Building attendee loyalty is something many event organizers want, and that goal can be summed up in two words: satisfaction and communication.
This goal exists because it’s a way to guarantee attendance at future editions. This way, you can increase your sales and also bring greater visibility to your event.
That’s because if attendees enjoy the experience, there’s a good chance they’ll recommend it to other people spontaneously, acting as organic marketing.
According to Philip Kotler, one of the biggest names in marketing, acquiring a new customer costs 5 to 7 times more than retaining an existing one.
Plus, with how easy communication is nowadays, it’s much simpler to stay in touch with attendees, whether through social media, email, or other channels.
In the market, the practices aimed at a good journey, experience, and loyalty are known as Customer Success.
With that in mind, we put together this blog post with 4 important points for using communication the right way and building attendee loyalty. Let’s take a look?
How do I build loyalty among my event’s attendees?
Loyalty goes far beyond the moment of the event itself — it’s about how you handle communication before, during, and after. That’s because ongoing follow-up is essential to ensure satisfaction at every stage.
In other words, experience should be your top priority when it comes to making an impact on attendees.
But first and foremost, it’s essential to have a prepared, aligned team and clear communication, making sure everything goes as planned across each of the strategies outlined in this article.
1. Personalization
Amid so much competition, whatever your field, you need to stand out, and one way to do that is offering personalized service.
No drastic change in how you treat attendees is needed — just adapt your communication to fit each user’s needs.
For example, when someone registers for an event on Even3, you can collect certain information that can make a real difference during a conversation, such as their name, which activity they’re registered for, and more.
This way, you’ll already have a solid foundation to solve potential questions.
Another point is that if an attendee isn’t a professional in the field, there’s no point using technical jargon during conversations — instead, adjust your language to humanize the entire experience.
2. Exclusivity
Who doesn’t like feeling special, right? There are moments when you can surprise your attendees!
Among them is creating surveys, where you can explore everything they thought or expected from the event.
To do this, run a satisfaction survey.
This approach creates a unique feeling, and attendees will feel more special, since the organization shows it cares about their opinion.
It’s also a good idea to put together offers, like a loyalty program for those who’ve already attended other editions, send a thank-you email, or share special content.
In other words, there are several ways to make attendees feel like part of building that moment.
3. Transparency
By now it’s clear that communication is at the core of the whole relationship you’ll build with your attendees, right?
With that in mind, it’s important to be transparent at all times, especially if something goes wrong at the event.
Send emails or reach out directly to make any issue clear and try to fix it in the best way possible.
If that doesn’t happen and the attendee finds out some other way, it won’t be good for the organization’s reputation, and they may feel deceived.
4. Cutting red tape
Ease of use is everything!
So finding ways to simplify the attendee’s experience will make them feel more comfortable throughout the purchase process.
Creating informative content is also a way to invest in the experience and cut red tape, both for attendees and for you as the organizer.
So, speaking of content, you can provide videos on how to buy a ticket to your event, how the activities will work on the day, or how attendees can solve certain issues without having to reach out to the organization.
If the process is too complicated, attendees may end up giving up on the purchase, choosing not to attend future editions, or even sharing negative experiences about the event with other people.
In short: to build loyalty, focus on the attendee
As mentioned, in the end, the complete experience is what matters for earning the loyalty of the people you want to keep.
Despite the points listed, don’t get it twisted: you can absolutely offer the best solutions, be transparent and helpful without losing your event’s identity.
The key is to make yourself available to have attendees with you at the next stages.
So plan carefully and train your team well to guarantee the satisfaction the attendees deserve.
Want to take it one step further and build loyalty among your attendees?
Check out our free Satisfaction Survey Template and achieve success at your next event!
