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Are you looking to take the next step in your event or meeting planning marketing plan? (Or if you are a planner and looking for marketing advice.) You may be interested in some of these ideas that may help you get where you want to go.
There are endless ways you can market an event, however, if your marketing strategies are not well thought through, it can easily lead to a lack of interest and people attending. Here are a few helpful tips to get you started on implementing great marketing strategies for your next event.
Here are the best event planning marketing tactics for business owners and marketers to help you market your company before, during, and after events.
Why Event Planning is a Unique Business
The “Big Picture”
Event planning is a field that allows you to work both creatively and analytically. Event planners often work on multiple projects simultaneously, which means that they have to think on their feet in order to achieve their goals. You’ll be able to show off your organizational skills as well as your ability to multi-task in this position.
Event planners make good money
If you take the time to invest in an event planning business, then it will be worth it in the long run. An average event planner can make between $30,000 and $50,000 per year depending on where he or she lives and how many events they plan for each year. Most of these companies also include bonuses for referring other planners to the company as well as bonuses for reaching certain sales goals within a certain amount of time.
Opportunity for variety
Event planning is about more than just throwing parties. In fact, you can do everything from corporate events to school dances and more. You’ll get to meet new clients and help them celebrate their special moments, which is a great feeling for everyone involved.
Meet new and interesting people
Event planners have the opportunity to meet new people. Event planners work with clients from all types of backgrounds, including celebrities and politicians. Each individual has their own unique personality, which allows event planners to meet people from many different walks of life.
Event Planning Business Challenges
Logistics of your event
If you’re planning a conference, for example, there are several moving parts that must come together for it to be successful. It’s not enough to just book a venue and hire a speaker; you need to coordinate with the venue on food and beverage, create a schedule of events, figure out how to get attendees from their hotels in between events, and arrange transportation if necessary. The more complex the logistical details are, the more stressful your role as an event planner will be.
Coordinating with vendors
Coordinating with vendors can be time-consuming because they might not respond quickly or properly. The most frustrating part of being an event planner is when you have to deal with uncooperative vendors who don’t do what they say they’re going to do, like when you have an agreement in place with a vendor and then they keep trying to change the contract due to reasons that they don’t have documentation for.
Heavy responsibility
Another challenge of being an event planner is that you’re often responsible for everything that goes wrong at the event. If something doesn’t go as planned, whether it’s technical difficulties or miscommunications with vendors, or anything else, it’s your job.
Money management
A lot of people think that raising funds is the biggest challenge when it comes to running events but it’s actually not the case; it’s money management during the event itself because if money runs out, the event will come to a stop. Having a good strategy for this part of the business can help you achieve success with your events.
Time management
You have a lot going on outside of the planning committee and these things can easily distract you from your real purpose, which is making your event successful. A good time management skill will allow you to focus on what matters most at any given time.
Pros and Cons of Event Planning
Pros
- Unlike many other businesses, your event planning company will not be confined by geographical boundaries.
- Tasks involved in operating an event planning business are fairly simple and easy to learn.
- Event planning companies are usually small enough to be run by a single individual, although for larger events, you may need the help of assistants and local freelancers.
- The demand for event planners is always high, so you should find it easy to grow your business into a large one.
- Event planning is a fun career that allows you to enjoy what you do every day!
- Get invited to exclusive parties and social gatherings.
- Event planners develop valuable relationships with clients and other contacts in the industry.
- It allows you to be creative in your job.
Cons
- Dealing with clients.
- Coordinating with vendors.
- Managing the budget.
- Overseeing the security details.
- Planning the program details.
- Managing the staff members.
- Make sure that everything runs smoothly throughout the event planning process.
Best Event Planning Marketing Strategies
Start building pre-event buzz
Your event is the most critical part of your marketing mix. It’s the opportunity to make a first impression, promote your business and brand, and sell your products and services. A well-executed event can drive sales and profits for months after the event date.
Truly effective event marketing requires more than a press release or a few handbills thrown into the crowd during a concert. A high-quality, professional event requires a high level of marketing strategy to build pre-event buzz and then leverage that buzz during the event itself.
Here are some tips on how to start building pre-event buzz as an event planning business strategy:
1: Create a custom hashtag for your event and encourage your guests to use it on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
2: Offer a prize or giveaway for the best photo caption featuring the hashtag.
3: Get an influencer to join your event and provide tips and tricks on how they use the event’s hashtag. This will give them a chance to show how they like to use social media too.
4: Create a fun infographic with facts about your event, such as its date, time, location, price and what attendees can expect from the day. You can then post this on social media using the hashtag so people can share it with their friends – after all, we love stats and figures!
5: Get creative and think of ways to engage with your target audience before the day of the event. For example, you could hold a blog or video competition where people have to write or film something about one of your previous events. This will give people reasons to talk about you online before you even hold your next event!
Showcase your work through storytelling
When it comes to event planning, you want to tell a story about your work. You want people to know the kinds of things that you’re capable of and how your company can add value. Business storytelling is a way to showcase your products, services, and expertise. It’s also a way to differentiate yourself from the competition and make people care about what you have to say.
The first step to effective business storytelling is knowing where you want to go with it. Do you want to use storytelling as an event planning strategy? Or are you trying to sell more event planning services? If your goal is to create more demand for your services, then you need to start by generating leads with your business storytelling.
By finding common ground with potential clients during the sales process, you can build trust and generate leads that are more likely to convert. Here’s how:
Tell a story about your company’s values. When you’re trying to win new business, it’s easy to focus on the size of your portfolio and the number of years that you’ve been in business. But those aren’t nearly as important as the core values of your company.
Telling a story about how you were founded or what inspires you is a way to showcase your company’s values. You can also talk about the kinds of causes or events that your company supports and why they matter to you. When potential clients know that they share similar values with your company, they feel more connected. And when they feel more connected, they’re more likely to do business with you.
Tie your work into familiar narratives. Everyone loves a good story and most people can identify elements of stories that they already know, even if it’s just on an unconscious level. That means that when you tie your work into an existing storyline, people will appreciate it and be more likely to listen to what you have to say.
Leverage the social media
Social media is a useful tool to increase your brand awareness and create a community around your brand. When it comes to planning events, social media can be used in multiple ways to help you reach the success you want.
Here are some tips to help you use social media as an event planning business strategy:
1) Create interactive content that asks for feedback.
2) Use visuals of attendees at past events and ask for feedback on what they liked about them.
3) Use visuals of items or themes that might be used for future events and see what people think. Ensure that you are not infringing on any copyrights by using these images from other sources. You can use Google Images to find appropriate images.
4) Share the process of creating event decorations, invites, etc.
5) Share behind-the-scenes videos and photos from events as they are taking place. This allows followers to feel like they are part of the process from start to finish and encourages them to attend future events.
Form partnerships with other businesses
Forming partnerships with other businesses is a great way to build your event planning business as well as assist in securing new clients.
When you work with another business, it shows that your company can work in harmony with other businesses and that you’re not just out for yourself. If you want to form a partnership with another business, here are ways to do it, along with how to ensure that the partnership is beneficial to both parties.
Profiting from partnerships
Partnering with another event planning company can be incredibly lucrative. When you work with an established company, they have the reputation and the resources that can help make your business more successful. The best part is that they’re doing all of the hard work while you get to reap the rewards in the long run.
Build relationships
You should try to build strong relationships with other local businesses so that you can form valuable partnerships together. By getting involved in community events and organizations, you’ll be able to network with other local business owners who can help support your business.
Sell services
Another way to partner with other businesses is by offering them your services. You might offer marketing advice or do their printing for a fee. This helps expand your clientele and make more money at the same time. You can also offer free services in exchange for advertising space or a place on their website – this is a great way to get exposure while still turning a profit.
Put together a portfolio
Have you ever wondered how to put together a portfolio for an event planning business strategy? Any entrepreneur will tell you, having a portfolio is one of the most important things to do when getting started in the business.
What exactly is an event portfolio? An event portfolio is a collection of material that shows your event planning business’s experience and qualifications. This collection of materials can be a book or website but should contain your event planning business’s work and a variety of information about your event planning business’s design, services, and clients.
With so many different companies and organizations out there, it’s important to have a great portfolio to attract clients. Here are some steps on how to put together the best portfolio for your event planning business.
Step 1: Determine the content of your portfolio.
Step 2: Organize your portfolio by project or event type.
Step 3: Gather information about the event or project.
Step 4: Collect images of the event or project.
Step 5: Arrange the pictures in the desired layout.
Step 6: Finalize the design and order copies of your portfolio at a print shop.
Step 7: Distribute copies of your portfolio to your network.
Build your online presence
As a planner, you know that you need to be present online. You’ll want to make sure that your business information is on Google and other search engines, so it will show up for people looking for event planning help.
But how do you ensure that your business comes up first? With all the websites out there, how can you use them to your advantage?
Use these five steps to create a strong online presence for your event planning business.
Put your business on Google+ – Google+ has been a powerful tool for businesses and individuals alike for many years now. It can help you expand your reach and establish your name in the digital world. If you don’t already have a profile, create one for yourself today.
Share your events on Facebook – You’ll want to share information about upcoming events on Facebook, especially when they’re open to the public. By doing this, you’ll gain exposure from friends of friends who may not know about you or your business yet.
Create a blog – A blog is another great way to establish yourself online as an event planner. When people like what they see via search engines, they may be more inclined to follow you on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. People can also invite others to visit the blog themselves, which helps spread the news about your company even further.
Understand the needs of your audience
Event planning business strategy is not as easy as it seems. It is important to understand the needs of your audience first and step into the shoes of your target market. Event planning businesses should keep their focus on the target market, their preferences, demands and expectations.
As a business that plans events, you have to listen and understand the needs of your audience. Here are some tips on how to better understand the needs of your audience:
Observe: Observing the target market will help you understand what they want. By observing, you will also be able to tell if they are willing to pay for your products or services.
Talk to them: Ask your target market what they need from you as a business. You can do this by having one-on-one conversations with them. Make sure that their needs align with what you offer as a business.
Research them: Researching is a great way to understand the wants and needs of your target audience. You can do this by checking out their social media accounts, blogs, and other online sources.
Have a consultation: Consulting with members of your target audience is a great way to get feedback on products and services that you offer as an event planning company. During the consultation process, make sure that you are addressing all of their needs.
Make it easy for people to contact you: If people have trouble getting in touch with you or have trouble reaching you, they may look elsewhere for a similar product/service. Make sure that you have an easy-to-remember email address so that people can get in touch
Final Thoughts
Event planning can be a thriving business. There are a lot of different strategies that you can employ to get your event planning business off the ground, and these strategies will require different investments of time, money, and effort.
Hopefully, this resource will help you through the process of determining which strategy is best for you. Good luck!
