Event Professional Marketing Trend:

Refocusing on People

By Ryan ONeil

How many times have you been scrolling through Facebook or watching a video on Youtube when an ad that was intended to connect with you pops up and has zero connection to who you are or what you're interested in?

For example, if you're a dog person, a video advertising cat food is less than applicable.

The reality is that marketers have tightly focused on technology that powers "personalization" but still struggle to deliver the right message to the right person at the right time.

Instead of trying to figure out how to utilize all the special new tools coming out, focus on who your target audience is. What's their story? How does it tie in with your own?

One of the most brilliant examples of a story telling marketing campaign was Extra Gum's 2015 "Story of Sarah & Juan," which drew the viewers into the journey of high school sweethearts who marked each special moment with a drawing on a gum wrapper. Something so simple as chewing gum, yet it's such an incredible story and brilliant marketing campaign that still has people talking about it almost three years later. The events you help create are no different. 
 
Your story. Your clients' stories. They are all intertwined and can give you some incredible material to work with. Find a way to take the narrative off of the flowers themselves and make it about people. For example, if you're a florist, you know that people don't buy flowers for the simple sake of buying flowers, but they buy them because of how flowers make them feel and all the meaning that can be imbued into those flowers. Just like the single piece of Extra Gum, the flowers you arrange help to mark special moments in the lives of your clients and its the memories that are made in the process that make your marketing efforts stand out.
 
So stop worrying about whether or not you have the perfect set of parameters for your Facebook ad (although having a strong idea of the practices of your target market is important) and refocus on the actual content of your marketing campaigns. Instead of selling yourself simply as an event professional, you're now the one who can make all of their dreams come true. Find the place where your story can intersect with the stories of prospective clients and bring the human value back into your marketing this year.

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One perfect example of where your story collides with the client's is the proposal. First a couple has their big proposal and now it's your turn to propose to them. Curators can produce quick, beautiful, and accurate proposals in the initial consultation. Ready to save time and book more clients on-the-spot?
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Tags: Marketing, Tips, Small Business Sally, Curate, Corporate Cate, Established Ed

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