you CAN do this! turning lemons into lemonade

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Welcome Kevin Olsen One Smooth Stone Kevin Hinton hinton + grusich Alexandra Wagner SunTrust Banks

Outcomes Explore the opportunities facing event professionals in the new economy Learn to leverage the elevated awareness of your position, function and department Understand how event guidelines make a difference… and the role of the suppliers

what BUSINESS are YOU in?

“NOW is the TIME”

The opportunities Engage with senior leadership regarding the strategic business purposes of each meeting Connect the value proposition of meetings and events to the growth of your organization Show value metrics before and analysis after all major initiatives Elevate the visibility of the meetings and events tool and function as part of the strategic marketing mix Demonstrate your greater value within the organization

What we are likely to see… The demand for up-to-date data on all meetings and events (date, location, venue, audience, cost, exposure, etc.) Need for clear business purpose and case to justify each major meeting and event Understanding potential for “reputational risk” associated with each meeting or event Elevated enforcement of meetings and events policies and procedures; renewal of mandates, driven by senior management PR, IR, legal and compliance involvement related to messaging, guideline creation and enforcement

What we are likely to see… (cont’d) Increased company-wide awareness of value, importance and impact of meetings and events (financial, reputational, motivational and emotional) Opportunities to redesign, retool and rethink meetings and events Recognition and validation of the value of a single Meetings Management Department and Strategic Meetings Management

“Carpe diem”

How suppliers can help co-create the new reality Know your client more than ever; see the world through their lens Understand the potential reputational risks associated with the event or venue Educate your client/prospect –Don’t assume they know the guidelines (be the value-add) Co-create the solutions, innovate –Help identify or offer up sponsors or in-kind partners Negotiate as “we” rather than “me vs. you” –Think: “How can we help each other get this business done?”

How suppliers can help co-create the new reality (cont’d) Take a step back, assess and rethink your offering, your positioning and your approach –Ask yourself what, why and how you’ve been doing things and what can and must change? Help clients demonstrate the value of meeting, event, venue and service –Measure what you can measure, then track and deliver the results Create a new market niche or additional offering Differentiate your offering by demonstrating how it adds value within the “new reality”

“Change occurs when the pain of inaction becomes too great” - anonymous

WHAT can YOU do… Virtual, Value, Measurement

Virtual Events

What is a virtual event? It’s a combination of… –On-line exhibitor “booths” that have downloadable information and are staffed to answer immediate questions –Facebook and instant messaging to network with other people on-line –Education and information available (similar to webinars, video, podcasts) for download

When to consider a virtual event Primarily as a supplement to your existing live event To generate pre-event buzz When in a competitive market and looking for an edge When shelf-life is critical For remote geographies

Explore virtual events Capturing lost attendance More pressure from exhibitors to find qualified leads Accelerate sales cycle Extend content reach Extend duration Reduced costs as a replacement strategy Go to market faster Being green is cool

Value Conversations

How to prepare for the Value conversation Ask yourself first, why are we having our event? Know how the meeting connects to your business. Are there any metrics to support its business purpose? What are the reputational risks (if any)? Are there opportunities to redisign, retool or rethink the event?

How to get it started… How would you define the overarching goals for this event? What do you want the audience to know, feel & do? What will have happened… before, during and after the event, for this program to have been valuable? In a perfect world, how would bringing these people together impact our organization? How would you measure that impact? What are the metrics for the event? (Get the event owner to sign-off on those metrics. Request the owner to provide someone from his/her team that can help gather that information.) Who are the measurement important to (inside and/or outside the organization)? How should these results best be communicated? Ask the question… what would happen if we didn’t have this meeting? Before making that decision, also consider the following… If ready to move forward, then consider to the following…

Measurements

Measuring Growth, Efficiency and Brand Building Sales numbers Advanced registration Retention of information Revenue generated by event Attendance # of people that return the following year Growth Shortened sales cycle Employee retention Cost per Attendee Efficiency Number of brand impressions Change of behavior Satisfaction of attendees Media attention/placement Brand Building

Resources… Event View ( “Return on Investment in Meetings & Events” by Phillips, Breining, and Phillips

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