Hosting Events
When you host an event, you gain full control over the event’s branding and content – and the audience you want to draw in. Being in this position gives you extraordinary power to define how you want your company to be portrayed and the audience you want to attract. If you are diligent about targeting your attendees, the payoff will be in the self-selected audience already interested in you and your message – buyers who are primed to be your customers. You’ll have access to a captive audience that is exposed to your brand and message at every turn. Moreover, these attendees are actively seeking to participate in the programs and activities you provide during the course of the event.
While online events pale in comparison to live events, the cost to host a live event can be prohibitive. That said, the value of hosting an event cannot be understated. When you consider the unprecedented opportunity to engage and influence your target market, it’s easy to see why you should consider working at least one live, hosted event into your marketing budget. Be aware that when you host an event you will be responsible for driving attendance versus when you sponsor and attendees are brought to you. Because of this, hosted events are best for companies that maintain a large database they can leverage, or a large team and budget to devote to a robust promotional plan. A great way to offset the cost of hosting your own events is to offer sponsorship opportunities to partners. If you are interested in doing this, you should create a sponsor prospectus. We do this at Marketo when we embark on our Marketing Rockstar Tour, using the template to the right to showcase our sponsorship packages to our partners.
Sponsoring Events
Sponsoring an event usually means you pay the host organizer to participate in the event. The event producer may set aside a booth, kiosk, or other location for your organization. The producer may also reserve a speaking slot for your company, and offer additional ways for your company to gain exposure. Most importantly, sponsoring can provide access and exposure to an audience that is basically delivered to you. A popular reason for sponsoring an event, rather than hosting, is for the turnkey opportunity it provides. When hosting an event, you are responsible for everything from finding the venue, scheduling speakers, recruiting exhibitors, to driving attendance, managing logistics, and more. When you sponsor an event, your company reaps the benefits without all the legwork – and typically at much lower cost than if you were producing the event on your own.
Speaking
When you speak at an event, you are in front of an audience of potential customers who will leave the event with a much stronger awareness of your company. Gaining this knowledge firsthand can be much more powerful than reading about your company and its offerings. The audience also has the opportunity for immediate interaction with the speaker before, during and/or after the presentation. As any salesperson will tell you, there is nothing more effective in building a strong relationship than face-to-face interaction. In addition to reaping the brand benefits of having your company’s name published in the agenda and other marketing materials seen by event participants, speaking is an especially effective way to convey your company’s thought leadership. Speaking at an event does more than any blog or whitepaper your company might publish; it provides you with the opportunity to speak in front of an attentive, interested audience. Assuming your perspective is fresh, distinctive, and relevant, it should have immediate appeal to attendees and may even spur them to take action.