Events have been disrupted by the corona pandemic, but, according to marketing specialists, they’ve never been more important in maintaining customer relations.
As the trend moves towards more and better, the question is: how can your company organise attractive and profitable events in the new normal?
Well, it’s easy! Because event management software such as InviteDesk will help you do exactly that.
The events sector was booming before the world was plunged into lockdown.1 Did you know that the turnover of the global event industry was $1,135.4 billion2 in 2019? Of course, like many others, the industry has been transformed by the corona outbreak. Many companies have realised the role of events. Generating leads, keeping in touch, educating customers, etc. Experts predict that events will remain an essential part of the marketing mix.
As we now emerge from the Covid period, 61% of marketeers believe events to be the single-most effective marketing channel (that’s 20% more than in 2019)3 and the boom is expected to continue. Over half of event organisers are planning to host even more events in the future.4 So events have never been more important.
While physical events were impossible due to travel restrictions, many companies took their events online. The question is: will this continue now that the future looks brighter? The pandemic has made us realise the importance of human contact, and 96% of event organisers expect a return to physical events.
However, it’s not that simple. Since we have all discovered the comfort and convenience of digital, such as the savings on time and travel, we can expect a (r)evolution. While some people can’t wait to come to live events, others will certainly choose the ease and efficiency of viewing online. So, the new normal will be a mix: still mainly live, but with the addition of online and hybrid.
Digital events are here to stay, and will serve as an additional communication channel. This is great news if you want to reach a wide audience and embrace the virtual opportunities. But it may increase the challenges for event marketers when it comes to cost and complexity. So how can you get a return on your investment on what for many B2B departments is their largest marketing expense?
Whether you choose to go live, stay online or do both with your events – the innovative features in a software platform will push your event marketing to the next level:
And, most importantly:
In fact, figures demonstrate that, as well as increasing efficiency and ease for organisers, event management software can increase attendance rates by 20% and increases the value of events.5
The new challenges ahead put added pressure on the event team. Event teams will need to be knowledgeable in creating impressive online and physical events and team members will be thinly spread to make sure everything runs smoothly. Success now depends on a practical and high-performance tool. These days, both large and small insightful businesses across different sectors are turning to event management software like InviteDesk to boost their return and efficiency. ABN Amro, D’Ieteren, Stellantis, DHL, Randstad, Electrolux, and Hansgrohe are just a few of the names that have discovered the benefits of InviteDesk. So what’s all the fuss about?
Specialised software, such as InviteDesk, helps you to get the right guests, engage with them and turn them into value for your business. Communication automation allows marketers to focus more on quality content, like the location, speakers, networking and entertainment, and less on time-consuming follow-up. With event management software, your company data is integrated in one tool and in one place, making life much easier and light work of every step in event organisation.
What’s the secret to its success? In a nutshell, software reduces the effort required, by facilitating autonomy, automation and data accessibility. Meanwhile, its flexibility and integration of real-time data allow you to stay in tune with changing needs. Whatever kind of event you are organising – in-person, hybrid and virtual. And at every stage, from planning all the way to post-analysis.
Events take a lot of organisations. No wonder so many companies are turning to software to make their lives easier! With a platform like InviteDesk, all data and functionalities are centralised, putting an end to the hassles of multiple Excel sheets, tools and complex administration.
Data is easily accessible to all team members allowing input from sales and marketing, and giving managers a clear overview. The fact that data can be viewed on any device is a bonus, giving the flexibility to work from wherever you like. A handy feature on the day and for salespeople who are out on the road.
By integrating all data in one place, the quality of your information is enhanced. It exchanges data with CRM and other sources, making it much easier to target your audience, learn from the past and reduce no-shows.
What? When? Who? Which language? … The invitation process can be complicated. With specialised software such as InviteDesk, it’s child’s play.
With easy templates and automation, your entire trail of communication – save the dates, invitations, reminders, pre-event notices, thank you’s – will be fired out automatically and on time. Not to mention look amazing. With options to select the appropriate brand, style and personalisation you can effortlessly add a professional finishing touch. The communication, right down to an event website, is so easy to create, organisers can work autonomously and efficiently
Whether it’s registration forms, smart waiting lists or (third party) tickets, a specialised platform like InviteDesk automates the entire registration process. This makes it easy for organisers to keep track. And easy for visitors to register and participate.
You can be confident that guests will receive all the information they require, e.g. details of the venue or link to the webinar.
Meanwhile, accessible data provides a clear overview of registration levels. Allowing you to take appropriate action in plenty of time to get the audience you desire, and avoid empty seats or over-booking.
And what about the data you store? And your GDPR? No need to worry about where to store it and for how long: everything’s under control with software like InviteDesk!
Keeping colleagues informed and keeping track can be a challenge. It’s so much simpler when you have transparent data that’s up to date and accessible on any device.
Need to make some manual interventions or send out some more details. The process is efficient thanks to a clear dashboard and real-time data.
Event organisation is a profession on its own. It’s well worth relying on some expert assistance, such as InviteDesk software.
Unexpected vegetarian? Different name on a badge?… Last-minute changes can be stressful. But not with an event management software platform! An expert app, like InviteDesk, allows you to remain flexible and adapt to any changes.
Handy real-time information is accessible to team members on their mobiles. This helps the process to run smoothly and keeps everyone informed on the big day. Even including handy features such as an automatic alert when special guests arrive.
When it comes to tickets, QR codes generated by the software require no scanners and make light work of the check-in procedure.
What about webinars? Handy features such as break-out rooms help you get the most out of the event.
Was your event a success? You’ll want to know whether it was worth the investment and how to do even
better next time, right? Software makes it easy to gather feedback via surveys or polls. Along with insights
from real-time data, such as (non-)attendance. This is all combined and clearly displayed in an accessible
dashboard.
Meanwhile, each new event is another opportunity to enrich your data. Surveys, CRM, attendance behaviour, such as no shows and interests, are all invaluable in refining your decisions next time. Answering
important questions such as: are the right customers being invited? How is the commercial organisation
spending the event budget? Which events are the most successful? Etc.
Events were booming business before Covid. In the future, they will not only remain a critical part of the marketing plan, they will also become more popular and more complex. An efficient, creative and tactical approach will be necessary to achieve quantity and quality. High time for event management software!
Keen to join other businesses, large and small, in getting the most out of your business events? InviteDesk has already successfully increased the ROI of its customers in many different sectors, including banking, legal, transport & distribution, services, automotive, media, food, etc. Why not let us do the same for you?
1 Allied Market Research
2 American Express Global Meetings and Events Forecast.
3 https://www.dwtc.com/en/industry-insights/seven-incredible-facts-about-the-events-industry
4 dwtc.com
5 https://techjoomla.com/blog/jticketing/how-events-are-thriving-using-digitization
