Heading to an industry event with a tiny budget and wondering how you’re going to compete with the big budget hospitality offered by larger businesses?
Don’t try to compete with the firms with massive budgets. Do something different with a focus on the aim of developing relationships with a small number of carefully selected connections, rather than filling a room with hundreds of people you don’t know.
Here are a few tips:
1. Start planning early – accommodation will be cheaper, venue availability better and you will have time to find out what is happening in the location that you could take advantage of e.g., a short run art exhibition.
2. Speak to your target audience – what would they genuinely enjoy? What kind of experience would help them relax, connect, or simply have fun?
3. Try to offer something that’s different from all the other events usually on offer:
- Wine tasting
- Walking tour of the host city or a guided tour of an interesting building
- Private after-hours museum tour
- Cookery lesson
Anything that creates conversation, connection and shared experience is instantly more memorable than warm prosecco and limp sandwiches.
4. Personalised invitations – if you are running an event for 20 people, send the invitations yourself and personalise them. It’ll be time well spent as you’ll get a better response rate than those coming from a generic email address and you should get fewer drop outs.
5. The one-in-three rule – for every three invitations issued, expect one positive response. This metric is useful when you’re thinking about event size and how many people to invite. Prioritise your invitations, inviting your top ten connections first and then issuing further invites as the responses come in.
6. Invitations should ideally be issued eight to ten weeks in advance with reminders going out to those who can attend closer to the date.
7. Be realistic about what you can spend from the start. It will focus your mind and stop you wasting hours researching Michelin-starrred when you’re on a McDonald’s budget.
8. Collaborate – work with businesses that complement your business to pool resources and reach a wider audience.
Remember the golden rule of networking – ten meaningful conversations beat fifty forgettable ones. Large drinks receptions may raise brand awareness, but bespoke experiences build relationships and relationships are what create value.