PALOS VERDES, Calif. — Hosted meetings and appointment programs at B2B events are growing in popularity, but it’s not a trend organizers can jump into quickly.
At the Trade Show Executive (TSE) Gold 100 Awards & Summit, three industry leaders debunked myths about meetings programs, explored the holistic approach necessary to make them successful and emphasized that as important as the technology that enables the programs is, it only works well with strong strategy and data.
Moderated by RXUS’ Head of Marketing, Kate Youngstrom, and featuring Karen Chupka, Executive Vice President, Global Connections and Events at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Katie Dominesey, Founder and Principal of Neon Sandcastle, “Meetings Done Right: Creating High Value and New Revenue Streams,” was a can’t-miss session.
In partnership with Rozie Synopsis, TSE compiled six key takeaways from this executive-level conversation.
1. Meetings Programs Are a Networking Strategy
“A meeting program only works when it’s not just a meeting program strategy,” Dominesey said. “It’s a networking strategy and it’s not about money. … You have to look at your entire event strategy to see what’s growing, what’s condensing and where there might be cannibalization before making any conversation about meetings.”
A successful meetings program requires a holistic approach to its execution in order to transcend transactional interactions and become a real opportunity for business growth. This requires cross-department buy-in, targeted matchmaking using robust data and layered networking across the event to drive enhanced value.
Without being part of the big-picture event strategy, a meetings program can struggle to gain traction and grow.
2. Technology Is an Enabler, Not a Solution
Valuable matchmaking only happens with a strong strategy, and data that is up-to-date and actionable, and has relevant insights into what business objectives participants have for coming to the event.
“Technology alone doesn’t build relationships; without a strong strategy, strong tech options won’t create a strong meetings program,” Youngstrom said.
Meaningful conversations enabled by a well-executed meetings program will generate sustained engagement, future growth and revenue.
3. Cross-Department Collaboration is Essential
“Everyone in the organization must share the goal of making the meeting program successful by involving data, marketing, sales and operations teams,” Chupka said.
At their best, meetings programs are built into overall event strategies, influence communications and marketing, help drive sales and involve commercially focused and technical personnel with clear ownership.
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4. Incentivize Participation with “Sticky” Experiences
“The absolute worst thing in a meeting program is one person shows up and the other person doesn’t,” Dominesey said. “Attendees need something sticky to incentivize participation.”
And free access to an event is not a strong enough incentive by itself. Organizers need to design meeting programs that can deliver real outcomes based on buyers’ professional goals.
5. Be Selective About Who’s Participating
A great place to start for organizers looking to build meetings programs is to select a small, curated cohort to pilot the program with. Understanding what companies or individuals within your audience would find targeted introductions and one-on-one conversations beneficial is essential to designing useful meetings.
“There is no one-size-fits-all meeting program; you have to prioritize who is not meeting each other and offer a menu of options,” Dominesey said.
6. You’re Only as Good as Your Data
“A meeting program only works when you have a great strategy and great data behind it,” Chupka said. “Successful meeting programs need real-time data to make the right connections and deliver value to both exhibitors and buyers.”
Strong data makes it possible to understand not only who should participate in a meetings program, but what their objectives are, who the most useful introductions would be with and where there’s mutual interest to connect.
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