B2B without the BS

How to Be a Big Fish, Part Three

Posted by Robert Bell under Uncategorized

The key to being a big fish is to be careful about the size of the pond you swim in. If you are a multi-billion-dollar multinational company, you can go to the biggest trade shows and count on making a splash.  But if you’re not, you can find yourself shrinking to minnow-size when it comes to getting the attention of customers and prospects.

Fortunately, you can also produce your own events that put your company on center stage and cost-effectively target the people who can have the biggest impact on their business.  I have been writing about the right and wrong ways to do it, and here is #5 in my list of key things to get right.

Make it a priority for sales and customer service people. The toughest part about producing your own event is getting a high-quality audience into the room.  You can do email and print invitations and have a great registration Web site.  But if you are asking marketing to do all the work, you are fighting with one hand tied behind your back.  You need to involve your sales and customer service people as well.

They may well think that they have more important priorities.  But a good workshop or summit is a fantastic opportunity to create relationships, strengthen bonds and position your company as a thought leader.  It also gives you a chance to get feedback from the people who matter most.  That’s why it needs to be a sales and customer service priority, and why they need to call customers and prospects with a personal invitation followed up by a personal email.  The vendors or sponsors involved in your event should do the same, because they have as much to gain from the event as you do.

In January, we will produce a one-day seminar called “NextWave for the New Economy” for PaulHastings, an international law firm.  It focuses on what companies should do today to prepare for the economic recovery now taking shape.  And attorneys at the firm are doing their part to invite speakers and talk up the event to clients.  That’s smart.  But then, what else would you expect from people whose time is worth $400 an hour?

To learn how Alan/Anthony can help you create a unique educational and networking event – or even an ongoing special interest group – for customers and prospects, visit the Association & User Group Management section of our site.