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Event Marketing: Timing is Still Everything

Posted on May 14, 2009 by Jon Plant, Program Director

Market behavior is becoming less and less predictable – not only are we worrying about how customers will react to the market, but we too must act in a responsible manner with spending habits. With this being said, there is no surprise that face-to-face events are suffering. Travel budgets are being cut, conferences are being canceled/postponed, exhibitors are backing out and of course there are poor attendance numbers.

However…There is a silverlining. While the events have become smaller and fewer, the quality of the attendee is improving. Let’s face it, in the past, events in Vegas, Orlando and New York were serving as more of a vacation for attendees than anything else. This doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. Those in attendance now are key decision makers or influencers who actually have a need. No longer is the entire IT department spending a week in Florida trying to get a tan. Now, we are seeing serious senior managers and even executives in attendance. Pre-Event marketing is a huge part of ensuring that you get these key players to come see you in person. In Laura Johnson’s blog Timing is Everything: Making the Most of Pre-Event Telemarketing, she talks of the importance of timing leading up to an event.

In addition to pre-event, post event follow-up is also very critical. Proper planning can make all the difference, so consider these tips:

  • Plan Your Messaging: Don’t wait until after the event to plan your follow-up messaging. Instead, as soon as you have your event agenda set in stone, work with your lead generation team to create solid messaging for post-event follow up.
  • Iron out Lead Routing: You now have your marketing lead generation team armed with all the information they need regarding the event. They’re ready to start making calls to prospects, fired up to uncover new opportunities for sales…but wait! Who is going to close the deals that marketing delivers? Make sure to finalize your lead routing process before your event takes place. This is especially important when you are teamed up with one of your partners at an event. Leads may not follow your “standard” process if a partner is also involved. There should to be very little, if any, delay when passing leads from marketing over to sales. This delay can often be the reason for hot leads to cool off and fall into the sales black hole.
  • Start Immediately: The most important piece is when you start the post event calling. Ideally, post-event calling should begin one week following the completion of the event. This allows the prospects to travel back to their hometowns, get caught up on email, get settled in and review information gathered at the show.

Not only can these planning tips be used for in-person events, this same strategy can be applied to webinars, white papers and mailers. Timing is the key with any type of marketing follow-up.

Tagged: lead generation, telemarketing lead generation, telemarketing event marketing, event marketing leads, event telemarketing followup

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