Top 10 Strategies for Event Marketing in a Post-Pandemic World

Anyone present in the events or b2b world for the last two years will tell you that the game has radically changed.

Let’s just look at one stat as an example.

The B2B exhibit industry cancellation rate:

Q4 of 2020 - 97.9%

Q4 of 2021 - 12.5%

What does this tell us?

People are ready to be back at live events!

But, hold on...the last two years have forever changed how attendees view events and the ROI standards for event marketing are higher than ever before.

At Zen Media, we helped multiple clients with event marketing during the pandemic. I distinctly remember pulling off a digital event in two weeks for Forbes8 where the attendance beat out any physical event the client had done prior.

You see, the pandemic forced a lot of companies to stop and assess their event marketing habits.

Marketers were faced with questions such as:

What do we do now that we can’t go to this annual trade show?

How do we transition to digital?

Is the ROI on digital events better than physical?

Those two years of experimenting and tackling those questions is what has shaped the current and upcoming landscape.

Here is what marketers reported in the most recent released CMO council report:

• 60%?say restarting in-person/hybrid events is very important, even critical
• 65%?say learnings over the last two years will lead to a holistic view of events that are better aligned to marketing outcomes
• 71%?of marketers are experimenting with new event formats

I have a rather unique take on events and event marketing because I work “both sides of the show.” As a keynote speaker, I work with some of the best event planners in the world. I see first hand what it takes to make an event successful. As head of Zen Media, we often work with clients on helping them leverage their events whether it's their own event or they are attending one.

Here are my 10 best strategies (and predictions) for event marketing in this new landscape.

1. Think in terms of Pre, During, and Post. It doesn’t matter if you are attending an event or hosting. Having a pre and post game plan is just as important if not more than the actual event. Companies spend so much money on trade shows often just to show up without much thought into how to attract the right audience, convert, and follow up.

I predict event optimization, similar to conversion optimization digitally speaking, will become more of a thing in the coming years.

2. Don’t confuse Event Planning for Event Marketing. Both are exceedingly necessary but most event planners are not marketers. Their job is to make sure the attendee experience is outstanding and aligned with the company’s goals for the event. In consumer terms, even the best wedding planner can’t convince guests to attend. They have to do that of their own accord. Marketing is more about attracting the right audience and converting them into customers (now and later.)

3. Hybrid is here to stay. Can’t make a physical event? No problem, there is an element of virtual learning and attending that will continue to carry over. The goal of any event is to reach as much of the given audience as possible, and the pandemic showed us that it was indeed possible. Greater reach will be an expectation now.

4. Meeting planners will give preference to established and well-known speakers who will serve as a draw for audiences. This means newer speakers will have to work harder for stage time. I am convinced that the need for pros like Michelle Joyce will continue because planners will appreciate a curated and pre-vetted group of speakers. Clients will just expect it.

5. Food, photo booths, and fun will still work to draw a crowd. Just be strategic in how you approach it. For example, offering cool new headshots by a famous instagram photographer may be more aligned with your audience than just a red carpet with a pop-up background.

6. Plan for first time attendees. Over the years, I’ve found myself being invited back to keynote at the same events. I love this because I get to witness the evolution. One thing which always stands out for me is how many first time attendees these events continue to attract. Every year at SxSw for example, a greater percentage of attendees are first timers. I found this fascinating and also affirming of LinkedIn’s research that 40% of their entire membership base changes job titles, seniority and industry every 4 years. Read: your market today is not your market tomorrow, highlighting the need to focus on earned media and PR more than ever before.

7. Events taking place in the Metaverse will be a thing. In fact, I suspect early movers will have a key advantage because of the mere novelty factor. Make hay not just when the sun shines but where the sun shines. And, right now, it’s shining on the metaverse.

8. Explore brand partnerships. Combining influencer marketing with event marketing is a killer strategy. Just ask Squarespace who leveraged Zendaya beautifully for their Super Bowl launch. I’ve dubbed this the Zendaya method and you can read about it here or listen to the 8 minute podcast here.

9. Ask your audience. This may seem like a no-brainer but I am always amazed at how few companies actually take the time to ask their audience what would be valuable for them. A few years ago, our client Chase Business asked their small business customers about their greatest challenge. Turned out, it was marketing. In response to which we collaborated with them to launch the very successful Chase Bizmobile.

10. Make earned media part of your event strategy. Before the event, there should be so much buzz that when the event happens, it isn’t a “Tah dah!” moment—it’s people coming to your event because no one has been able to stop talking about what your company is doing. That’s a very different conversation. The other thing you have to realize in marketing is that the buyer cycle has changed dramatically over the last two years, and most people are completely unaware of it.?Forrester?did a lot of research on how many touch points it takes for someone to make a purchasing decision. Before the pandemic, it was 17. Now it’s 21. That means 21 points of contact before someone actually does business with you. If you’re relying on one event or one ad, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. You need a good cadence and consistency to help you get to your desired outcome.

I’ll be talking about all of the above on today’s LIVE episode of “It’s Not Magic. It’s Marketing” at 7 pm ET. It is free to attend. Leave your questions below or join us live. Registration is free: https://zenmedia.com/its-not-magic-live/. (You can catch previous missed episodes on the podcast.)