Greg Simpson, founder of Press for Attention PR and Enterprise Nation Champion for Nottingham, reflects on his own experience to offer some sound marketing advice.
Recently I attended a business conference run by Nigel Botterill and his ‘Entrepreneurs Circle’ team. I get great value from these days out of the office as I get to work ON the business not in it and pick up loads of new ideas for my clients.
On the day, there is often a ‘celebrity’ speaker who are always good value to hear from BUT what a lot of attendees don’t see is the wider opportunity. The photo.
Now, this costs me a little more in terms of ticket price and many people baulk at that but what I can do after the event with the photo is pretty powerful, in fact, I’m doing it now.
Secret Sauce
I see lots of other delegates sharing their photo too BUT they could be doing more. Deborah discussed a wide range of topics, including Dragons’ Den and ‘missing’ the Levi Roots opportunity, so here’s my secret sauce to leverage celebrity moments.
Before the event – I mentioned I was going Dragon Slaying in a few meetings, tagged Deborah on Twitter to say I was looking forward to it and on my Facebook page and Group. I also used my Out of Office message on my emails to good effect to explain to clients where I was, whilst also trailing a blog after the event and causing conversation.
Crucially, I didn’t just say I was going to meet Deborah, I asked what other people wanted me to ask. I was USEFUL to my audience and added value. On the day I kept this up, whilst making notes on the interview and planning how to leverage it. I then bagged my photo AND I dropped a note to a friendly reporter I know asking whether he fancied a guest article on meeting Deborah, part of which you are reading now.
After – I have now written the piece you are reading, which I have published across my social media channels to drive traffic back to my blog, and tagged all parties involved to see if they will share.
Again, I have ensured there is something in it for them if they do in terms of exposure. I also sent it out via my e-newsletter subscribers, and I used it as part of a round-up blog of my Top Tips for the year in December.
So next time, if you have a similar opportunity, by all means consider the ‘cost’ of the VIP ticket but also consider the OPPORTUNITY to leverage it and achieve much more than a seat close to the stage and a photo.
