Erin explains how Salesforce uses events to generate leads and close deals. Events drive over half of inbound leads, and customers who attend are five times more likely to close. The video covers five practical tips for designing events that align with your brand and drive revenue.
Questions this video answers
Over half
Five times more likely (5x)
Vision, Values, Methods, Obstacles, and Measures
1) Cater to the attendee; 2) Let your customer do the talking; 3) The event is the message; 4) Always be relevant; 5) Have fun and create magic.
Chapters
Hey, I'm Erin. Now let's get into a hot topic on every marketer's mind. Events. Events have the power to generate a lasting impact on your audience well beyond the in person experience. Today we'll discuss how Salesforce approaches events and share five tips that every marketer can use to create powerful experiences. Sound good? Let's get into it. Welcome to Salesforce on Salesforce, an inside look at how we run our sales, service and marketing businesses with helpful how to tips that you can apply to your own business. At Salesforce, we leverage events to build audience reach and accelerate business. Events account for over half our inbound leads each year. And what's even more amazing, when a customer from a sales opportunity attends an event, on average that deal is five times more likely to close. Events aren't just a part of our marketing DNA. They are at the heart of every every major launch moment and announcement. They offer priceless opportunities to connect with customers, providing experiences that grow loyalty. They provide space for skilling up and learning through product innovations and knowledge filled sessions. And most importantly, they accelerate deals and drive revenue. The more engaging and innovative an experience, the more they attract and the bigger impact they have. Okay, so where do you start? At the beginning to create a perfect experience, first consider why are you doing it? Who is your audience, how do you reach them and what do you hope they'll take away? At Salesforce, we do this through our V2 mom, which stands for Vision, Values, Methods, Obstacles and Measures. By starting your planning process with this clear framework, you will establish a North Star to gauge if you're on track to optimize deliver the agreed upon outcomes. Oh, you didn't think we would tell you about the V2 mom and not give you a little something to try for yourself? Are you new here? Head over to the blog linked in the description below. Download the V2MOM template and use it as a starting place for your event planning. Okay, before we get into it, I guess I should give some credit where credit is due. We have a great planning playbook built by none other than our co CEO Mark Benioff, who had a clear vision about how to leverage events to connect with customers and drive results. So here are five tips that are more relevant than ever for how you can maximize the impact of events. Tip number one Cater to the attendee. This is a huge part of what makes our events so special for our customers. As a planner, it's your job to create experience that resonate with your attendees. Remember, you're a human designing experiences for humans, not seats and a break at room. Not reg numbers, but people. Design an event that inspires and creates action, speaks their language and puts them at the center of everything you do. For example, Trailblazer DX is an event for our developer and admin users. We adapt our content plans to amplify things that matter most to this audience, like hands on activations, hackathons and deeper level demos. We lean into the developer community and their unique spirit to add surprise and delight moments that resonate on a personal level. Catering to the attendee is about more than just relevant content, it's also about connection. More than ever before, we know that events offer a unique opportunity to reconnect. The easiest way to do this is to intentionally curate space for networking both physically and programmatically within your agenda. Attendees can share experiences, solve challenges and build strong relationships through your products and services. And don't forget your digital attendees. If networking is happening on site, make sure you set up a way your digital audience can engage in real time. Slack and in platform chat are our go to Tip number two Let your customer do the talking. Okay, this is some real secret sauce. At Salesforce we are laser focused on elevating our customers as champions for our products through their own success. Since day one we've opted to let our customers own the spotlight, speaking to how our products and services have changed their businesses. Keynotes, sessions, demos, activations are all areas which we let our customers share their experiences instead of just highlighting products and features. And remember, it's not just speaking opportunities but also embracing the chance to be bold and create standout physical experiences that spark conversations and wow your attendees. Our in person activations show off our customers success and give others a chance to envision how they might unlock their own success with a real life example. Tip number three the event is the message. Events are expression of your brand and should reflect your business and product. It's a great opportunity to immerse your attendees in who you are. Everything from event messaging, venue selection, speakers, signage and demos should reflect your business's culture and personal personality. That doesn't mean it needs to be massive. With a huge budget, the goal is to make sure your brand shines and embraces your authentic spirit across every small and big attendee. Touchpoint Dreamforce is our flagship event. It's a true manifestation of our customers, culture, products and people. We make sure there's a consistent threading throughout the experience. From free event messaging to main messages and welcome moments to our lanyards around the attendees necks our brand Key messages are in full display. Tip number 4 Always be relevant to create events that are newsworthy, you must have news. Align the timing of your big announcements, product innovations and launch moments to your event's calendar. Our mantra, Always be launching allows us to stay relevant and push the boundaries for our customers. As part of your annual planning, to collaborate and align across product and marketing teams to lock in your event calendar. Tip number five have fun and create magic. This is an easy one and arguably the most important. What is an event without fun? By adding moments that make your attendees feel some joy, laugh, and maybe even sing, you can make memories that have lasting impressions. There's a reason why Dreamforce is called the Family Reunion. From our epic concerts to our beloved brand, characters who playfully interact with attendees, to smaller photo ops and Easter eggs hidden in on site signage, you cannot underestimate the power of bringing a smile to your attendees faces. The magic is found in both the big moments like the surrounding energy on the showroom floor as sessions, demos and activations happen all around you, and also the small ones like the sound of the forest floor alive as you meander the campground or take a selfie with a friend you haven't seen since last year and everything in between. Don't forget your social or digital viewers. While they may not be able to rock out at a concert, think of their experience like you watching an award show live on tv. Treat them with social first digital only moments curated just for them like behind the scenes access and live interviews. Look at us. We did it. Five tips for how you can maximize the impact of events an overview of how Salesforce looks at events and the impact they can drive in your business. Be sure to check out the blog and Trailhead quick looks linked in the description below. And don't forget to watch the other episodes in this series. We'll see you next time.
