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"It has been such a pleasure working with someone of your talent and professionalism. Your copy made all the difference in attracting people to our conference, and we couldn't be more grateful."

Sandy Thomas,
American Stock Exchange.

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Event Marketing

3 Questions To Ask Before Creating Your Next Conference Promotion

Recently, a writer from Association Trends asked me to share some copywriting tips on event marketing.

I sent her a lengthy email in response with tons of tips - but luckily, she had the perspective to select the one set of tips that really encapsulates the whole thought process that goes behind creating a really successful event promotion.

Unfortunately, only the publication's subscribers can access the article - though I will be happy to forward you my copy, if you send me an email request.

Meanwhile, though, I'll just reiterate what I told her in the article - and expand on it a bit.

Now this isn't rocket science. But I think because it is so simple, it may help guide your event promotions in a revenue-increasing direction.

Basically, before you write a conference promotion - answer these three questions for your prospective attendee. In doing so, you will in effect prepare your own creative brief - that is uniquely specific to the conference industry.

#1 Why should I attend this event?

To answer this question, you will in effect, be establishing your event's "claim to fame." The answer will obviously vary, but here are some ideas:

  • It's the #1 event in the industry - the one everyone goes to.
  • It's a great place to network and meet new clients, evaluate suppliers, collaborate with colleagues, etc.
  • It's the place to go when you need to upgrade your knowledge.

The important thing here is not to guess why attendees attend your event. You need to conduct surveys to actually know - their reasons may be very different than what you're assuming. For example, I once promoted an event where "networking" was touted as a major benefit. However, when I probed deeper, I found it wasn't networking in the traditional sense. Instead, the engineers who attended the event were looking to talk one-on-one with exhibitors to source suppliers for their designs. Obviously, an important distinction.

Also, if you can interview attendees, either through surveys or onsite at your event, you can gather testimonials in the attendees' own words - that can be more credible than any copy you can write. For example, an attendee of a large retailing tradeshow said, "If I can walk away with one hot new product idea for my store, my trip is paid for." That sums it all up.

#2 Why should I attend this event - this year?

In my own field of direct marketing and e-mail marketing, there are a bunch of conferences I could and should attend. But I often feel no compelling reason to attend THIS YEAR. And so, I'll tell myself, "I'll go next year, when I'm not so busy ...."

However, if they told me on the cover of the brochure - why 2006 is a critical year for me to attend, I might pay attention. For example, if I heard that big changes were coming to the field of copywriting and if I didn't learn them soon, my job might be obsolete - you know I'd be among the first to sign up.

Or if they told me how this event was designed to address the top 2006 concerns of copywriters, I might feel even more inclined to attend.

Or if they promised me that I would meet marketing managers - my ideal clients - in a series of focused meetings, I'd be registered in a New York minute.

So give some thought as to why attendees should come this year, more than any other. The main reason can be telegraphed in the headline of a brochure or subject line of an email. On the cover of the brochure, you can also have a section of new conference features in a special section that says "New for 2006".

#3 Why should I register RIGHT NOW?

In direct marketing, the two most important success factors are the mailing list and the offer.

The offer triggers the "Register Right Now" response. So what can you do to trigger it?

Of course, you have an early bird discount - and a majority of your attendees will register before that deadline to take advantage of it.

But if you want to jumpstart your registration curve, you can create "earlier bird offers" - that will not upset your existing pricing structure. These offers can be:

  • Sweepstakes - for cool gadgets, hotel upgrades or gift certificates.
  • Fast 50 offer - "Be among the first 50 to register and get ..."
  • Email exclusives - "Register via this email only and you'll get/win ... "
  • White papers, research, etc. - You can provide a link to valuable research that is only active for a limited time.

The important thing to keep in mind is that you want your prospective attendee to REGISTER NOW - not to file your brochure under a pile of paperwork, and not to scroll past your email never to return.

As you can see, I give the psychology of event marketing a great deal of thought - basically because, at any given time, I'm working on about 5 events simultaneously. So if you need an experienced events copywriter to ratchet up the revenue on your next conference, let me know. For the past 7 years, I've been racked up an impressive track record of successful event promotions.



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