Innovative Techniques For Event Marketing

Event marketing hasn't changed in 20 years. - You shell out huge amounts of cash for a booth. - You get a badge scanner. - You lure people in with swag. - You talk to uninterested people to get a vanity scan. - You chalk up the wasted budget to "we had to be there" Event marketing is no different than direct response ads trying to convert the 2% in market vs. going after the 98% that aren't. And we've all pretty much agreed that marketing to the 98% has a ton of benefits. So why hasn't that filtered over to event marketing? Weeeeell, it is now. We've pushed the envelope with our sponsorships for Goldenhour this year, and guess what... As an attendee, you're actually going to LOVE talking to sponsors. Because we actually DID it different, instead of just SAYING it was different. and you get something you actually want, content. Hear me out: None of our sponsors have a booth. None of them have a badge scanner. Instead, we gave them a dedicated camera operator, a concept for a show, and a place to record it with an active audience that can take part if they want. We've got three content activations that are going to be happening live. here's a sneak peek at one to paint the picture: We created the Goldenhour Studio, presented by Vimeo. You'll come into the studio, where you'll see a camera, microphone, large screen, and a video editor. You will sit down and record a short-form video. This can be you talking to the camera directly, a short-form interview, or anything else you can think of. (we will also have some prompts if you need a nudge) The editor will be editing your video in real time with Vimeo's text-based editor on the big screen for everyone to see and return your video to you in minutes so you can post while you're still at the show. You get: - video content to share with almost no effort involved Sponsor gets: - awareness of their new product (text based editor) to a captive audience and a way to demo it that actually provides value. Nobody gets: - a hard pitch or enrolled in a sequence. This is the future of event sponsorships -- wins for everyone involved. Cya at Goldenhour next week!!

Google just changed the game for event marketing. The big winner? Publications and associations. I’ll explain. But first. How are events discovered? Whether you want to admit it or not. It’s word of mouth. You hear about an event. You google it. Well ‘googling it’ is changing. On Monday, google released “AI Mode”. It hasn’t replaced the default search…yet. But it will. Showing up in AI Mode isn’t the same as ranking on google. Here’s what you need to do: 1. Get event page schema right Crawling a site is expensive. It uses token. The easier an event site is to crawl, the sooner it will get picked up. Add schema. org/Event, FAQ, and How-To markup to your reg page. Feed it clear dates, speakers, prices, and “Get tickets” actions. No markup = no mention. Event platforms like Accelevents do this automatically. 2. Earn citations, not backlinks AI Mode loves credibility. Niche trade publications & associations matter again. Land guest posts, podcast, speaker quotes. Visibility first, referral traffic second. 3. Keep Content Updated Stale pages will be punished. Update schedules, seat availability, and pricing in real time. AI Mode surfaces up-to-the-minute info. 4. Drive user-generated content Get attendees to share “One thing I learned at YourEvent” posts. AI Mode loves human content from social, reddit, quora, etc. The volume of brand mentions matters. 5. Tighten the trust signals Keep speak bios consistent. Link to verified social handles & get mentions from them. Credibility & authority are huge ranking factors. 6. Answer the long tail & hard questions Create an event FAQ (using schema markup) E.g. “Is XYZ Summit worth it?” “What’s the ROI of attending?” Publish cost-breakdowns, who your event is and isn’t for, etc Control the narrative. Better you than someone on Reddit. Simply put. When people hear about your event. Make it easy for them to find it. How are you adjusting your event discovery strategy?

Conferences are expensive, boring, and typically have low ROI....but company-led EVENTS on the other hand can be powerful signals. Here's the exact playbook we used at Onward to organize profitable events where prospects can have a great time AND move closer to buying: ➝ 1. Align on your goal. I used to make the mistake of expecting a close within 30 days of an event and would be continually disappointed based on that expectation. Now I consider events another "touch point" in the customer journey/funnel. Our goal is simply to usher the customer to the next stage of the funnel. So if all your leads are top of the funnel, don't expect to close at the event. It's about a) learning what moves the needle for them and b) educating them on our ROI. This will result in moving them to the next sales stage. Your mindset and intentions here are important because otherwise, your pitch will misfire and either come off too brash or too aggressive. ➝ 2. Set the agenda to be what the client would want—not what you want. One of our go-to tactics is mixing education and entertainment. We would create an interactive, immersive learning session w/ a world-class expert with a focus on equipping attendees with tangible takeaways in addition to networking. ➝ 3. Find great partners. In order to share the budget, we typically find like-minded companies that we want to partner with and share customer leads. We participated in Retention.com's marquee summer event in Malibu called Retox and it was one of the more lavish events we've been a part of with over 200+ brands attending. It takes a lot to move the needle for customers to get excited and sometimes you have to go all out! ➝ 4. Yet the simplest format is often the most effective—an intimate, private dinner. You'd be surprised at how much common ground you can find with a potential customer over a 2-hour dinner. Typically there are no pitches, just real connections. The sales pitches will come later—but upfront it's about getting to know one another and seeing how it would be to work together. Sales is about developing relationships and meaningful relationships are built when people can let their guard down and simply connect as human beings. And that's exactly what we aim for. So if you're tired of the same old networking scene and you're craving experiences that truly move the needle, I'd love to connect. What are some unique events you've thrown? I'm always looking for new ideas.