Amazon was an early pioneer. Now brands like Netflix, Stitch Fix, Spotify, Pandora, Coca-Cola, Starbucks and many others have embraced the idea to great success.
Whether it’s quickly finding the right product in Amazon’s endless marketplace, discovering the next binge-worthy show or playlist, or sharing a custom Coke with a friend, of course, we’re talking about the trend of personalization.
Driven in large part by the personalized experiences delivered by these companies, many consumers expect the same kind of tailored encounters across any brand interaction – including event experiences. New research shows 63 percent of consumers expect personalization as a standard of service.
But many brands aren’t keeping pace with personalization expectations. Consumers are frustrated when:
- Brands send an offer for a recently purchased item (34 percent)
- Send offers that aren’t relevant (33 percent)
- A brand fails to recognize them as an existing customer (31 percent)
When it comes to personalization at events, it isn’t just about adding a recipient’s name to an email invite or avoiding the above missteps. Instead, it’s about using event technology to create personalized experiences before, after and during an event, so attendees are more engaged and find your event memorable.
Pre-event
Pre-event, personalization tactics can be deployed in several ways.
One powerful strategy is using an integrated event registration and invitation platform with customizable capabilities so as not to overwhelm attendees with unrelated registration questions. For example, if you’re hosting an event for both first-time attendees and experienced veterans, using branching questions collects only the most relevant information and keeps it tailored to each group’s specific interests.
Information gathered during registration can also be used to help attendees build personalized agendas.
Or, if your event is jam-packed with sessions, workshops and breakouts, consider providing recommended sessions or networking activities — similar to “You Might Also Like (YMAL)” made popular by Amazon. Using information like titles, roles and interests collected during registration, attendees could receive suggestions about sessions or networking event they might like.
During the event
To create a personalized experience during the event, planners and organizers should continue to tap data captured during registration. For example, send out a push notification through the event mobile app to remind the group of first-time attendees about the first-timer’s welcome reception time and location. As long as the information was captured during registration, there are endless ways to use personalized push notifications and reminders.
Another way to extend personalization during the event is to encourage networking with other like-minded attendees, exhibitors or sponsors. As an example, attendees can use an event app to send private messages and arrange their schedule to maximize in-person meet-ups.
Event tech can also be used to personalize content too. For example, with an event mobile app that facilitates collaboration between speakers and attendees, speakers can launch a poll or survey and let the audience choose the focus of the presentation. Event attendees can also use an event app to annotate slides and event docs on their own personal devices – highlighting important information or adding comments directly onto slides to further personalize the event experience.
Post-event
Once the event is over, the personalized experience doesn’t need to end. Planners should continue to use the data collected throughout the event experience to send targeted communications for next year’s event.
As an example, ask the attendees to rate whether or not the sessions met their expectations. Not only does this provide relevant information about the session itself, but it makes attendees feel like their specific voice is being heard.
When the goal is to provide event attendees with a designed-with-them-in-mind experience, event technology helps make the entire experience more rewarding and memorable for everyone.
Contact Evenium for a demo to see how easy it is to use Evenium Net and ConnexMe to create a personalized pre-, during and post-event experience for your attendees.