Whether you are planning a small business meeting, dinner reception, a large-scale tradeshow presence or any other type of internal or external corporate event, there are important factors to consider. Whatever the event, however, the overall goal remains the same: developing and enhancing relationships. To help you achieve that goal, here are 10 best practices to guide you in creating corporate events that shine the best light on your organization and make others’ participation worthwhile.

1. Communications Strategy: Have a solid strategy for the event, with a clear view of what you hope to achieve. Make sure your message is clear. Tell invitees what they can expect at the meeting, who will be presenting and what they stand to gain. Tell them how they will benefit, that is, will it help them solve a problem, enhance their knowledge or skill set, access key leaders in the field or simply enjoy themselves? Plan your communication campaign well in advance, giving attendees plenty of time to learn about it and meet registration or RSVP deadlines. If you have a hotel room block secured, work backward from cut-off dates to build interest and fill rooms. Know your audience and the types of communication to which they most likely will respond. From on-line hype videos to old-school direct mail, put together an arsenal that will work for that audience and your event. And don’t forget about your post-event communications to further grow those relationships.

2. Vendors: Lock in third-party vendor contracts early in the process. You don’t want any question as to their commitment to your event. This includes the hotel room block, speakers (and their travel/ hotel accommodations), catering service, banquet space or restaurants, meeting space, transportation service, audiovisual equipment team, bartenders and whatever else it will take.

3. Content: Make your event count with fresh content. It’s important not to take your attendees out of their offices for events with the same information year after year. Ensure the material is new and relevant to their needs. Are there any new systems, products or strategies your attendees need to know about? Are there industry trailblazers from outside your organization who can offer new insights and inspire attendance? For external events, everyone from your company should be well versed on your core messages to assure that attendees walk away with a clear vision of your brand. Your brand strategy should be integral with the event, consistent in messaging from beginning to end.

4. Event Strategy: Organize the information. It really helps to have a dedicated employee to coordinate all logistics in one place. Having too many cooks in the kitchen can cause confusion. This person keeps track of guest arrival and departure times, travel information, hotel rooms, special requests, contact information, intel about each guest, meal choices, special needs or dietary restrictions, emergency contact information and any other important information. Once on site, make sure all staff helping with events has this detailed information readily available. Having all of this information in an organized binder with the manifest, extra copies of agenda (and having more than one copy of this entire binder) is extremely beneficial during the event, especially if it is large enough to require multiple staff members to run it. There is nothing worse than staff that cannot respond to a guest’s needs. Event staff members should be “walking information booths” who can answer questions or at least be able to look it up in an accessible place. Staff helpers should have regular meetings before an event to walk through every step of the event, work out wrinkles and assign clear responsibilities.

5. Attrition deadlines: When securing hotel accommodations, special attention must be paid to the attrition clause in the contract. Attrition can be a costly and unnecessary expense, as your organization will be held responsible for unused room nights. This can be avoided. A best practice is to offer incentives such as a discount for early reservations so you can meet your cutoff dates. Make the registration deadline a week to 10 days ahead of the cutoff so you can release any rooms from your room block by then. There will always be last-minute registrants trying to get their names on the rooming list, so you might want to leave a few rooms open.

6. Environment: The environment should be visually stimulating, comfortable and impressive. It also should match the intention of the meeting. How well you run an event is representative of how well you can run your business, and the ambience can paint a picture of the service prospects stand to gain. Some questions to be answered when attempting to roll out the red carpet within budgetary limits: Is the area and or seating comfortable? Is the temperature too warm, too cool? Will you provide a strong WiFi signal for the convenience of guests? Are the A/V tools you need for your meeting working correctly? If not, is there someone available who can assist so that your presentation runs smoothly and seamlessly? Are the bathrooms easily accessible and are there enough? Will you have a clean-up crew to manage trash? Have all of this sorted out BEFORE the event.

7. Networking: Sometimes conferences are so jam-packed that participants don’t have enough time for networking and engaging in important conversations that may come up. Don’t forget to carve out space for this. If offering a multiple-day conference, leave one night open for smaller group dine-arounds to provide networking opportunities. Always include a Q&A session. Consider small-group discussions to explore how participants might implement key strategies or takeaways from the topics and speakers.

8. Cost Control: With events, costs can get way out of control fast! One of the ways companies can stay within budget is by planning well in advance. Reserving a meeting space or room block well in advance is going to secure better pricing. Additionally, if you plan multiple events each year, you might consider establishing an agreement with a hotel or event space to secure a corporate rate, rather than a variable rate. If you’re ordering promotional giveaway items at your event, can you buy in bulk for multiple events to secure a better price-per-item ratio? If your audio-visual needs are too expensive, is there equipment you can purchase and set up on your own instead of renting? Food and beverage too pricy? Is there a deli that does a knock-out job on catering and food presentation? Cost-sensitivity for guests should be a consideration, as well. If your guests are responsible for expensing their own hotel and travel, choosing the right hotel is crucial.

9. Things to “Know Before You Go”: This is a necessary one-to-two pager you send to registered guests prior to the event, giving them detailed information. Participants need to know exactly what to expect when they arrive, where to go, start times, special instructions, etc. This should be emailed (or posted on an event website) a minimum of two weeks in advance. Include airport and hotel information (include WiFi codes), parking, transportation information, meal locations (and hours), dress code, items to bring, information on outings and, most important, contact info. Make sure to include the cell phone number and email address of the event coordinator’s and any other needed contacts. Is there an event station or registration booth they need to check-in with as soon as they arrive? Don’t leave them hanging for any part of the event, wondering what to do or where to be.

10. Making it Memorable: Do something that is unique, fun or thoughtful that will make them remember you. I once attended a barbecue reception at the Ritz, where I received a bottle of pork rub spices the sponsor had put together themselves, with The Ritz monogrammed on the container. I will always remember the event and the woman who prepared the bottles because it was such a nice touch. (I went home and made chicken that weekend with the spices, and it was delicious.) You might want to have a welcome committee greet attendees at the hotel (or pick them up at the airport) and give them a gift bag with a few essentials, such as bottled water, a small snack pack, notepad, pen and a giveaway branded item, such as a luggage tag, a voucher for a free glass of wine or appetizer somewhere within walking distance or a power bank to charge a cell phone. (Functional items are better than tchotchkes.) Ask yourself: What can you do for them that makes them feel like you know who they are and you care? The answer can take you far.

Written by Stephanie Heidemann

1. Companies will continue to wake up to the concept of content marketing with a renewed focus on thought leadership. They also will seek out the right people and right schedule for creating quality content that resonates and sparks a conversation about their brand.

2. Millennials will continue to rule. From leveraging in-store apps to creating ads that cater to that generation’s collective mindset, marketers will be thinking young.

3. Companies will spend more on social media, personalizing content, focusing their messages to smaller groups and, increasingly, mining and analyzing data from social channels to better target and time their outreach.

4. About that outreach: Video will continue its tremendous growth as the go-to vehicle for messaging, and content is expected to improve.

5. Events marketing and promotion will increase, as companies join the crowds, speaking to them in their chosen venues.

6. Some companies will tackle the complicated task of reaching consumers through all of the electronic devices they use daily, especially smart phones, working to assure the messaging fits the medium.

7. Marketers shouldn’t let email fall by the wayside in the flurry of new media and devices that will continue to explode.

8. Bloggers will retain their importance as influencers in certain niches and should be a valued part of outreach in those areas.

9. While (good) writing remains important, graphic designers will take on a heightened role, as consumer preference for visuals (slideshares, infographics, etc.) over text continues to grow.

Revelation: We have an inordinate obsession with the letter C.

For instance (we could have said “consider,” but there’s such a thing as overkill), we pride ourselves on:

• Creativity – but not just for creativity’s sake. Rather, we channel our creativity in ways that make our clients stand out in their markets and industry. It’s all about them, not us.
• Cooperation – with full understanding that client representatives may be operating within their own constraints. Be it brand standards, budget and/or other mandate or restriction, we incorporate these considerations while striving for maximum impact.
• Consultation – or not, as the client wishes. Whether the client wants to stay at the helm or puts us in the captain’s seat, we are comfortable in either role.
• Content – but far more than blocks of text. We believe in a certain kind of alchemy, one that turns words into profits by creating meaningful copy that gets noticed, repeated and acknowledged.
• Commitment – to always doing our best to help our clients be their best. Admittedly it’s cliché (with no capital C), but we are passionate about our work – and it shows.
• Collaboration – that creates a strong messaging foundation. In most cases, we start a client engagement with a discovery session to define where that organization has been, is now and wants to be. You’d be surprised how much we can uncover in just a short time.
• Connections – that generate customer engagement and loyalty for our clients. It’s all about finding that sweet spot in which a bond can be formed.
• Currency – not the monetary kind, though we obviously are in favor of a good cash flow. This means that we keep up with all the current marketing trends and vehicles, deciding, and anticipating, what will work best for each individual organization.
• Conversation – that is sustained. This is a particularly big one for us and it is twofold: Next-Mark with our clients and our clients with their prospects and customers.
• Caring – that goes beyond mere pride in our work. We know our clients are entrusting us with a bit of their future, and we are gratified and humbled by this responsibility.

We understand the critical path to our client’s marketing success.  Give us a call if we can help.

White papers are a great way to demonstrate corporate expertise, create a thought leadership position in an industry and provide value to prospects, customers and others.

Once done, these publications can serve as grist for social media, trade journal articles, presentations and even marketing collateral, with some added spin. When done well, they get passed on, expanding your reach in perhaps unexpected ways. When refreshed, they give you another opportunity to reach out to your target audiences.

Yep, white papers can do a lot – if, that is, you don’t ask them to do too much.

There’s an old saying that a camel is a horse designed by a committee. This sad fate can befall white papers, as well, when too many people with too many ideas attempt to create one solid document. With that in mind, here are a few things to remember when planning and creating a white paper.

• Choose your writer or writing team carefully. If outsourced, look for experience, expertise and demonstrated success. If internal, make sure you are using subject matter experts who not only have writing talent but also actually want to do it. People who love to write – and are good at it – often will jump at the chance. Those who don’t – or aren’t – can bring progress to a halt.
• Create an outline of the issue/topic you wish to address and product/service capabilities you want to highlight. Remember: You’re not making a sales pitch; you’re solving a problem or providing elucidation.
• Decide on the key topics you want to showcase through callouts, bullets, sidebars and graphics to pull the reader through – or back.
• Stay on topic! Throwing in additional – especially disparate – subjects as you go along dilutes your primary message and doesn’t do other topics justice. If a new subject is that good, consider giving it its own paper.
• Know what makes your audiences tick. Don’t assume. If your white paper misses their hot buttons, you’re assured of a cold reception.
• Back up every point you make with facts, statistics, quotes from experts, etc.
• Set a deadline and meet it. Don’t let it become the project that won’t go away.
• Make sure the design is as professional as the copy and adds to, rather than detracts from, readability.
• Once it’s done, actively promote it. Posting it on your web site is not enough.

Think of the white paper as the elder statesman of persuasive writing – knowledgeable, authoritative and impressive. Given the respect it deserves in its creation, it can help your organization reflect those same attributes, building business and reputation.

Sometimes we wonder why it’s so hard for some people to understand the rightful place, and real impact of content marketing in influencing buyer behavior. Maybe it’s a sort of “cover your ears, shut your eyes and hum loudly to yourself” response to the perceived amount of work involved in developing relevant, valuable content. As rightful experts in this arena, trust us when we say it does indeed take a lot of time and energy. However, each time we see the results it generates for our clients, and time and time again it demonstrates why it’s worth every bit of the effort.

The Case for Content Marketing

As reported in an article entitled “The Compelling Case for Content Marketing” on Inc.com, Rand Media recently released a report that showed consumer sentiment continues to shift toward a preference for information over advertisements. And, luckily, many of the specific reasons the survey respondents gave for disliking ads “are things content marketing ameliorates,” according to the article. The fact is, growing numbers of consumers’ buying decisions are based on information they find on their own, and when they find it on their own, they tend to trust the information more.

“Programmatic push messaging is implicit personalization perceived by consumers as irrelevant and inauthentic,” said Erika Trautman, Rapt Media founder and CEO, said in a press release. “Explicit content personalization through choice and discovery builds trust, increases engagement and delivers a truly valuable experience starting at the point of creation. Millennials, in particular, are embracing the value of content discovery, forcing marketers to rethink the way content is created, distributed and consumed.”

Good News!

As we touched on in our last newsletter, the fact of the matter is that consumers have very little interest in branded advertisements that pop up unprompted on their social newsfeeds or web browsers. So in this digital age of information overload how do you reach your target audience?

For those still hiding in their self-made cocoons hoping yesterday’s methods will impact today’s consumers, we have some advice – and some good news to go with it.

The good news is that you likely already have the resources to become the type of thought leader to which potential customers will gravitate. For instance, you know your industry, its challenges and some of the solutions. You have valuable information your prospects and clients don’t. You also have people who are subject matter experts, who may actually want to share that expertise through blogs, white papers, how-to’s, videos, eBooks, social media and so on.

Advice from Next-Mark

Once important piece of advice is to consider partnering with a communications agency (ahem) fluent in content marketing to put it all together for you and position you as an expert in your field. Reaching your consumers is all about providing value, which isn’t necessarily achieved through shameless self-promotion and relentless advertising. So get the right information out there, be consistent, generate easily discoverable, digestible content, and your customers will find YOU.

At the end of the day, it’s about giving people the information they need to succeed in their jobs or tasks or simply enlightening them – a worthy endeavor and a reason to be believed and trusted.

And you can trust us when we say we stand ready to help!