Planners can increase attendance by sharing memories of the previous year’s events. Pictured: The Association for High Technology Distribution Spring Meeting 2024 at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort. Courtesy Leigha Schatzman

Events, whether virtual or in-person, are great sources of lead generation, and event planners can use various strategies to amplify their event’s reach and impact after the event has concluded. From collecting and sharing testimonials to leveraging social media for promotional purposes to sharing post-event content, planners can utilize a wealth of techniques to take an event’s reach to the next level.

Adrienne Tucker is a senior meeting planner for the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. For Tucker, when determining the best way to improve an event’s reach after it has concluded, it is vitally important to know your audience.

“Staying current on what is happening in legal education and then catering the ABA’s conferences and workshops to an audience’s needs is key,” Tucker says. Ensuring that conferences, workshops and events meet the interest and provide the content that attendees are seeking can have a lasting impact long after an event has ended.

Frequently, when a conference or event has concluded, attendees long for more content related to the topics discussed. That’s why event planners can develop virtual recap sessions or webinars where attendees can engage with one another and continue to discuss insights, trends and topics that may have been discussed at the original event. Either the original lineup of speakers and presenters can continue to interact with attendees at these virtual sessions or new industry experts can weigh in on the key topics of interest. All of this can extend an event’s impact after its physical duration is complete.

“Even though we do not use social media, we have a web page that educates the public on what we do and upcoming events. They also have access to our past and current meeting materials. Our members also communicate throughout the year via ListServ,” Tucker says.

Tucker also sends post-meeting qualitative surveys after every conference or workshop they hold. Tucker and the other ABA meeting planners use those findings to evaluate the speakers, the sessions, the staff, the location and to ask other pertinent questions that would prepare them for the next conference or workshop. The survey is shared with the current and future planning committees, along with staff.

Another technique is to send personalized follow-up emails to presenters and attendees thanking them for participating in the event and providing links to relevant information that may have been a topic highlighted at the event.

Tucker finds that these efforts help nurture event-generated leads, responses and the impact on the association, as it allows both planners and attendees to stay current on the trends in legal education and the findings from the surveys.

“This enables trust with our members in knowing that, when they attend our meetings, they can go back to the schools and implement what they learned,” says Tucker, who also has seen other planners use social media to engage their attendees pre- and post-event by posting monthly questions to keep the attendees engaged and writing about current topics.

“Since we do not use social media, we mainly rely on our member ListServ, our web page and word of mouth,” Tucker says. “Every year, our members look forward to attending our annual events and will inquire on the dates and location of the next event a year in advance.”

For post-event content, you can include highlights and insights from the event in the form of videos, infographics or blogs, which can be shared via an association’s website or social media. For those associations that may shy away from using social media, newsletters can also continue the post-event attendee engagement.

Leigha Schatzman, executive director for the Association for High Technology Distribution (AHTD), says that AHTD’s in-person meeting attendees benefit from a variety of networking and educational activities that the organization builds on in the time between the association’s semi-annual meetings.

“AHTD offers members-only access to roundtable discussion groups, exclusive leadership training programs, private women in automation meet-ups and targeted webinar training to encourage connection. It keeps members up-to-date with what is going on in other member companies and in the association itself in our monthly newsletter, and in original social media posts and post sharing,” Schatzman says. AHTD also offers members-only access to helpful resources like AHTD’s Financial Benchmarking Report, the online resource library, national compensation survey data, and social media training documents that helps members improve their own and their companies’ processes and policies.

“I can’t speak for all events and planners, but for our association, encouraging connections among AHTD members between in-person events not only keeps the association top-of-mind with our current members, it also encourages member ambassadorship and promotion outside of this current membership, helping to improve our association’s reach and industry impact,” Schatzman says.

Nurturing Connections

Stefanie Magness, principal publicist for Elevate U, understands the vital importance of event-generated leads and post-event outreach. She often thinks of an event like a big party where meeting planners are the hosts and attendees are the guests. Just as the real magic happens after a party ends – through continued connections and conversations – events also leave a lasting impact beyond the date of the original gathering.

“I’ve worked closely with clients who organize meetings and events. A key strategy for nurturing event-generated leads is treating them as valuable relationships that need ongoing attention,” Magness says. “Just as you wouldn’t forget about a new friend you met at a party, meeting planners shouldn’t forget about the leads they collected at their events.”

One practical approach Magness suggests is to follow up promptly after the event with personalized messages expressing gratitude for their attendance and reiterating critical points discussed. Keeping the conversation going with valuable content or resources tailored to the leads’ interests is crucial. This could include sending relevant articles, inviting them to upcoming events or webinars, or offering exclusive discounts.

Using tools like SurveyMonkey or QR codes during the event can also enhance connections and gather valuable feedback from attendees. These tools facilitate engagement and provide insights that inform post-event follow-up strategies.

“Consistency is vital in nurturing event-generated leads,” Magness says. “Just as watering a plant regularly helps it grow, staying in touch with leads consistently keeps your brand top of mind and increases the chances of conversion.”

In Magness’ experience, successful event lead nurturing requires strategic planning, timely follow-up and ongoing engagement. Meeting planners can maximize the post-event impact and turn leads into loyal customers or clients by treating leads as valuable relationships to be nurtured, rather than just numbers.

Embracing Innovation

As an experienced event producer, Tenyse Williams, chief communication officer and founder of Verified Consulting and adjunct digital marketing instructor at Columbia and George Washington University, and the University of Central Florida, has conducted events that led to a 25% increase in sales by nurturing the leads in post-event opportunities.

As Williams explains, post-event buzz is crucial because it propels engagement, drives home the value delivered to the attendees and converts an event into an engaging conversation. This buzz continues the excitement for those who attended and serves to spotlight what followers missed, potentially sparking a wave of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) for those who weren’t there, potentially increasing attendance for future occasions.

“The momentum must continue to drive discussions of relevancy by ensuring the event’s essence continues to inspire and inform an extended audience,” Williams says.

Realizing how important the digital landscape has become, many live events now include a dedicated app that functions as an “all-access” pass for attendees. According to Williams, this ensures everyone is connected to everything, as well as providing additional niche news and information to attendees who request it.

“Making the events multi-platform sets the stage for attendees to be fully immersed in the electrifying vibe of the occasion or trade show,” Williams says. Alerts pumped out via the app function to serve as the event’s heartbeat to stimulate participant engagement, possibly leading them, in turn, to post captivating content on their own social media to further promote the event and brand, while simultaneously satiating their thirst for more information.

“This strategic move also acts as a gold mine for the event planners and marketing mavens,” adds Williams. That’s because the rich data that is gathered serves as a roadmap, revealing how event planners can reconnect and rekindle customer interest in future events.

“It’s a thrilling blend of user experience and data science, making each event a continuing sequel,” Williams says. “Harnessing the power of social media during and after events, and leveraging the reach of influencers, guest speakers, booth buyers and vibrant attendees alike has been essential in continuing the conversation and amplifying the post-event reach.”

One key mistake that Tucker has seen other planners make is not keeping attendees or association members engaged and not knowing what topics they want to discuss and/or learn.

“It is also good to know their preferred method of learning. Our findings have shown that our audience prefers in-person versus virtual. They also thoroughly enjoy networking with their colleagues,” Tucker says. This upfront knowledge can help define the path of outreach after an event has ended.

Undoubtedly, association planners will continue to modify the methods they use to impact the reach of the events they orchestrate. And technology will continue to play a key role in this effort.

“You must continue to evolve, keep it fresh, and find different ways to keep them engaged,” Tucker says. “It is important to give them impactful takeaways to implement into their work. As technology evolves with hybrid meetings, we too must evolve.”

And remember that whenever the fun is taken out of an event, engagement slows or stops altogether. That is why Williams says it is so important to always have the familiar key elements like custom social media filters and thoughtful giveaway bags to etch events into attendees’ memories. This also provides a continuous reminder of the event after it has wrapped up.

“Sometimes, event planners overlook these simple yet powerful experiential opportunities, leaving a void in the attendee’s journey,” Williams says. “The aim is to make sure your attendees absorb the essence of the association’s event, carry it home and further extend it to their own networks. Everyone holds an influential voice and leveraging that can serve as a soapbox to magnify the event’s impact and reach exponentially.

As the meetings and events space continually evolves, so too will the technology that will impact an event’s reach and impact. Technology is already steering a transformation in today’s event experiences.

“From specially engineered apps and virtual gatherings to the exciting integration of the metaverse for more immersive online experiences, we are on the cusp of a digital revolution in event interaction,” Williams says. “Event strategists must contemplate which technology service company will provide the most significant impact in magnifying their brand visibility and effectively conveying their message to their audience. The new world of events is now digital and interactive, with augmented and virtual reality experiences and AI-infused personalization becoming the new norm for more engaging events.”

As the future of meetings unfolds and adapts, the need for post-event outreach will continue to grow. Staying on top of trends is more important than ever in this fast-paced world. By finding ways to remain relevant and getting creative, not only can you produce better events, but also generate qualified leads to help grow your business. | AC&F |