What are the best ways to use events to build B2B relationships?

Helped multiple B2B brands boost leads and cut costs by over 35% — here are key steps: ? Learn from past successes ? Set up effective blogging strategies ? Have an internal strategy meeting first ? Optimize online visibility with SEO ? Strategic online advertising ? Offer valuable free content and expand your email list ? Craft compelling landing pages ? Unify sales and marketing efforts ? Segment customers based on their buying journey ? Streamline processes using automation ? Maintain customer engagement through emails ? Prioritize customer ease at every step ? Monitor and adapt weekly for results

I find networking events quiet useless if they lack concrete objective and agenda in place. B2B relationship building in an event is a good tool is used wisely.

Events are amazing opportunities to bring the sector professionals together. However, not all events or clients are good for each other and there will be hundreds of companies and guests attending to an event. Efficient time management, return value of the invested time and money relies on correct targeting and preparation. Know your needs, your products. Identify the relevant companies that, invite clients that are important as well as potential clients. Organize meetings, your questions in advance. Spare time to walk around to discover new trends and to meet new people to widen your network. Maintain your connection with the new network created by randomly messaging to each other for any possible future business.

Además de definir objetivos claros y seleccionar el evento adecuado, como marketer, enfatizo la importancia de la personalización en la construcción de relaciones B2B. Durante el evento, es crucial interactuar de manera significativa con los asistentes, ofreciendo soluciones y contenidos personalizados que reflejen su interés específico y necesidades del negocio. Posteriormente, un seguimiento efectivo es esencial. Esto incluye el uso de datos recopilados durante el evento para enviar comunicaciones personalizadas y relevantes. Ya sea a través de correos electrónicos, llamadas o reuniones de seguimiento, cada interacción pos-evento debe ser una oportunidad para profundizar la relación y demostrar el valor único que tu empresa puede ofrecer.

While large conference-style events are a norm, small-scale events (a mix of your clients, prospects, and senior leadership from your organization) can also be a potent tool for B2B relationships—offering intimate settings for meaningful engagement. These gatherings allow for focused knowledge sharing and deep conversations with industry leaders, providing value and establishing your team as trusted advisors. Tailoring your offerings to the specific needs discussed at these events can transform prospects into loyal clients and turn clients into advocates, strengthening your business partnerships effectively.

Al elegir el evento adecuado, también es crucial considerar la alineación de tu marca con el tema y los valores del evento. Como marketer, recomiendo seleccionar eventos que no solo se ajusten a tus objetivos comerciales, sino que también reflejen la imagen y ética de tu empresa. Participar en eventos que resuenen con tus principios y los de tu público objetivo fortalece la autenticidad de tu marca y facilita conexiones más significativas.

It is important to have clear visibility on what you try to achieve with your events. Too often, we see companies going to trade shows because they think they have to be but have no clear idea on why. If you go there is to get new consumers to know you or to showcase products and services to a large audience of potential customers and partners. But this is a huge investment and sometimes for that you rather have a digital lead generation strategy that works better! Focus all the time on what you are trying to achieve and everything will get a lot more easy to plan!

Before commiting to an expensize event, make sure to understand its dynamics : - Is it a national or international event ? - Is it a recurring event / which edition is it ? - Do you know if a subsential part of your customers & prospects plan to attend it ? - Will you be the only company selling your specific services / products attending it ? - What ways of promoting your solution are available (direct, round table, live webinar (digital conference) ...). Are they free or do you have to pay an additionnal fee to use it? It is crucial to understand how dynamic the event is and if it has potential to attract a lot of visitors. It is better to be located next to a competitor's booth than being the only one selling your specific offer/servic

- Webinars are fantastic for scalability and cost-effectiveness. I've seen them amplify reach and engagement on a global scale, especially when showcasing intricate product features or industry insights. Yet, they can sometimes lack the personal touch and immediate interaction found in face-to-face gatherings. - Conferences and trade shows offer a bustling platform teeming with networking opportunities. These events open doors to a diverse audience and foster direct engagement, but they often demand hefty budgets and face fierce competition for attention. - The key takeaway here is to align event types with your specific goals, resources, and desired audience engagement level that and tailored to your unique B2B needs.

Para forjar relaciones B2B exitosas a través de eventos, es crucial seleccionar el tipo de evento adecuado que alinee con tus objetivos, presupuesto y recursos. Los eventos virtuales como seminarios web son rentables y amplían el alcance, pero pueden carecer de la interactividad de los eventos presenciales. Las conferencias y ferias comerciales, aunque más costosas, ofrecen oportunidades valiosas de networking y exposición directa a una audiencia diversa y comprometida, fortaleciendo las conexiones empresariales en un ambiente más interactivo y personal.

Be genuine - that is the best advice in every relationship. Truly understand what your customers need to be successful and if you can't provide them with what they need help them find someone who will. You might lose this one sale/opportunity but they will look to you in the future. Always remember the long game. Relationships should last, one-off transactions don't.

In sales...and life... When value exceeds price, people will buy. There are a lot of BS people out there and they are usually "takers" Give away the farm in terms of value and it'll pay off. Might not be right away, but it'll payoff.

In B2B marketing, adding value almost always means providing the customer with a knowledge advantage. So make sure your expertise is heard at every event. For example, by giving a presentation or having your company's experts participate in a panel discussion. As a rule of thumb, if you don't have an opportunity to share your knowledge at an event, don't go.

delivering value is paramount when using events for B2B relationship building. Whether it's information, education, inspiration, or solutions, ensure your offering is relevant, useful, and memorable. Positioning yourself as a trusted partner, rather than a pushy vendor, is crucial. Utilize storytelling, data, case studies, or testimonials to showcase expertise and value proposition. Tailoring content and delivery to your audience's preferences, needs, and pain points enhances engagement and solidifies your credibility in the B2B space.

Don't be just another vendor at the event. Be prepared to deliver value to your audience. This could include giving presentations, sharing insights, or simply being a resource for information

Rather than trying to build B2B relationships, how can you build H2H relationships...human-to-human? Who are the people on the other side of the table? Think about the problems they have and the solution that your product or service can provide them. If they aren't the end user, consider who will ultimately use your product or service. Find out how you can connect with them and use stories, humor, and empathy to build a rapport. Connecting with more than the buyer will ensure the activation goes smoothly and leave a lasting impression after the sale is complete.

You are your most valuable asset: your unique perspective, openness, and ability to connect to/with prospects authentically. Build on the core strengths that make you someone prospects want to be around and connect with on a deeper level to form truly lasting relationships. Ask about hobbies and the activities they enjoy outside of work and share your own. The answers may surprise you can give you reasons to reach out for the simple sake of sharing info they may find interesting.

Drop the slide shows, the graphs and the long and annoying introduction sections of your event and get straight to the value. Tell stories, focus on inspiration, clarity and on not holding back value.

building B2B relationships through events involves connecting on a personal and emotional level. Humanizing your brand by showcasing personality through humor, empathy, or passion creates rapport and trust. Encourage dialogue and engagement by asking questions, inviting feedback, and actively participating. Leveraging social media, email, or mobile apps for communication throughout the event lifecycle helps create a lasting positive impression. Remember, people connect with people, so establishing a personal connection contributes significantly to fostering meaningful and enduring B2B relationships.

Make an effort to meet new people and connect with your audience. Don't just sit in your booth and wait for people to come to you. Walk around, introduce yourself, and have conversations

Involve both the sales and the CRM team in this campaign. You want the first to share ideas and field trends and the latest to build an easy way for them to follow up on those precious leads. Make sure to automate as much as possible the information sharing + create tasks for high priority leads. Thank your visitors with an automated email asking them to share their experience and make sure that a sales rep follow up quickly after the event.

An excellent platform for networking. Encourage your team to engage with attendees, exchange business cards, and establish connections. Follow-up post-event is key.

effective follow-up is crucial to capitalize on the opportunities created by events for building B2B relationships. Establish a systematic approach based on the contacts' stage in the buyer's journey, level of interest, and preferred communication channel. Deliver consistent, relevant, and valuable follow-up messages without being too aggressive or passive. The goal is to move leads along the sales funnel, keeping them engaged and progressing towards a meaningful relationship and potential sale. This ensures that the investment and effort put into the event yield long-term benefits.

After the event, follow up with the people you met. Send them a personalized email, connect with them on LinkedIn, or invite them to coffee. This will help you to stay in touch and nurture the relationships you built at the event

Personalized follow-up is essential. Customizing communication based on the individual's interaction at the event shows attentiveness and respect for their unique interests. For instance, sending a tailored email referencing a specific discussion or shared interest can be more impactful. Also, organizing smaller follow-up events or webinars can continue the conversation and nurture the relationship.

Small events can have a BIG impact. When we hear the word “event”, most of us think about the big time commitment to attend. It doesn’t need to be this way. Some of the best events I’ve been to this year have been ~90 minutes long. Everyone’s time is limited. Not many of us have the luxury of spending 6+ hours to attend a virtual event. Especially when we’re unsure if it will be worth the time. The best events are filled with relevant, practical, and new insight. They’re entertaining. They make us laugh. They make us think. Today’s tech (& talent) means we can achieve most of this in under an hour.

I personally have been running free training workshops on low-cost marketing strategies and my philosophy is to treat each person in the audience as if they paid for my time for an hour at my full rate. I deliver as much value as possible and I never fail to get asked to work with people directly after the event. The most common thing that I see in events is overselling the benefits and under-delivering value so that your audience walk away feeling ripped off.

There are probably more events in your industry than you can barely be present on. Deal with the Fear-Of-Missing-Out. Your marketing team will be constantly contacted with new shiny events and activities to run. It's important to define those that serve your strategy and build a robust plan rather than just being on every party. Events can highly vary: from extremely huge like trade fairs to private and limited in size like a C-Level Dinner. You will need to understand what mix suits your resources and goals. Lastly, always think of ways to make an external event yours - if you attend a big expo, host a pre-event activity. With that, you have something unique as a hook for your audience while still benefitting from the mass at the expo.

creating exclusive post-event content or resources for your B2B audience. This could be in the form of whitepapers, infographics, or even a recap webinar. Offering valuable insights and information post-event reinforces your commitment to providing ongoing value, keeping your brand top of mind, and nurturing the relationships established during the event.

In my experience you need to show true interest in the business model and products of your B2B buyer's company. On top of that you should find out what is driving the individual stakeholder (personal goal) in order to craft a message that truly resonates with them and earns you the "trusted advisor" status.