The mountain does not come to the prophet
Event Marketing: A roadshow promises to bring you closer to your customers. But this type of event also has its share of pitfalls.
Event marketing A roadshow promises proximity to the customer. But the event form also harbors a number of pitfalls. Trade fair appearances cancelled for cost reasons or company events rationalized away: the tight budgets of many companies make it difficult to make personal contact with potential customers. Yet this is the be-all and end-all when it comes to acquiring new segments. Swisscom Enterprise Solutions (SES) has also found that customers find it difficult to deal with a company that they only know via the telephone or the occasional letter in the post. The Swisscom Group company offers telecommunications solutions for business customers. "Customers expect their individual needs to be discussed in person," explains Fabian Talleri, Marketing Communications at SES, who has been trying to satisfy the need for more proximity by holding roadshows for the past six years. This flexible marketing instrument offers the great advantage over trade fairs that the organizing company has the attention of potential buyers to itself in a non-competitive environment.
To do this, it has to offer visitors something in order to activate even latently interested parties, as marketing expert and author Rolf Gruber confirms: "As the company appears alone, customer expectations are very high." If the organizer is unable to satisfy them, they will fall through the cracks. Absolute killers, according to Gruber, are boring speakers or PowerPoint presentations. But also the fact that many companies organize such an event without really being able to present anything new. Fabienne Marchand from FM Projects, who organized a tour of Swiss football pitches for Meister Proper, also confirms the importance of the news content of a roadshow.
In addition to the content to be communicated, the setting of an event plays a no less central, if not overriding, role. "The customer compares the event one-to-one with the company in question and with the product it is trying to sell them," says Christian Bonnot from Bonnot's Eventhouse, who organized the SES roadshows. Even poor catering could have a negative impact on a subsequent purchase decision. Therese Wenger, press officer at Orange Communication, sees another important point - and at the same time a Swiss peculiarity - in the adaptation to the country's typical environment. After all, a concept that is used successfully in German-speaking Switzerland does not necessarily work in Ticino or French-speaking Switzerland.
However, the trick is not to create a professional, exciting design that is tailored to the target group, but to gather as many potential customers as possible. "The communications industry in particular has developed a real 'eventitis' in recent years," says Fabian Talleri. The density of events is making it increasingly difficult to attract people to an event. A trend that is further supported by the fact that today anyone can easily obtain the information they want in an alternative way.
The decision to visit a roadshow is primarily influenced by two factors: the topic and what is on offer. If the former is not convincing, the "trappings" must be so attractive that it is still worth registering or staying on site. If you are on the road with a tour bus like Orange, you will try to attract passers-by with special promotions. On the other hand, potential customers who are specifically invited to a roadshow are lured with a big name.
In the case of the variant with an invitation, an additional complication is that the attendance rate cannot be calculated even after telephone follow-up and is usually only an approximate value. The weather factor in particular can throw a spanner in the works for organizers - both indoors and outdoors: Nobody likes sitting in their car in snow flurries, and on a balmy summer evening, potential participants are more likely to be drawn to the garden pub instead of the seminar room. Fabian Talleri explains: "At a free event, many people have the feeling that it doesn't matter whether they show up or not. This is a risk that is borne by the organizer alone, as his expenses, from the invitation to the implementation, remain the same - hardly affected by the number of visitors.
The success of roadshows cannot be measured in figures, not least because of the image component. The fact that such events are nevertheless held is all the more surprising, as investments are currently being meticulously examined in terms of their return. However, Christian Bonnot and Fabian Talleri are convinced that the bottom line is that the effort is worth it. "A roadshow that can be deployed throughout Switzerland is still cheaper than 20 salespeople driving all over Switzerland or spending eight hours on the phone," Talleri is convinced. Nevertheless, the SES roadshow has gone on tour as the company is now focusing on large corporations. According to Talleri, sales events are the wrong way to address this target group.
Apart from a few restrictions, roadshows can be used in both the B-to-B and B-to-C sectors. Therese Wenger from Orange Communications also sees no restrictions on the products to be sold, as long as they can be demonstrated well and conveyed with communication messages.
According to Rolf Gruber, it may only be more difficult to reach the public in this way in the case of pure service providers such as banks, real estate managers or recruitment agencies. "As a strategic tool in the marketing mix, however, a roadshow is only as valuable as it is used in the medium to long term," Gruber is also convinced. He sees potential for development over the next few years, but expects it to level off again after that. Wenger also sees the roadshow as a good addition
as part of the communication mix. But: "A detached
Roadshows without a complete communication concept quickly fizzle out and the long-term effect tends towards zero," she warns. Fabienne Marchand, on the other hand, predicts a great future for the roadshow. In today's media overload, new paths need to be taken and she knows: "Experience-oriented communication lasts longer."
Christian Bonnot not only sees potential for development, but also for optimization for future roadshows: by partnering with companies that address the same target audience, costs could be shared and synergies could be used sustainably. "The problem with this idea, however, is the Swiss mentality: everyone cultivates their own little garden," he points out.
Questions welcome: To liven up the presentations by Swisscom Enterprise Solutions, organizer Christian Bonnot sometimes put a "fake" SME representative in the audience.
Up close: The telecoms company arrives directly at its target group with the Orange bus.
From the laundry room to the football pitch: FM Projects attracted onlookers to the roadshow for Procter & Gamble's laundry detergent with the real Meister Proper.
Simone Keller
To do this, it has to offer visitors something in order to activate even latently interested parties, as marketing expert and author Rolf Gruber confirms: "As the company appears alone, customer expectations are very high." If the organizer is unable to satisfy them, they will fall through the cracks. Absolute killers, according to Gruber, are boring speakers or PowerPoint presentations. But also the fact that many companies organize such an event without really being able to present anything new. Fabienne Marchand from FM Projects, who organized a tour of Swiss football pitches for Meister Proper, also confirms the importance of the news content of a roadshow.
In addition to the content to be communicated, the setting of an event plays a no less central, if not overriding, role. "The customer compares the event one-to-one with the company in question and with the product it is trying to sell them," says Christian Bonnot from Bonnot's Eventhouse, who organized the SES roadshows. Even poor catering could have a negative impact on a subsequent purchase decision. Therese Wenger, press officer at Orange Communication, sees another important point - and at the same time a Swiss peculiarity - in the adaptation to the country's typical environment. After all, a concept that is used successfully in German-speaking Switzerland does not necessarily work in Ticino or French-speaking Switzerland.
However, the trick is not to create a professional, exciting design that is tailored to the target group, but to gather as many potential customers as possible. "The communications industry in particular has developed a real 'eventitis' in recent years," says Fabian Talleri. The density of events is making it increasingly difficult to attract people to an event. A trend that is further supported by the fact that today anyone can easily obtain the information they want in an alternative way.
The decision to visit a roadshow is primarily influenced by two factors: the topic and what is on offer. If the former is not convincing, the "trappings" must be so attractive that it is still worth registering or staying on site. If you are on the road with a tour bus like Orange, you will try to attract passers-by with special promotions. On the other hand, potential customers who are specifically invited to a roadshow are lured with a big name.
In the case of the variant with an invitation, an additional complication is that the attendance rate cannot be calculated even after telephone follow-up and is usually only an approximate value. The weather factor in particular can throw a spanner in the works for organizers - both indoors and outdoors: Nobody likes sitting in their car in snow flurries, and on a balmy summer evening, potential participants are more likely to be drawn to the garden pub instead of the seminar room. Fabian Talleri explains: "At a free event, many people have the feeling that it doesn't matter whether they show up or not. This is a risk that is borne by the organizer alone, as his expenses, from the invitation to the implementation, remain the same - hardly affected by the number of visitors.
The success of roadshows cannot be measured in figures, not least because of the image component. The fact that such events are nevertheless held is all the more surprising, as investments are currently being meticulously examined in terms of their return. However, Christian Bonnot and Fabian Talleri are convinced that the bottom line is that the effort is worth it. "A roadshow that can be deployed throughout Switzerland is still cheaper than 20 salespeople driving all over Switzerland or spending eight hours on the phone," Talleri is convinced. Nevertheless, the SES roadshow has gone on tour as the company is now focusing on large corporations. According to Talleri, sales events are the wrong way to address this target group.
Apart from a few restrictions, roadshows can be used in both the B-to-B and B-to-C sectors. Therese Wenger from Orange Communications also sees no restrictions on the products to be sold, as long as they can be demonstrated well and conveyed with communication messages.
According to Rolf Gruber, it may only be more difficult to reach the public in this way in the case of pure service providers such as banks, real estate managers or recruitment agencies. "As a strategic tool in the marketing mix, however, a roadshow is only as valuable as it is used in the medium to long term," Gruber is also convinced. He sees potential for development over the next few years, but expects it to level off again after that. Wenger also sees the roadshow as a good addition
as part of the communication mix. But: "A detached
Roadshows without a complete communication concept quickly fizzle out and the long-term effect tends towards zero," she warns. Fabienne Marchand, on the other hand, predicts a great future for the roadshow. In today's media overload, new paths need to be taken and she knows: "Experience-oriented communication lasts longer."
Christian Bonnot not only sees potential for development, but also for optimization for future roadshows: by partnering with companies that address the same target audience, costs could be shared and synergies could be used sustainably. "The problem with this idea, however, is the Swiss mentality: everyone cultivates their own little garden," he points out.
Questions welcome: To liven up the presentations by Swisscom Enterprise Solutions, organizer Christian Bonnot sometimes put a "fake" SME representative in the audience.
Up close: The telecoms company arrives directly at its target group with the Orange bus.
From the laundry room to the football pitch: FM Projects attracted onlookers to the roadshow for Procter & Gamble's laundry detergent with the real Meister Proper.
Simone Keller
