways to find out about their opinions and needs.

1. Hire people to collect information for you

If you want to run a successful and profitable business, it is imperative that you learn to delegate particular tasks. Remember that you cannot do everything yourself in your enterprise. Especially when you decide to organize events.

That is why it is worth hiring people who will talk to your potential clients. They can conduct market research for you and find out what your audience is missing the most. This way you can reach much more people during the event and get to know their opinion on a specific topic.

Also remember that the people who will talk to your potential customers and collect information about them for you will also help you increase your brand recognition during fairs or other events. They will be visible in the crowd, attract attention and show that your company cares about responding to the needs of users.

2. Offer prizes for completing the survey

Nothing works for people like free resources or time rewards. During the event, you can prepare leaflets or a QR code with a link to a special survey. By filling it in, you can get additional information about your recipients and check what their needs are.

Remember to appreciate those people who take the time to answer your questions. Offer them free materials, a sample of your work or a reward for completing a survey. In this way, you will also gain the respect of recipients whose time will be appreciated by the entrepreneur. Remember that time is the most valuable currency today. Show your customers that you know about it.

Increase your online visibility thanks to social media

Nowadays, people are eager to share their lives on social media. If the participants of the event are satisfied, there is a very good chance that they will show off their participation in the event on their profiles on the Internet. For the brand, it will be an excellent advertisement with a wide reach. In addition, it is worth creating an event on the network on social networks, where users will be able to join and share information with their friends.

Are you not sure if this will work? Check what the statistics look like on your page in social networks. Do you have active, committed followers there?

Give them a chance to show their commitment in the best way possible. Give them space to share it with others. In this way, you will not only get closer to your audience, but also gain new followers who can become your potential customers.

As you can see, organizing corporate events can bring many benefits to your company. A well-planned event will help you build a positive brand image, acquire many business contacts, advertise and even sell your products, and achieve many other business goals. Despite the constantly developing digitalization and high effectiveness of online brand promotion tools, event marketing still has its supporters and works well in many industries. 

If you combine online activities and internet marketing with the organization of events by your company, you will be able to reach a much wider audience. In this way, you increase your visibility not only on the web, but also in the real world.

Effective event marketing, what is it?

The effectiveness of an event should be considered primarily from the point of view of achieving the marketing goals set for it. The evaluation of the effectiveness of event marketing is also possible thanks to the analysis of parameters such as the number:

• participants,
• promotional materials distributed during the event,
• publications that appeared in the media after the event,
• plus the opinions of the meeting participants.

Spectacular events have long pursued goals that we now call marketing - they served to build the image and shape the opinion of the community. In order to successfully achieve business and image goals with the help of event marketing tools, we must try to meet the following guidelines:

• interesting subject,
• brand recognition of the organizer or invited guests,
• creating a positive aura around the event using promotional activities that arouse the interest,
• proper selection of special guests,
• attractions that will really interest the participants.

If you focus on meeting these guidelines, while also wanting your event to be as audience-focused as possible, you are doomed to success. Remember, however, that effective event marketing is aimed primarily at the participants.

You have to respond to their expectations and needs. Therefore, research the market and check which events are the most popular in your industry. Also observe other areas. You may find that you will find inspiration there to create things that are not yet in your niche. In this way, you will gain new customers who will be happy to use your services.

Event marketing without an event?

One of the ways to use event marketing without taking responsibility for the overall organization of the event is sponsorship of special events. Thanks to such activities, you can achieve your business goals without incurring responsibility and the high costs associated with it.

When looking for the right event to sponsor, ask your customers about it. You can run the form on social media or on a website or send a dedicated e-mail. If you run a local business, ask your clients directly if they plan to participate in a specific event in the area, and then contact the organizers to discuss the terms of cooperation.

When deciding to sponsor an event, look for events related to your product and relating to the values for which your brand is to be known. Find an event that is an obvious link to your product or service. Sponsorship is a great way to combine personal values with the interests of the company. For example, sponsoring charitable events and activities designed to make your business greener can get you excited - and also attract like-minded people.

If you sponsor properly selected events, after some time it may turn out that their clients also become your audience. For example, if you have a snack distribution business, check out movie events in your area. People who love evening screenings at home, outdoors or in the cinema, eagerly reach for small snacks that they can nibble on while watching.

The future of event marketing - a hybrid event

Undoubtedly, the COVID-19 pandemic has left its mark especially on the event industry. Canceled events, conferences and festivals forced the necessity to look for solutions as far as possible. Since potential event participants were forced to stay in their homes, the events also had to cross private thresholds.

A hybrid event describes an event that takes place simultaneously - in a specific place on Earth and in the online world. This is an effective solution for people who want to actively participate in a given meeting, but decided to stay at home for reasons independent or of their own choice. It is comfortable for both the organizers and the participants.

Hybrid event is an effective way for many more people to participate in the organized meeting. We are not limited by the size of the rented room or the cost of participation of individual participants. Online relationships generate zero or little costs, and can translate into a number of new relationships. They are also the best tool for building a poppy community.

Thanks to hybrid events, you can go beyond your area of operation. If you usually get customers only in your city, this way you can reach people who live much further away but are interested in a similar topic. Thus, you increase your sales and you can open up to new markets. Remember that when organizing events, even foreign customers will be happy to use the solutions offered to them.

What is a hybrid event?

A hybrid event is a combination of a stationary event with a professional online transmission, which enables the diversification of promotional activities and reaching a very wide audience - in the country and abroad. It can take various forms, tailored to the target group and topic of the meeting. The most important thing is that the participants, both stationary and online, are treated equally, and that the organizer provides attractions for each of these groups.

Hybrid event is a very convenient form of meetings. It combines tradition with modernity, habit with innovation. It allows you to integrate people of different ages and preferences who would not have a chance to meet during a typical event. Although we are slowly returning to normal, the participants liked the hybrid form of meetings, so it is worthwhile to include the hybrid event in your marketing strategies for good.

According to the Global Virtual Events Market Report 2021-2025, the virtual events market is expected to grow by 33 percent. The differences between live and online meetings can be seen at the biggest international events. The European Geosciences Union General Assembly, organized in Vienna in 2019, gathered 16,200 participants, and organized virtually a year later - over 26,000 people.

Is it worth organizing closed events?

Event marketing is intended to reach the largest possible group of recipients. In this way, you create a group of your new customers and appreciate those who trusted you some time ago. However, some entrepreneurs decide to organize closed events.

Regardless of their form, the mode of operation is similar. Only a limited number of participants are allowed to enter the event. Depending on the assumptions, this may be due to space limitations or the preferences of a particular brand. Is the organization of such an event profitable?

If you are just entering the market with your product or service and want to gain new customers, it is definitely worth betting on open events. Then you have more confidence that there will be enough potential recipients on them.

However, if your company has been on the market for some time and you know exactly what your potential client's profile is, a closed event may turn out to be a very good idea that will bring real profits.

In the case of closed events, it is of great importance that the places are largely limited. This influences the awareness of recipients who want to be among those who have managed to get a ticket entitling to participate. Some entrepreneurs choose this form of marketing because they expect greater interest in the event.

Summary

Events, especially those intended for participants who are between 18 and 30 years old, usually last for several days. This is due to the possibility of organizing more attractions that will be interesting and interesting for the participants.

Remember that if you want to organize a multi-day event, it is necessary to ensure the proper organization of the place where the event will take place. It should be secured and adapted for people who want to spend the night nearby.

Events should not take place in highly isolated places where access is significantly difficult. Better if you decide to have a stadium or a square where communication is possible or city connections are working efficiently.

In the case of multi-day events, it is also possible to better recognize the requirements of participants and potential customers. This way, you can make contact with them, which will turn into sales. This has a significant positive impact on the participants' feelings and contributes to the improvement of your company's image in the industry.

Event marketing is an extremely demanding form of advertising. It requires the careful organization of not only the time of the event itself, but also all aspects related to the safety of participants. However, it is still one of the most effective ways to reach your potential customers.