The New Rules of Event Marketing

The New Rules of Event Marketing

Some of the best experiential marketers, feeling that some companies were not keeping pace with the constantly changing world of marketing, came together to create an updated list of marketing guidelines called “The New Rules of Event Marketing”. Although they all had different recommendations, they were all able to agree on the end goal, to increase customer engagement long after events are held. The marketers were able to come up with eight sound suggestions for retaining customers starting with:

1.)    Create an event within an event- this is the closest form of interacting with the customer, being a one-on-one event that will give customers a lasting impression of the company. Such events could include Sponsoring a shuttle bus at an event and having games to play relating the company to the event.

2.)    Employ GPS and real time event tracking- the largest benefit to this strategy is the newness of the technique. Not a lot of companies have tried this, but the ones that have experienced great success from the stunt. This can often be played out similarly to geocaching, but having a strong base of social media is a must to impact a larger audience than those experiencing it firsthand.

3.)    Add another dimension- with social media as big as it is, it goes without saying that so is marketing with social media. Companies are finding success with transforming any event into something unique that they can put their name on. As an example, some companies have created images that can be projected onto their phone based off of their location.

4.)    Use ubiquitous social impacting as a conduit for exclusivity- What that all means is that customers like to feel important. This can be done by having giveaways or discounts provided on companies’ social media pages.

5.)    Hire outside experts. Lots of them- The more intelligence that you have on a project, the better experience that a customer will have. Sometimes the best man for the job isn’t working for you yet. So why not hire him?

6.)    Don’t fear consumers’ brutal honesty- Rather than shying away from the negative reviews of customers, some companies have had success broadcasting them. The most recent that caught social media being the Domino’s commercials that were promoting change in the company with customers giving terrible reviews until trying the newer products made available.

7.)    Mash-up your technology- The point they are trying to make is to try pairing things you wouldn’t normally pair with technology because eventually, something will be a hit. I could bet that the first person to dip their fries in a shake also tried some terrible combinations before that. But what is he remembered for?

8.)    Tweeten the deal- companies are trying new things in the world of Twitter to hit the millennial age group. Companies are doing events from polls to scavenger hunts to interact with their customers.

http://www.inc.com/guides/201102/new-rules-of-event-marketing.html