How to utilise events to grow your business

Whether it is a product launch, information evening, expo or ‘meet the team’ session, events are great ways to grow your business.  In a world where so much is done on line, we often forget how beneficial social interaction is, in the flesh not online!, to our business.  People buy from people and while one could argue that dating happens on line, it’s not until one meets face to face that the real chemistry is tested.  The same is true in business.

Events can be low cost.  Pizza and beer, wine & cheese need not cost the earth (and being a sensible host the alcohol doesn’t need to flow all night).

Some key things to consider when creating your event:

1. How will you promote your sales event?
   Promotion is ever easier with email and social media.  Invite a select few, or offer invitations where the invitee can bring three friends.  You can have people register so you know how many are likely to turn up.  Rule of thumb tends to be 70% of who said they will attend actually do.  It doesn’t matter if it is only a handful-you can quickly change the environment to have a more intimate feel, or pump out more invitations (to your whole database or all comers if required) to boost numbers.
2. How will you make your event unique?
   Make the event enticing.  A guest speaker, quirky catering (wild food may draw a crowd in), or an intriguing location can bring people in above what the core reason for hosting the event is.
3. Consider the most suitable event timing?
   Choose your time of year, week and day suitably for your target audience.  Think about their lives and when would best suit.  If you are having regular events and wanting people to attend regularly, have the events at the same time and day so it is easy to remember.

Getting round to hosting events is often the biggest barrier to making them happen, so plan them to occur on a regular basis and make them happen!  And if you don’t think that you have anything to crow about, then you need to ask yourselves why you are in business.  If you do have something to crow about, an event is likely to be a good way to showcase your offering!