As someone in the event marketing profession I am regularly faced with a client challenge - how do we get more people (and the right people) to our events. It's a tough proposition...we know that people are busy and it takes something really compelling to get them to show up. We also know that they are presented with many events to choose from, and that they can't go to every conference or seminar or tradeshow that seems interesting to them.
I feel their pain. I am invited to at least one marketing industry event a week. It's daunting! Every year I try to attend one or two events that seem particularly relevant. A few weeks ago I went to the Brand Manage Camp Conference in Chicago. Really good event, some great speakers - here are some of the highlights...
Dr. Peter Sealey, formerly of Coke and Columbia Pictures and spoke about the confusion created by too many products and choices for customers – leading to lower overall sales in some categories. This resonated with me, as I often stroll down the pharmacy aisle wondering how all of these different versions of toothpaste are different.
Don Norman, author of “Emotional Design” gave us a great quote I will use to explain the value of experiential marketing: “Coffee tastes better when someone pours it for you.”
Don Heath, co-author of “Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die” and a great speaker talked about why some ideas survive. “Sticky” ideas are simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional and tell stories that emphasize sensory details. I’m going to check out his book.
Kevin Clancy, author of “Your Gut is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head” gave an amazing presentation on how to segment audiences, noting that “targeting and positioning are the most important strategic decisions.” He discussed the need to understand the profitability of each segment, and the need to focus on those most potentially profitable. I am definitely picking up his book.
Fred Senn, author of “Juicing the Orange” and founding partner of Fallon Worldwide gave an enlightening talk on the power of strategic planning. He explained the role of a planner as the person who gets to the key, “ruthlessly simple” definition of a business problem. He told the story of Holiday Inn Express, which wanted to reach business travelers. They discovered a segment of moderate business travelers were experts at travel, they know all the tricks – and that they liked getting the most out of their travel budgets. They then developed a platform idea that “The road warrior feels smart about choosing a low-cost hotel. Celebrate that personal wisdom.” The resulting creative was “Stay Smart” and an advertising campaign in which travel-experts proclaimed “I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night!” (which I'm sure everyone is familiar with).
I got a lot out of this event and I'm glad I picked it out of the many, many others out there!
Comments (1)
Don Heath and his brother (who co-wrote "Made to Stick") have a monthly column in "Fast Company" that's a pretty interesting read--you should check it out.
Posted by Leesa on October 23, 2007 3:11 PM