AND THEN, THE WORLD STOPPED LAUGHING. IMAGINE.
Imagine owning a business and having limited foot traffic. Until recent times, we all had the answer; social media! Social media saved the world. It allowed us a large reach audience at a relatively low investment of advertising dollars, lower than most traditional media ads; “and look at all of these ‘likes’ and ‘shares‘ and ‘friends’ I’ve gotten!! Look at me Mom, no hands!!”
Social Media is part of it. When used correctly, it’s a very viable part of your business’ existence. It’s creative and fun and allows for instant gratification. But let’s go a step further.
Imagine that your consumers can’t walk into your doors and onto your platform floor.
Ok, why not? Why can’t they? Well, I don’t know. Imagine all of the reasons why they can’t, or don’t, or won’t.
Let’s imagine the unimaginable. Now that we are knee deep in the “unimaginable“, how are we to survive? Even the most stable businesses, from global corporations to the most successful street corner, small business will need to have projected some kind of everlasting image to the consumer to sustain. And so this is exactly why 84% of leadership believe in-person events are a critical component of their company’s success. (1)
Let’s keep going...
Imagine being on a playing field where everyone in your industry is offering the same to the same pool of consumers. Well this happens everyday, right? Yes, it does.
However, when you’re engrossed in your day to day routine, comfortable in accomplishing your projections, it’s very likely that you’re focused on you. Often, that focus is what attributes to your success. But when does the focus become your blinders? When does the focus stunt your growth? When does it become such a focus that you’re just doing you, and “they’re just doing them“, and now you’re all doing the same thing? You all have the same message. You all have the same specials. This one started this first and they copied and on and on and on...
.....and so we all keep scrolling looking for the next best deal...
And on. And on.
And on.
As I sit here typing this, the news is on in the background. Two back to back commercials delivered branding messages that stated, “we’re all in this together”.
Is that message really impactive anymore? So what is it that separates this one from that one, both delivering the same message?
The answer is so simple, that it’s easily overlooked in this ever so connected society.
The answer is, personality.
So, let’s keep going...
Imagine not being able to see your customers face to face, shake their hand, meet them to have a conversation. Imagine your customers not having experienced “you“, your personality, hear your inflection, taste & smell cuisine, feel the fabric, trust your handshake.
What exactly is it then, that sets you apart from the next? Is it your pretty, creative social media ads? Are you relying on this ever so connected world? Thank goodness we can all be so intricately connected during this unimaginable time!! But, BUT, I ask you; are you really that connected?
In a world where we have become so inundated with connections, we have been forced to stop and really examine that we still need a bridge from the ”connection” to the human experience.
Now more than ever, it is imperative for business owners to shake hands and kiss babies. Now more than ever!
And that is what event marketing is.
This is what event marketing does.
Do you understand now?
Through this unimaginable, historic time, I read scroll after scroll the same message, “#shoplocal”, “#supportlocal”. Our governments, our chambers, our business focus groups, our media, we are all pulling together to support each other. I think that’s wonderful!!
The Event Co is my “very local” business. In 2015, I started studying the upward trend of event marketing. In 2017, I decided to venture into this industry and created The Event Co. I build events, usually fun community events that allow merchants in all industries to connect with their consumers. The flagship event that kicked off this company happened in the summer of 2018, and we call it Utica Summer Fest. This is a FREE community event that provides music, food, drinks and most importantly, GATHERINGS, of friends and family to come together in a Renaissance Hot Spot, if you will, Downtown Utica. It’s a platform that solely “gives” to the community. It also relies on the support of our local business community, to help “give” to the very community that WE rely on to sustain our existence. In exchange, it provides our business community with a platform to “personally” make yourself viable to the community you rely on to support you.
See how that works?
Do you understand now?
In 2018, 81% of marketers believed that in years to follow, live events will become increasingly important to their organization’s success. (2)
in 2018, 41% of marketers believed that events are the single-most effective marketing channel over digital advertising, email marketing and content marketing. This was a 32% increase from 2017. (3)
Bizzabo Is the world’s largest Event Success Platform. Based in NYC, they are the leaders in so many aspects of the event industry.
In their 2018 annual report, 63% of of businesses that are over performing in regards to their company goals were projected to increase their live events budget in 2019. (4)
2020 was projected to be a 63B$ industry.
Has the event industry taken a hit? Absolutely! None of us are exempt.
Will this industry surge when the unimaginable becomes pages in history books?
Like never before! You can bet on that.
The Event Co is respectfully on hold while we work together during our nation’s crisis.
God bless.
(1), (2), (3), (4), Dec 17, 2018
2018 stats were used because this was the launch year of first annual events for The Event Co, LLC.
I invite all interested in wanting to learn about how and why event marketing marketing is crucial to your business to follow the link above and read of the yearly growth in this industry.
You can subscribe and follow The Event Co events and inquire how we can help breathe new life to keep your existing events current, (especially our NFP’s), at, www.theeventco.co.