Street Smart Guide to Small Business Marketing
Event Marketing for Your Small Business
Event Marketing—The Ideas Are Endless:
 Whether
you run a brick and mortar business or an online business, you need
people coming through the door or browsing your site in order to make
money.
Hosting events at your place of business or on
your website is a key marketing strategy that often costs little or
nothing, but gives you the chance to take the stage and show your high
quality products and services to a targeted group of potential
customers.
When considering what type of event to host, it's important to have goals in mind.
When Using Events as a Small Business Marketing Strategy, Consider the Following:
- Will this type of event attract my primary customer or target market?
- Is the goal of my event to attract new customers or bolster sales from existing clients?
- How many people do I project to attend?
- How
will I measure the success of an event? In attendance? Subscribers for
my newsletter? Dollars of sales during or immediately following the
event?
- What system do I have in place to collect the contact
information of all people who attend (i.e. RSVP required or a
registration form to be filled out at the door)?
- Should I charge admission for the event?
Whatever
kind of event you choose, hosting frequent events will keep your
business pressworthy, up-to-date, and attractive to customers. Because
there is always something new going on within their area of interest,
they will begin to associate your business with part of their
lifestyle. Regularly occurring events that customers can predict also
keep your company in their minds on a recurring basis.
Brick and Mortar Event Ideas:
- Host a Potluck: A low cost event idea that is very popular among families, couples, and seniors.
- Appreciation or Thank-You Dinner: This is a great way to solidify customer loyalty by showing gratitude for their support.
- Holiday Parties: Great networking opportunities during times of the year when people tend to be cheerful.
- Charity
Auctions or Benefits: Show the caring nature of your business in the
community by hosting an event where proceeds benefit a local charity.
- After-Hours Sale: Customers love the idea of extended hours and exclusive promotions.
- Networking
or Meet-and-Greet Event: If your clients are primarily other
professionals or businesses, why not host the next Chamber networking
event?
- Book Clubs: For businesses that cater to an
educated population, try hosting a book club, or tracking down an
existing one and letting them use your space.
- Classes or
Workshops: A great way to discover potential customers is to host a
class or workshop with real value, and that fits your industry niche.
- Guest Speaker: Associate your business with a celebrity or industry leader by hosting a performance or lecture.
- Live
Demonstration: For businesses that have an impressive production
process, show off what you do to customers or even invite a school
group to come see.
Online Business Event Ideas:
 Sale
or Promotion: It's a no-brainer to offer a sale or promotion, but
according to industry research one of the best online promotions is free shipping. - Live
Chat: Offer a day and time that customers will be allowed to chat with
each other or ask questions that will be answered by an expert.
- Guest
Workshop/Live Q&A Session: Choose a theme or topic, and have a
trained individual answer burning questions that your primary customers
would want answered.
- Twitter Giveaways: Many companies do
this on Fridays, but you can give something away to create a frenzy
around your twitter name!
- Conference Calls: If you've got
a new product or service, host a conference call where your clients or
potential clients can get more information.
- Video
Feed/Live Stream: For businesses with something viral, creative, or
happening at a specific time, why not record it and show the world?
- Contest:
Similar to twitter giveaways, contests are a great way to attract new
customers, as long as the contest fits your target market.
What's Next
Next In This Guide
Part 8:
 Getting Listed in Directories
- Don't play hide-and-seek with your customers! By ensuring that your
business is listed in several appropriate directories, you won't miss
out on customers who can't find you or don't know you exist.
Previous In This guide
Part 6:
 Direct Response Marketing vs. Branding
- Rather than wasting money on lofty branding schemes, small businesses
can benefit from direct response marketing that offers a better return
on investment.
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