How to Run a Successful Event Using Email & Social Media
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Make no mistake, running an event is marketing. One important campaign type that many nonprofits and small businesses have used, but would like to learn more about, revolves around Events. When you run an event you want to make sure that you leave ample time for the promotional activities that will drive your registrations, and you want to create and provide an optimal online registration experience. You'll learn: • The different types of events you might run • Setting a goal for your event • Promotion of your event (including a sample promotional timeline and activities) Using social media to promote your event • Set up an effective online registration process • Post-event activities you can’t forget
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How to Run a Successful Event Using Email & Social Media
- 1. Campaigns That Drive Action: Events and Online Registration © 2014
- 2. 2 @vanessacabrera #yoursmm Chief Creative Officer Your Social Media Mentor, Inc. www.yoursocialmediamentor.com yoursocialmediamentor@gmail.com Facebook.com/yoursocialmediamentor @vanessacabrera Tidbit About Me: I just had my first child in June whom I lovingly used to refer to as #fatty on all my social media platforms…B4 he had a name. Meet Matteo! Your Social Media Mentor – Vanessa Cabrera
- 3. 3 Grow with Constant Contact Get results fast, with affordable, easy-to-use engagement marketing tools and free coaching. Events & Registrations Offers & Promotions Newsletters & Announcements Feedback & Surveys
- 4. 4 Agenda Types of events Why run an event? Event promotion Online registration – why bother? Post-event actions & follow-up (survey!) Next steps
- 5. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 6. 6 marketing Types of events At its core, marketing is about eliciting a physical and measureable response
- 7. Pull registrations 8 Types of events What are campaigns? Push invitations
- 8. Types of events 9 Seminars and lectures Workshops and classes Social and networking Conferences Fundraisers and galas
- 9. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 10. 11 Why run one? What’s your goal? Raise money or drive purchases Create engagement Celebrate milestones Reward loyalty Grow your list Educate
- 11. 13 Why run one? To charge or not… Don’t be afraid to charge for your event! 50.50% 29.00% 10.04% 0.01% Date/time conflict LocationOther Cost 200,000 RSVPs x .01% = 20
- 12. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 13. 16 Promotion Timing matters Create buzz (5-6 weeks out) Increase registration (3-4 weeks out) Maximize attendance (2 weeks out to event date) Save the date! Allow time for planning, booking travel, donations, etc…
- 14. 17 Promotion Timing matters Create buzz (5-6 weeks out) Leverage your newsletter
- 15. 18 Promotion Timing matters Create buzz (5-6 weeks out) Leverage your newsletter Feature event info on website
- 16. 19 Promotion Timing matters Create buzz (5-6 weeks out) Leverage your newsletter Feature event info on website List your event publicly Event directories Events in America Local paper Local event calendars Co-marketing
- 18. 21 Promotion Communication schedule Increase registration (3-4 weeks out) Social media posts & sharing Facebook events app Invitations: paper and email Registration form Event homepage
- 19. 22 Promotion Communication schedule Maximize attendance (2 weeks out to event date)
- 20. 23 Promotion Communication schedule Maximize attendance (2 weeks out to event date) Provide tickets or confirmation Send email reminders Reminder on event website or homepage Updates and reminders on social media
- 21. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 23. Registration “Online” registration % Guest information Meal requests Event fees Communications
- 24. 28 Registration Information all in one place Easier. Available 24/7RSVPs and declinesPaymentsSell items, track donations
- 25. 50% Percentage of invitees (who received paper invites) want the ability to register online29 Registration The more it’s used…
- 26. 30 Registration Keep it simple: invitation The subject line matters! Event details Logo or simple graphics Compelling message, why to attend
- 27. 31 Registration No kitchen sinks (please!) 14 Separate pieces of information requested
- 28. 32 Registration Do they know it’s you?
- 29. 33 Registration Keep it simple: registration page Event details Logo or simple graphics Brief description of event Event name Simple form fields Presentation Design Workshop Wondering how to make your next presentation the best you've ever delivered? Attend this workshop and learn how to approach developing your content, the design process (including some PowerPoint power tips) and the delivery of your story. Laptops and questions are welcome!
- 30. 34 Registration 1: What should you collect? Demographics Bringing guests? Time/session requested Event specific information Payment method Plan/adjust logistics, entertainment or auctionPlan/adjust seating or monitor capacityCommunicate about openings, adjust staffing, add/remove options Monitor meal options, clothing sizes/quantity, audience compositionPlan/adjust event finances
- 31. 35 Registration 2: What should you collect? Demographics Bringing guests? Time/session requested Event specific information Payment method Meals, giveaways (size for clothing, etc) What school does your child attend? Food allergies or restrictions Emergency contact information Any special needs
- 32. Bad data out 36 Bad data in Open- ended questions
- 33. Good data out 37 Good data in
- 34. 38 Registration You are the first test subject 2 1 3 “It should only take you ___ minutes to complete your registration.”
- 35. 39 Registration You have the information. Now what?
- 36. 40 Registration You have the information. Now what? Social proof 2 1 3
- 37. 41 Registration Extend the “proof” Presentation Design Workshop
- 38. 42 Registration Think beyond the event Demographics Bringing guests? Time/session requested Event specific information Payment method Improve future event planning and marketing effortsBuild new customer/supporter relationshipsGrow your email list
- 39. 43 Registration Payment & donation options matter Credit cardCheck Online payment solutions Cash Credit card processors Check
- 40. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 41. The most important thing you have to do after the event Thank you.Say
- 42. 47 Post-event Review statistics and data Identify shows & no-shows Review revenue or funds raised Segment follow-up lists based on registration questions, activities participated in or behaviors %
- 43. 48 Post-event Collect pictures and videos
- 44. 49 Post-event Review social media activity Tweets over time
- 45. Post-event Get feedback with a survey Satisfaction score Number “very satisfied” Number “somewhat satisfied” Total responses
- 46. Post-event Get feedback with a survey Key insights Event venue Time / time of year Food Entertainment Speaking program Interests Demographics Newsletter sign-up
- 47. Types of Events| Why run one? | Promotion | Registration | Post-event | Next Steps
- 48. Make sure the host organization is very obvious, not just the logo Place your logo left or center, use a text link Checklist Invitations & Registration Include date/time/location/topic Sign-up link should be most obvious, if not ONLY option, and be above the scroll line Don’t give details that distract from signup
- 49. Reconfirm their registration Checklist Reminder Email Note if there is a waitlist or the event is full Describe check-in process, where to park, what to bring, emergency contact information… This can be a long email…really! Provide as much information as your attendees will need to ensure they have an enjoyable experience.
- 50. Say “Thank you”!! Checklist Follow-up email Include at least one photo from the event! Ask to participate in your survey Ask attendees to post, tweet, comment about their experience Provide links to your social media channels Provide them with sample content – write out some tweets for them Re-emphasize the call to action of the event: donate, visit your store, volunteer to help, etc.
- 51. Easier. 56 Next steps Online vs. offline 1 2 3 Easily process RSVPs and collect fees Registration is available 24/7 Collect all of your information in one place
- 52. 57 Next steps Collect only what you need 2 43 Good data in = good data out Promote “social proof” Use data to inform future business decisions 2 SUBMIT 1 SURVEY Keep it simple, collect only what you need 1
- 53. 58 Next steps Make it easy for them 1 2 3 Look like you! Brand your communications. Payment options matter. Provide more than one! Timing matters… give enough time to plan ahead.
- 54. 61
- 55. Chief Creative Officer 62 SPECIAL OFFER FOR ATTENDEES! New Constant Contact Customers $45 JUMP START Purchase Toolkit Account and get: • Account set-up • We’ll upload your contacts • Your first email designed and sent out for you BONUS: You’ll receive an email template exclusively designed to match your website for FREE! Valued at $199-$299 Current Constant Contact Customers Get an email template designed exclusively to match your website for just $99 BONUS: 20% Off Event Training. I’ll help you set up your first event, step-by-step
Editor's Notes
- Hello, and welcome to our session today…we’re going to be talking about one of the core marketing campaign types, Events, and the effective use of Online registration. I want to say right off the top that this session will not be addressing best practices around event planning topics like venue selection, planning event entertainment or dining options, running fundraising activities like live or silent auctions, etc. It is solely focused on helping you learn more about effective event promotion and streamlining your online registration efforts. We certainly have a lot to talk about with those two topics, so let’s get going.
- This slide should give you a chance to quickly introduce the Constant Contact suite of products to your audience. Many will not know we have all of these, so it’s a great and short commercial.
- Here’s what we’re going to do today… [click to build] we’ll quickly talk about different types of events…and how there may be an event type that would work for you if you only got a little creative [click to build] we’ll share some reasons for running an event, and how to approach the “free or paid” question [click to build] then we’re going to discuss the promotion of your event and a rough time-line you can try for different promotional activities [click to build] next we’ll talk about online registration tools…and why they make up an important part of your event management efforts [click to build] finally, we’ll recognize that just because the event is over your work isn’t done…we’ll talk about post-event actions. I also want to make a quick not about “for” and “non” profits, and industry verticals…I’m often asked how the things I’m talking about should be adjusted or changed for a retail operation, a nonprofit or a services/B2B firm or someone in a different industry vertical. The good news is that the principles that will be discussed today are largely universal…they can benefit a non-profit just as much as they can a for-profit, a B2B business can follow these just as readily as a B2C, that a restaurant can succeed with these ideas just as readily as a yoga studio, a church or a book store. Yes, you may have different considerations to make for your select audiences or your organizatoin, but in large part what we’re teaching are best practices, and they’re best practices across the board.
- I want to give you a simple definition, or a framework, for what marketing really is. You already know, generally, what it is – but when I say the word marketing, I mean something very specific and it’s important that we are on the same page. My definition of marketing has three simple parts – you define an audience: a group of people that you want to target. You reach out to them with a message that is specific to that audience. And you seek to elicit a physical and measurable response. A click, a reply, a call, a purchase, a referral – these are all actions that represent a decision made by a human to react to your message. Keep this in mind as we discuss marketing and marketing campaigns and the ways to deliver the most effective campaigns. You’re doing these things because you want people – your customers, your clients, your donors or supporters – to DO SOMETHING. Our topic for today, the campaign type “Surveys and Feedback,” is absolutely about getting a response. [click to next slide]
- First, let’s talk about “campaigns” - -what does that word really mean? Very simply there are two parts to a campaign First, you [click to build] push out some sort of to your followers, supporters, etc Second, you hope to [click to build] “pull” some sort of response from them – you want them to read, forward or share what you sent, show up, call, attend – you want them to take an action of some sort Think about a campaign in terms of push/pull and more importantly do not think about it as just putting an offer out there and making the sale … in this new marketing world, it’s more like a conversation – which lends itself to that advantage we talked about that you have over big business. As a small company, you can engage in a conversation that feels and in fact IS much less like a sales gimmick and more like nurturing a relationship. If you’re doing it right, it will seem like that from both sides of that conversation.
- In the case of events, what you’re pushing out are invitations (and information about the event), and you’re hoping to pull in registrations. That’s the campaign!
- When we use the word “event,” the image that often comes to mind is that of a gala or dinner with entertainment in a reception hall. And that’s accurate, but there are other types as well…here are just a few… [click to build – all will build automatically] seminars/lectures workshops/classes (education or training) conferences social gatherings/networking fundraisers/galas [Speaker: Take a few minutes to ask the audience if there are other types of events they’d add to the list…and if they think that these types of events are limited to any one particular industry or vertical. Try to find a retail operation that’s running one or doing something cool…or a nonprofit that has a unique twist on the traditional fundraiser…or even a B2B/services provider that has used events to help their business.]
- Great…we’ve identified some new ways to think about what an event is (and you may even have heard an idea that you want to consider for your organization). Now let’s go a little bit deeper into why an organization would want to run one.
- Across those types of events, at their core is that some organization has a reason for hosting that event. Think about they types of goals you might have for an event. Do any of these look familiar to you as goals that you’ve set for your events before? [click to build – all will build automatically…talk through these each or just a couple of them] raise money or drive purchases create face-to-face engagement reward loyalty celebrate milestones grow your list educate (and offer yourself as an expert) [Speaker: Take a few minutes to ask the audience if there are other goals that they’d add to the list…]
- [NOTE: UK VERSION WITH BRITISH POUNDS FOR PIGGY BANK] Across those types of events, at their core is that some organization has a reason for hosting that event. Think about they types of goals you might have for an event. Do any of these look familiar to you as goals that you’ve set for your events before? [click to build – all will build automatically…talk through these each or just a couple of them] raise money or drive purchases create face-to-face engagement reward loyalty celebrate milestones grow your list educate (and offer yourself as an expert) [Speaker: Take a few minutes to ask the audience if there are other goals that they’d add to the list…]
- It can be hard trying to determine what to charge for an event…but sometimes it’s hard to determine if you actually want to charge anything at all. In some cases you may not be sure if people will be willing to pay for your event. Let me help take a little bit of the stress out of that question. We reviewed over 200,000 RSVPs in which people declined an invitation, and looked at the reasons why people say “no, thanks.” We found… [click to build] over 50% cited conflicts with dates and times… [click to build] another almost 30% cited “other”…when you drill into the reasons most of those were related to date/time/location [click to build] an additional 10% cited “location” directly. In essence, almost 90% of the reasons people say “no” come down to timing and location. when it comes to cost, out of all of those responses, the % of people who cited “cost” as the reason they were declining was [click to build] Think about that!! Out of [click to build] 200,000 responses only [click to build] .01% cited cost…that’s only [click to build] 20 people!! What’s the takeaway here? [click to build] don’t be afraid to charge for your event !! What’s important to consider, is the value your offering your attendees. Is there a perceived value built into the event and your marketing of the event, and will people be willing to come out of their own pocket? [click to next slide]
- [Speakers: walk through this quickly…setting up the idea of engagement, and noting how/where events fit] There’s a concept we regularly discuss in our seminars, called The Engagement Marketing Cycle. It outlines the connections between key elements of the relationship that a business or organization has with its customers, clients or donors. Events definitely have a place in this cycle. Events are definitely about the “Wow” experience, but they also have a place in each other part of the Engagement Marketing cycle. They give organizations a reason to ask people to stay in touch (“Entice” – so followers can learn about other events!), the experience at the event creates a ready connection around which “Engagement” can be created (“remember at our gala when this happened?” with a picture, etc.), events provide opportunities for Social Visibility during the event or after/before with the sharing of stories, pictures, results, etc.; and finally, everyone loves to hear about a great party or gathering or a meaningful reason to get together (fundraiser) – so events supported by engagement and social visibility will draw new prospects to your business or your cause.
- Great…we’ve talked about the types of events you could think about, the goals you could have for one (and why to consider charging for one), and the important role that events can play in helping you stay engaged with your audiences. Let’s now talk about the promotion of your event.
- Studies show it is best to promote your event over a period of time that makes sense for the type of event, your organization, your audience and their planning horizon, etc. We’re going to walk through the types of activities you should consider as you promote your event. For our purposes today, we’re going to use a sample 6-week promotional period…but you can think about how you would stretch these core promotional periods out over the length of your ideal timeframe. We’re not talking about just blasting out your registration URL 6 weeks in a row. Today we’ve broken your event success formula into 3 stages: [click to build] Creating Buzz [click to build] Increasing registration and [click to build] Maximizing attendance. Each stage is broken down into different best practices designed to help you achieve the goal of that stage. All of these stages come together to make your event a success! The one piece of promotion that can (and should!) be sent before this timeframe is the [click to build] Save-the-Date notice. Be sure to leave plenty of time for your audience to start making appropriate plans…
- Creating buzz is all the ground work you can do to get people excited about your event and on their radar even before you share the event’s registration URL. Email newsletters are a fantastic way to stay top of mind with your customers. It keeps them thinking about your company so when they are ready to buy or recommend you to a friend, you are the first to come to mind. When you create compelling content, people want to read it and share it with their friends and family. And when they are reading your newsletter, make sure they are reading about your upcoming events. Talking about the event is not enough. Make sure registration is only one click away!
- Your email newsletter is a great place to promote your events because it reaches a wide audience. It takes advantage of the places they are already paying attention to. These are the exact same reasons you should also promote your event on your website. With a lot of event management systems, it is very easy to do this. It doesn’t require constantly updating your web designer or swapping out code. It’s a change you make once and it will update your website automatically for every new event you publish. And just like your email, registration is just one click away making it easy for your audience.
- [Notes to presenter: Events in America is a database of professional events and trade shows. Find events that matter with the details you need.] By promoting your event through your email newsletter and your website, you are taking advantage of the places your customers are already engaging and looking. What about the places prospects are looking for events? That is where public listings come in! With online event management systems, you can push your event out automatically to sites like Events in America and SocialVents. Don’t just stop there! Make sure your local press covers your event as well. Whether that’s the paper, an event calendar and co-marketing opportunities with local businesses. Whatever the place, just make sure to get your event out there.
- Script: Once you get the word out about your event and have generated buzz, the next step is to motivate people to register. Use all of the tools that you have available to you, starting with the registration form and event homepage you create (the event homepage is something that is often baked into an online event management and registration tool). Make sure all of the pertinent information is listed in those places (we’ll talk more about registration best practices in a few minutes. [click to build] You then build on that buzz and drive registration through the invitations you send…whether they be virtual through email or newsletters or real ones sent through the USPS. [click to build] Finally, take full advantage of all of your social media channels…especially because they will help word of your event spread beyond just your loyal supporters and may encourage people new to your organization to come along.
- A lot of times event promotion focuses on driving registration and that’s great, but event attendance is an even more important part of your promotional strategy. Let’s take a look now at the best practices you can apply to maximize registration. There’s no question why you should send a reminder. However, you don’t want to just settle for resending the event invitation. Don’t pass up this great opportunity to get them excited about attending especially because it will be seen my a large portion of your registrants. Each of our customers had over a 60% open rate. Be sure to include a link to a pre-event survey or poll, show event count down, provide speaker info and make it easy to share [click to build] If your event requires a ticket for entry, make sure to include a reminder for registrants to print it out ahead of time. It’s a great reminder for them to attend and will make your check in process much easier. [click to build] Although your event homepage link remains static, you can still update the page. Make sure it has the most up to date information. Keep rotating the content so people want to come back. get registrants excited about the event! You can provide additional event info, you get more promotional real estate, etc. [click to build] And don’t forget to take advantage of your social channels…we’ll talk about the concept of “social proof” in a few minutes…and you’ll see why leveraging the social visibility of your organization and your followers is so important.
- Now let’s look at the befits of and some best practices around Online Registration
- One of the early choices you make as an event planner has to do with the tools you use to manage the various details of your event. There are two big “buckets” that we can place those tools in, and to put it simply we refer to those as “online” and “offline” tools. To be clear, “offline” doesn’t equal just “paper." This refers to an entire mix of resources and other tools that you’re likely using. In fact, in some recent research we conducted of customers using our event management tools, we found that a lot of them were using a mix. [click to build out percentages]. None of these are likely surprises…Excel spreadsheets, phone, Outlook or other email…these are all what we’d consider “offline” or “indirect” event management tools. We also refer to these as "indirect" methods because your invitee isn't registering directly into the event database...they reply to the invitation (via phone, email, regular mail, etc.) and then you or a member of your staff is entering the data into the spreadsheet or system. What you don’t see here are things like paper invitations, save the date cards, etc., but these are important – but not something we’re going to discuss today. To be clear, though, we’re big fans of paper invitations, because they can be artistic and exciting, they can reflect your brand and the brand for your event, and they can start to give the recipient a sense of the event long before they step into the room. What we’re focused on today are the on-line tools that, as we’ll show, can help streamline the registration process by bringing together a number of different elements of the registration process…and ultimately make your life as an event planner or manager easier. Let’s take a look at what we mean when we say “online registration.” [click to next slide]
- One of the early choices you make as an event planner has to do with the tools you use to manage the various details of your event. There are two big “buckets” that we can place those tools in, and to put it simply we refer to those as “online” and “offline” tools. To be clear, “offline” doesn’t equal just “paper." This refers to an entire mix of resources and other tools that you’re likely using. In fact, in some recent research we conducted of customers using our event management tools, we found that a lot of them were using a mix. [click to build out percentages]. None of these are likely surprises…Excel spreadsheets, phone, Outlook or other email…these are all what we’d consider “offline” or “indirect” event management tools. We also refer to these as "indirect" methods because your invitee isn't registering directly into the event database...they reply to the invitation (via phone, email, regular mail, etc.) and then you or a member of your staff is entering the data into the spreadsheet or system. What you don’t see here are things like paper invitations, save the date cards, etc., but these are important – but not something we’re going to discuss today. To be clear, though, we’re big fans of paper invitations, because they can be artistic and exciting, they can reflect your brand and the brand for your event, and they can start to give the recipient a sense of the event long before they step into the room. What we’re focused on today are the on-line tools that, as we’ll show, can help streamline the registration process by bringing together a number of different elements of the registration process…and ultimately make your life as an event planner or manager easier. Let’s take a look at what we mean when we say “online registration.” [click to next slide]
- First, I’m guessing most of you have seen or even completed an online registration form [click to build], or may even be familiar with the fact that activities you do online can be reflected in reporting from the online tool [click to build] Online registration is an electronic way to capture information about people coming to your event. During the act of registration, you can also capture fees, guest information, etc. Certain online registration tools may also automatically enter that information into lists you have or allow you to [click to build] integrate with email and social media marketing tools. [click to build] When we're talking about "online" registration we're referring to tools that you can use that allow for the input of event registration information (including event details like meal selections, or payment for attendance),
- So, you may be wondering why you should use online registration tools, especially if you’ve already got a mix of tools that work for you. That’s a great question!! The reality of on-line registration tools is that they'll make life easier for you and your invitees. “EASIER” REFERS TO THE FACT THAT YOUR REGISTRATION PROCESS IS NOW AN ENGINE/SWITCH THAT IS ALWAYS “ON” – AND ALLOWS FOR THE COLLECTION OF MORE INFORMATION THAN A SIMPLE YES / NO / MAYBE ON AN RSVP from an INVITATION.. It will be "easier" for you and/or your invitees, and here’s how it will: [click to build] invitation acceptances and declines can all be pulled together quickly in one place [click to build] if you’re charging fees a lot of online tools allow you to collect fees as part of the registration process [click to build] “you” can be collecting information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Of course, the best part is that you don’t actually have to collect, enter or handle the information – it all goes directly into your database. Think of this like being part of a conversation with your invitees, except you don’t actually have to be there, and it happens at a time when your invitees want it to…which increases the likelihood that they’ll register because it happens on their schedule. [click to build] all of the information you’ll collect will be in one central location – responses to questions you ask in the registration process, billing information, etc. – all in one place rather than in different places, on paper or in the computer, etc. Another benefit is that if you host your registration online most tools will allow you to automatically update registrants with any event changes (time, venue, speakers, etc) even after they’ve registered – all with the click of a button. [click to build] if you want, or your event requires it, you can also sell items related to the event, or collect donations related to your cause, again, with all of that information ending up in one place from which you can do with it what you need. In one word, online registration tools will make your life EASIER. In addition to being easier, you’re also going to find that expectations around where registration takes place have been changing. [click to next slide]
- As technology has moved more of our lives and the management of our lives online, more people expect to manage tasks like registering for events through a computer (or even a smartphone). The number today is as many as [click to build] 50% -- half of people who receive paper invitations are expecting to be able to register online. [click to next slide]
- We mentioned the invitation earlier. A great online registration tool is one that also allows you to streamline the sending of invitations (to your list) and brings together the information for the event with your email list to send it out to your audience. There are a couple of things to keep in mind as you build your invitation: [click to build] use simple graphics [click to build] include ALL the basics [click to build] write a compelling message anticipate questions, like: can they bring a friend? will parking be validated? should I bring my invitation with me? etc. [click to build] write a subject line for your email that will ensure that you’re recognizable: combine your organization’s name with a person’s name when possible…improve your chances of the invitation being opened
- After crafting your invitation, you can start building out your registration form. The first thing to consider as you start building your registration form is that you don’t want to make it difficult, complicated or overly time-consuming for your invitee to complete the registration. This is an example of a form that just on appearances alone you might consider not moving ahead…it just looks complicated. It actually asks for [click to build] 14 separate pieces of information… There is an important point I need to make here, though. If your event requires you to ask for 14 pieces of information, then do so…but do everything to ensure that you’re asking for only the information that it is most necessary for you to have, and most appropriately relevant to your event. Avoid the temptation to use a registration form as a vehicle for asking every question you ever wanted an answer to, or as a platform from which to get into a lot of detail about the event, your organization, etc. What should a well-designed form look like? Let’s take a quick look… [click to next slide]
- You've worked really hard to develop your brand and to expose your brand personality in whatever you do. Why wouldn't you take the opportunity to do that with your event registration as well? You should customize your registration so it reflects your brand [click to build] – use your logo, colors, if using online registration send from an email address that the invitees will recognize as your organization. Also, be sure to use language that you use for your organization: if you call people members, cozy knitters, business executives, etc. use this language so the registration form is customized to reflect your brand. One variation on this idea is to reflect the "brand" of the event -- especially if it has a different look/feel than your standard brand. In most cases the event look/feel will incorporate your organization's brand, so it should be easy to match the event's brand. [click to next slide]
- As with the invitation, there are some basics to consider for your registration form or page. Don’t worry…we'll get to the information you want to collect in just a moment. Don’t forget the basics… [click to build – all call-out boxes will build automatically and you can speak to each] first, make sure that everything you create has your logo on it, or the logo for the event. Don’t assume that just because they clicked on a link or found themselves on the registration page that they know or remember who you are provide all of the pertinent details – date, time, location (and a map if that feature is available) make sure the name of the event is on the form!! Again, don’t assume anything! you should provide a brief description of the event to remind them of what it’s all about keep your form fields as simple as possible Recognize that with the amount of information flying at people these days you want to take every opportunity to remind them of who you are and what they're signing up for. Again, keep it simple!! So, what information should you seek to collect? Let’s talk about that now… [click to next slide]
- How much and what information you collect is a tricky question to answer. As I said, the short answer is that you want to collect only as much information as you need to in order to effectively manage the event. For example, here are some common questions asked on registration forms [click to build] Notice that there isn’t a big long list of items here. Why? Because people are time-starved and information overloaded...and that includes being asked to fill out forms, "enter their data," etc. If you're clearly soliciting information that is connected to the event, then you're likely to get a good completion rate. Be aware that there’s plenty of research to support the fact that the longer a form is there’s a higher chance that someone won’t complete it. So even if there are questions you want to ask related to your business or organization but they're not related to the event, you should find a different approach to asking them. Try collecting the bare minimum of information needed, and make sure there is a purpose for everything you collect. Don’t ask for information you’re not going to use. Here are some examples [click to build] demographics can help you to plan or adjust your logistics, entertainment or auction items. An audience that has more women than men, for example, could lead you to make different choices than if it were the other way around. [click to build] if you’re allowing guests, collect that information, especially so that you can manage your seating and event capacity. [click to build] if you have different session options, asking ahead of time what your attendees will do will help you communicate about openings, adjust staffing, even add/remove/talk-up different options [click to build] all of the event-specific information that you may want will clearly help you manage the details like meal options, clothing sizes and quantities, even help you better understand the make-up of your audience. This is where the “how did you hear about our event” question can help you see if you have a high number of returning customers, VIPs or new supporters coming to you event – allowing you to adjust your remarks, etc. [click to build] payment is clearly important…and if you’re collecting payments and payment information ahead of time, you’ll be better able to manage your event budget and finances. Knowing that a larger number of your registrants plan to pay at the door may impact how you pay for certain aspects of the event in advance. [click to next slide]
- With that idea in mind, here are just a few other things you might ask for… [click to build – all will build automatically and you can then speak to them] I mentioned asking about meal and giveaway info (vegetarians? special sizes?) Asking about things that might seem unrelated could actually help a lot. If you run a summer camp and want to know what school the child attended, it could help you put kids into groups of others that they might know Again, the key takeaway here is to make sure you’re asking for information that is relevant to your event. Once you have the set of questions you want to ask, with online tools there’s another important consideration that you want to make, one that will help you make better use of that information. [click to next slide]
- You’ve got the questions you want to ask, so then you just build out the form, provide space for the answers and you’re off to the races, right? Wrong. Here’s an example of a form [click to build] that might have been created that way. Clearly there’s a lot of information they want to collect, and they’ve provided ample space for those answers. What’s wrong with this picture? [click to build] These are all open-ended questions. Why is that a problem? Because as registrants complete and submit their answers, you’ll get a spreadsheet that looks a lot like this [click to build]. This is a set of data that will be hard for you to process or analyze easily…because of the variety of answers, types of answers, etc. You’d have to do a lot of “clean-up” work in this spreadsheet before you could make the most effective use of it. What should you do? [click to next slide]
- The best approach is to provide options in response to each question. Look at this form, and how [click to build] the event manager has made it easy for the registrant by asking for Yes/No answers or providing a selection of responses in a drop-down menu. Then, when the event manager looks at the data, they’ll find [click to build] a very “clean” data set that can be easily sorted, filtered, analyzed, etc., making it much easier to make decisions, changes in the event strategy, etc. So remember, “good data in = good data out!” [click to next slide]
- Here’s another time-tested piece of advice. Make yourself the first test subject for your registration form. Even before you send out your invitations, be sure that you fill out the form yourself, or have members of your staff fill it out. This will allow you to [click to build] make sure it’s easy to understand and complete, [click to build] doesn’t have any typos or other errors, and [click to build] get a sense of how long it would take to complete. You can then assess if the time it takes is appropriate for the event and your audience. Once you have a good sense of the time it takes, you could [click to build] even comment in the invite or at the start of the registration process "this should only take you 3 minutes to complete“ or “15 minutes” or “30 minutes.”
- You came up with questions, you built a good form to collect the information, you tested it and now it’s “live.” Now what? One thing you can do is ask your registrants if they’d like others to see that they’re attending. With most online registration tools you would [click to build] set this up as you set up everything else for your event and your registration form. Then, when the registrant gets to the end of the form [click to build], they will be asked if they want to share their registration with others (with limited information). If and when they allow that, other registrants will see how your event’s audience is shaping up, resulting in an experience that looks like this [click to build], with the names visible to registrants. This is actually a great practice, as it will help create something known as… [click to next slide
- …social proof. What is social proof? It’s a phenomenon by which someone looks to see how others are responding to a particular situation, decision, etc. before they make their own. Think of when you’ve driven to a restaurant and found the parking lot empty – do you wonder if the food is any good? Will you drive on to one with a full parking lot? What happens is that one of your invitees will get to the registration form, and see that list of names. She’ll look at that list of names [click to build] and try to find people that she knows, that have similar interests, etc. – all as part of the process of deciding whether or not she wants to attend. [click to build] If she see’s enough of that “social proof,” she’ll be more inclined to think that this is an event worth attending and she’ll complete the registration. She’ll also be more likely to show up…. [click to next slide]
- You can also extend how this social proof can work for you. Give your registrants an option [click to build] to share their registration and a link to the event through their social networks. You should also leverage your own social media channels to try to generate that proof…by posting the event on Facebook [click to build] as these businesses did. Notice the use of information, images and even video to promote the events…and since these were posted on Facebook, followers of these businesses had commented and liked those posts…increasing the “social proof” and driving registrants to the registration page. [click to next slide]
- In addition to facilitating the collection of information that is relevant to your event, as well as helping provide the social proof that might help increase your registrations, online tools and their collection of data can help inform future business decisions. [click to build] Collecting email addresses for future events will help increase your list size [click to build] Getting a sense of guests that are coming to an event might help you decide how you approach that audience at your event, as you start to build a relationship with them [click to build] other information you collect will similarly improve your future planning efforts. For example, learning how they heard about the event (members, past attendees, etc.) will help you know where to promote your next event to maximize registration. In short, you’ll be better able to develop and market your events in the future. [click to next slide] [click to next slide]
- If you have decided to collect payment for your event, consider the impact that how you allow them to pay, or make donations, can have on registration and attendance. The options you provide can influence the number of people that complete the registration process: offer different ways for invitees to pay for registration (if charging for your event) or make donations. [click to build] pay-by-check or credit card are common options, with a lot of small businesses using credit card processors like [click to build] Authorize.Net and ProPay to make credit card payments a seamless part of the process [click to build] you might also find that an online payment solution like Google Checkout or PayPal would work better for you. Just keep in mind that in most cases options like these will take your registrant out of your own registration form into a separate website. [click to build] also, depending upon the type of event and the audience, you may want to offer the option to pay at the door. [click to next slide]
- Something that you need to keep in mind, though, with respect to payment options is that if you offer only one payment option, people may opt out of the registration process at that point. While there may be one option that works best for you and your organization, that may not be the best option for your invitees. Imagine the scenario we have here, that shows certain potential attendees and the payment options they prefer. If you [click to build] start to reduce the options available for paying for the event, you may be limiting the potential pool of people likely to register or attend. In other words, carefully consider how you will let people pay. [click to build]
- Now flash-forward to the day after your event. You’re all done, right? You cleaned up and now you get to go on that vacation you’ve been putting off while you worked on the event, right? Not yet! There are still some important steps to take to make sure you close out the event as a marketing campaign…
- Some of the tools you can use to plan and promote events return your results instantaneously, and others take 24 hours – some tools used to run webinars will take that long for the recording and list of attendees and non-attendees. Make sure you know which option your tool is so you can plan accordingly. In either case, once the event is concluded, [click to build] you can go ahead and check your results and reporting and get a few different things. You can pull a list of attendees and no-shows. Once you have your list, send an email to attendees and to registrants that didn’t attend. To attendees, send all the resources. If you had a live event, photos videos, results like who won raffle prizes or silent auction prizes, additional info you’ll be sharing on your webpage – send a link. Make sure to nurture them to the next step, whatever step you decide, with a call to action. And make sure that next step stands out. Some common CTA are to ask questions on a Facebook page, purchase a product, start a trial, attending the next event. For non-attendees, send a Sorry-you-couldn’t-attend, Here’s-what-you-missed email, provide a recording or photos or videos, and let them know when the next event is. Use the follow up email to drive registrations. You can use the reporting features to check on revenue from ticket sales or donations (if the tool you’re using allowed you to collect them) And if you asked questions during the registration process and that information can be synced with your attendee lists, you can go ahead and start segmenting your lists of names based on responses. This will help you with your follow-up over time.
- Soon after your event, connect with your attendees, staff and volunteers – [click to build] ask them to share any multimedia they captured. Make it easy for them to share, by inviting them to [click to build] post photos to Facebook or other any social channel you utilize. Create albums where you can, and then send a link to your online albums in your follow up email and your next email newsletter, and link to it from your social media posts.
- If you provided your event attendees with a hashtag (#) for your event as well as the key social media addresses, you’ve provided them with a great tool to share their experience…and a great way for you to check on social visibility that took place during the event. You can review the results of your event social media activity pretty easily through most of the social channels and the reporting they offer. [click to build] You can take a look at when the tweets were posted and compare them to the times different activities took place – what parts of your event or sessions, speakers got the most attention on Twitter. It will help you determine which speakers or topics or parts of the event were most popular. And take a look at who your top participants were on Twitter. [click to build] If you’re not following them already, start doing it. Send them direct messages to thank them or send a tweet that publicly thanks everyone who tweeted about your event – list their Twitter handles. These people are loyal followers or brand ambassadors – keep track of them and engage with them.
- You can use surveys to gain insights into how much people enjoyed the event, what they’d like to see done differently, etc. You can develop a “satisfaction score,” [click to build through the equation] Over time, this score can help you calibrate your efforts and planning as you make changes to elements of your events and as you strive to provide the best experience.
- You can ask a whole range of questions, and gain valuable insight with a survey. [click to build through the insights…these go two or three at a time, until finishing on the build that shows the “sign up for our newsletter” question]
- NOTE TO PRESENTER: you can unhide some or all of the following slides as part of the wrap-up. These offer some simple checklists for audience members – some for the invitation, a reminder email and the follow-up We’ve put a lot of information in front you today, and we know it’s not easy to keep all of this straight. So now we’re just going to run through some checklists that you can keep in mind, as well as review some of the key points we discussed today.
- [click to build out each item on the Invitations/Registration checklist]
- [click to build out each item on the Reminder email checklist]
- [click to build out each item on the follow-up email checklist]
- We discussed the decision to use online vs. offline registration tools, and recognized that three of the big advantages of online tools are that they [click to build] make easy the process of collecting RSVPs, fees and other information related to your event [click to build] online tools are available 24/7…remember, we talked about how it’s like having a conversation with your invitees while not having to actually be there. [click to build] online tools bring the various elements of the process together into one place, making it [click to build] easier for you, the event manager. [click to next slide]
- when it comes to the registration form itself, here are a few things to keep in mind: [click to build] keep it simple…collect only the information you need and can connect to your event [click to build] remember that how you ask your questions, and how you “guide” your registrants to provide information make a big difference. Good data in = good data out. [click to build] allow your registrants to benefit from and promote “social proof,” leading to higher registration and ultimately attendance [click to build] find ways to let the information you collect inform business decisions for your future. [click to next slide]
- when it comes to the registration form itself, here are a few things to keep in mind: [click to build] reflect your organization’s brand, or that of your event, in the various elements of your registration process. Make sure they know it’s you! [click to build] payment options matter – when you think about your pricing and other options, consider what is best not just for you but for your intended audience. Provide as many options as are reasonable. [click to build] timing matters as well…provide enough time for your invitees to plan accordingly, make travel or financial plans so that it’s easy for them to say “yes” to your invitation. Don’t forget to send them reminders – they’re busy people! [click to the next slide]
- Before I log in, just with a quick show of hands, how many of you use Constant Contact already? I’m going to log in to a live account, for the purposes of this demonstration, and when I do you may not see a screen that looks exactly like what you see when you log in to your account. I have special access to the newest updates and even some test tools, and I tell you that because what is on my screen may not look exactly like what you have on your screen when you log in. CLICK Some of you see a screen that looks like this [CLICK] when you first log in and others may see a screen that looks like this [CLICK] Two different front doors, depending on how you found us and which version of our tools you are using, But both lead to the same basic functionality – (if you have time, you may decide to go deeper and explain this) The version on the top shows the home page for people that use our “stand alone” products and the one below shows the Constant Contact “toolkit” which bundles all of the tools together. I can answer questions about the difference between the two at the end of the session as needed, but again – both of these home pages are just different front doors to get to the same room full of great tools. So I’m going to open up my account now and we will get started with the demonstration.
- At the end, post this slide while you take questions. MAKE SURE YOU ADD YOUR Call To Action!!!!! Note – pricing slides are next in case the question comes up!!!
- This slide is provided for your quick reference if pricing questions come up. CLICK ONCE for a more detailed view of what’s what…
- Presenter should introduce themselves. RDDs should mention Constant Contact ALEs would mention their own company and clarify their relationship to Constant Contact. (Ask people in the room if any of them have ever attended a previous seminar. If there are a lot, Clarify that this is new content but that some of the same strategies we have taught in the past still apply So they might see a few familiar strategies or tips along the way. (Then mention the workbook – explain what it is, briefly, and let them know that you will refer to it Throughout the session with short exercises for them to complete. Next ask …) How many people in the room are small businesses or work for a small business? How many are nonprofits ….on purpose (they will laugh) relate to the room that you know it’s been a tough year for some and that the information Covered in the session should help them start to move the needle.
- Introduce yourself and give them a clear understanding that you are there on behalf of Constant Contact.