Two speaking engagements on December 9 showcased our thought leadership.
At the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education CASE Campaigns Workshop, our VP of Strategic Services JoAnn Peroutka with Level5 Events by The Expo Group presented with consultant Charlie Melichar Branding and Launching a Campaign in Today’s (and Tomorrow’s) Environment. The top takeaway? Regardless of format, the key elements of campaign communications are still the same: content remains king, storytelling is the way to go, message consistency still works.
JoAnn Peroutka (top right) presents at a CASE Campaigns Workshop.
“We encouraged people to embrace digital for all the right reasons,” JoAnn said. “Digital creates opportunities for measurement and analysis, allows us to tap into real-time feedback and provides proof points when contemplating next steps.”
The Level5 Events helped several clients adapt their messaging to virtual platforms during the pandemic. With their strategic approach, it makes sense one of the lessons from JoAnn and Charlie’s session was to develop an “engagement continuum.” They encouraged higher education professionals within CASE to not treat the campaign launch as an isolated event. Instead, it’s important to create a plan that sets up touch points of various kinds throughout the life of the campaign, and determine which of those vehicles can or should live on post-campaign. This layered exposure makes messaging “sticky” and heightens responsiveness as well as long-term engagement.
Engagement was the topic du jour, as that’s the topic addressed in the session from VP, Communications and Public Relations Dana Freker Doody at IAEE’s Expo! Expo! Dana presented with professional emcee and speaker extraordinaire Thom Singer, CSP about how to invite engagement in virtual and in-person settings.
Dana Freker Doody (top right) presents at IAEE’s Expo! Expo!
“Making people feel special and drawing them to the next action regardless of how they consume content and make connections at your event is vital,” Dana says. “When you think about engagement, it’s a call to action, so each organization must decide what it is they want to compel their participants to do.”
Engagement in the virtual space seems tricky but it can mean messaging others in the chat room, clicking on links to exhibitors or taking that extra step to have a conversation. Dana and Thom discussed how presenters can be great allies in the facilitation of more meaningful engagement by encouraging comments, recognizing those who asks questions and inviting attendees to connect on other platforms like LinkedIn. All those tips are effective regardless of the event venue.
One suggested strategy for hybrid events is to create opportunities for the audiences as individual groups – virtual and in-person — with their own needs and even their own emcee, but also using technology to meld these audiences together for even more connection potential.
Are you looking for partners to help you support your community with Strategy, Production, Delivery and Insights? The Expo Group creates compelling experiences from Live to Virtual to Hybrid and back again with integrated event services offered turnkey or a la carte. Learn more here.