Organizing a Customer Event
Desk research on customers is no substitute for getting out and meeting them face to face. Arranging visits or special customer events increases personal contact and improves customer relationships—although events need to be handled professionally to achieve the right results.
If events reach the right people and help to strengthen customer relationships, they provide a good return. However, many companies organize events simply to get together with customers. Without a specific objective, the event could be a waste of valuable funds.
Few companies have the luxury of a special events department, so the task normally falls to the sales, marketing, or public relations department. Because events generally form a small part of the overall customer relationship program, internal departments may not have the experience, resources, or time to stage a successful event. Consider hiring a special event marketing firm to work with an internal coordinator. Invitations and publicity could be handled internally, while the event firm takes responsibility for venues, staging, and logistics.
If resources are limited, you may have to select only the most important people at your customer's company. Your sales representatives can advise you on whom to invite, but you may still overlook influential people and create resentment. Asking customers to prepare their own invitee list shifts some of the responsibility, but they may not choose the people you wish to contact. Check your records carefully for everyone at the customer's company you know. Try to keep up to date with the power structure within the customer's company so you can include influential people. In the end, there will likely be compromises in your invitee list.
How well do you know your customers' businesses, markets, plans, competitors, and strengths and weaknesses? The more you know, the more easily you can identify their real needs and develop a service that wins and keeps business.
Although your sales team is meeting customers all the time, it is unlikely that they will be responsible for delivering customer service. You need to meet the customers yourself to increase personal contact and improve relationships.
Build your relationship in the following ways:
- Attend Customer Exhibitions, Seminars, and Conferences
Events like these will show you what customers believe is important to the success of their business and will give you a good sign of where they see themselves heading. At the same time, you may learn what your competitors are up to!
- Make Customer Care Visits
Many customers will appreciate the interest you are showing in their business if you visit them informally. Alternatively, invite customers to visit your premises, where they can meet the employees who work on their accounts and have the chance to develop more personal relationships.
Call on selected customers at intervals to discuss whether they are satisfied with the standard of service they are receiving from you. Ask if they have any specific concerns—if so, make sure that you follow up with an appropriate response.
- Arrange Briefing Meetings for Your Customers
Briefings are not for reviewing progress or performance but for bringing your customers up to date with new developments in your business or industry that might benefit them. For example, you might brief them on a new technical development or on new legislation that is likely to have an impact on them. This type of meeting not only demonstrates your professionalism; it also helps to add value to the customer relationship.
- Conduct Regular Review Meetings
More formal than the ad hoc customer care visits, review meetings every month or quarter give you and the customer the opportunity to review performance and discuss improvements.
- Invite Customers to a Webcast
If you run Webcasts on important subjects, you can invite customers to join these events. Provide the date and time, log-in instructions, and other relevant details to your customers well in advance of the Webcast, along with your comments on why the Webcast will help them.
Events such as open houses, trade shows, and customer receptions are a powerful method of building customer loyalty, but they need to be handled professionally to achieve the right results. Consider these elements when planning an event:
- the choice of theme
- the generation of mailing lists and selection of people to invite
- the development of suitable promotional and display material
- the development of support literature
- the build-up of personal support from members of the head office team.
Many customers enjoy the chance to meet informally and "talk shop." A social event could take place after a more formal meeting or it might be an event in its own right. Although the extravagant side of corporate hospitality has largely disappeared, social events remain an important aspect of business relationships.
If your product is sold through retail outlets, consider holding special events at the outlets. For example, one manufacturer marks the launch of new product lines with a series of customer events run in conjunction with regional retailers around the country. The outlets are given detailed guidelines on the program and provided with letters inviting customers to the launch event. The outlets put together their own mailing lists using account information, local directories, and database information from the head office.
At one such event, one of the company's directors attended to make a brief presentation and talk personally to customers. Company sales and technical employees joined with retailer employees to host the event and meet customers. The company provided window displays and freestanding display units. By providing a professional support service, the company was able to ensure consistency in the displays and information while giving the retailers the freedom to develop an event that was right for the local market.
One bank offered customers points for using different types of business banking services. Customers accumulated points to win free participation and coaching in water sports, auto racing, and other activities that appealed to the target audience. A special event company was hired to handle the logistics at different locations, while the local bank branches were free to tailor the awards to their own customer base.
Sponsoring an event should be a positive marketing action, not a forced response to a request for help. Depending on the type of event and its popularity, sponsorship can:
- build the image of an organization or product through association with an event that reflects corporate values
- raise awareness of an organization or product through the exposure associated with an event.
Types of sponsorship include:
- international, national, regional, or local event
- whole event, with sole or joint sponsorship
- program or award sponsorship
- hospitality
- participants, as individuals or teams.
Make the most of your sponsorship by ensuring that people know about it:
- Issue press releases about your company's involvement.
- Advertise tastefully in displays or in the printed program.
- Inform employees and customers about your sponsorship.
- Incorporate opportunities for customer hospitality.
- Consider other promotional activities tied in to the event.
At a customer event, your company is on display. The event must be carefully organized and managed to ensure that customers get the right impression of the company. If you are holding a large or complex event, it may pay to use a professional event organizer, with the resources and skills to manage all the services and logistics essential to success.
An event must have a specific purpose: for example, to improve relations with key decision-makers or to reward loyal customers. The objectives determine the format of the event and the support services required.
The success of an event depends on the participation of employees. Make sure that employees who deal with customers are aware of the event, and keep them involved in the planning process. On the day of the event, make sure that everyone is aware of their individual responsibilities.
Allen, Judi.
Goldblatt, Joe.
O'Toole, William.
SpecialEvents: http://specialevents.com/subscriptions