"Constant requests"
Event agencies Hans-Jürg "Schoscho" Rufener organizes events for top companies worldwide with his agency Rufener events.
Event agencies Hans-Jürg "Schoscho" Rufener organizes events for top companies worldwide with his agency Rufener events.WW Are there any particular trends discernible in the event scene?
authentic stories. Events no longer offer some kind of circus and show, but something really substantial. An event must be measurable.
Why are events booming?
There is a certain saturation with classic stories. An event is permission marketing. In today's battle for attention, the event has the great advantage that someone consciously registers. You have the good fortune of being able to address people who come voluntarily for two to three hours. You can't get that anywhere else. A potential customer reserves their time for you. This means they are not distracted and are fully focused on your message. When they read a newspaper advertisement, they are distracted on various levels. In permission marketing, he clearly says: Yes, I want to have contact with you. That's why his expectations are much more positive. As an event organizer, I then only have to anchor the topics more deeply.
What can't be achieved with an event?
An event certainly doesn't immediately mean sales. You can build image, build trust. This then leads to a delayed sale. An event is also limited in the amount of information you can provide. The audience can only take in a maximum of four to five topics.
What mistakes are made again and again?
Many events are organized without a real reason. This leads to eventitis. An event becomes interchangeable. You no longer know who is really inviting you when company A and company B invite you to the same restaurant and both serve the same catering and have the same Miss as presenter. Then an event becomes interchangeable. Other mistakes include a lack of attention to detail. It is also often overestimated that you can simply pick up your target group directly.
What is the recipe for success for a good event?
The important thing is to find out what the customer really wants! Then you have to decide whether an event is actually the right tool. This decision-making process and the conceptualization are like a foundation for a successful event. "The reason why", what is the goal and how do we do it? The rest can be deduced. Bad events are stories that have not been thought through enough, that do not respond to the guest enough and therefore do not pick them up.
Have the budgets for events increased?
Budgets have increased in the high-end sector. In the medium and low range, people have become more mindful. It doesn't always have to be the best wine. It's a question of effect: what money brings what effect?
How do developments in Switzerland compare with those abroad?
Internationally, there are more highly professional companies abroad. Switzerland still has a lot to learn in terms of emotions, networked thinking, professional advice and choice of location.
Is there a noticeable shift in budgets from traditional advertising to events?
We have consistently good inquiries with our agency. However, I don't see them working against each other, but with each other, where both instruments are used and allowed to play together. An event is less and less conceived as a single discipline. First you launch a poster campaign, for example, and then an event follows. Or someone creates an initial event and has it multiplied via the other channels.
There are more and more event agencies. What is the competition like?
There are around ten established players in German-speaking Switzerland who really have a lot of customers and a lot to do. Because an event is an elusive occasion that demands trust, many clients want a company with experience. Event organization is a business of experience.
What distinguishes independent event agencies from corresponding departments in an advertising agency?
A good event effectively always requires more specialist knowledge.
A specialized agency has a greater wealth of experience and a more extensive network.
The recipe for success: "Find out what the customer really wants."
Interview: Andreas Panzeri
authentic stories. Events no longer offer some kind of circus and show, but something really substantial. An event must be measurable.
Why are events booming?
There is a certain saturation with classic stories. An event is permission marketing. In today's battle for attention, the event has the great advantage that someone consciously registers. You have the good fortune of being able to address people who come voluntarily for two to three hours. You can't get that anywhere else. A potential customer reserves their time for you. This means they are not distracted and are fully focused on your message. When they read a newspaper advertisement, they are distracted on various levels. In permission marketing, he clearly says: Yes, I want to have contact with you. That's why his expectations are much more positive. As an event organizer, I then only have to anchor the topics more deeply.
What can't be achieved with an event?
An event certainly doesn't immediately mean sales. You can build image, build trust. This then leads to a delayed sale. An event is also limited in the amount of information you can provide. The audience can only take in a maximum of four to five topics.
What mistakes are made again and again?
Many events are organized without a real reason. This leads to eventitis. An event becomes interchangeable. You no longer know who is really inviting you when company A and company B invite you to the same restaurant and both serve the same catering and have the same Miss as presenter. Then an event becomes interchangeable. Other mistakes include a lack of attention to detail. It is also often overestimated that you can simply pick up your target group directly.
What is the recipe for success for a good event?
The important thing is to find out what the customer really wants! Then you have to decide whether an event is actually the right tool. This decision-making process and the conceptualization are like a foundation for a successful event. "The reason why", what is the goal and how do we do it? The rest can be deduced. Bad events are stories that have not been thought through enough, that do not respond to the guest enough and therefore do not pick them up.
Have the budgets for events increased?
Budgets have increased in the high-end sector. In the medium and low range, people have become more mindful. It doesn't always have to be the best wine. It's a question of effect: what money brings what effect?
How do developments in Switzerland compare with those abroad?
Internationally, there are more highly professional companies abroad. Switzerland still has a lot to learn in terms of emotions, networked thinking, professional advice and choice of location.
Is there a noticeable shift in budgets from traditional advertising to events?
We have consistently good inquiries with our agency. However, I don't see them working against each other, but with each other, where both instruments are used and allowed to play together. An event is less and less conceived as a single discipline. First you launch a poster campaign, for example, and then an event follows. Or someone creates an initial event and has it multiplied via the other channels.
There are more and more event agencies. What is the competition like?
There are around ten established players in German-speaking Switzerland who really have a lot of customers and a lot to do. Because an event is an elusive occasion that demands trust, many clients want a company with experience. Event organization is a business of experience.
What distinguishes independent event agencies from corresponding departments in an advertising agency?
A good event effectively always requires more specialist knowledge.
A specialized agency has a greater wealth of experience and a more extensive network.
The recipe for success: "Find out what the customer really wants."
Interview: Andreas Panzeri
