Revenue Accelerator with Jennifer Best

In this episode of the Revenue Accelerator Podcast, we have invited Jennifer Best. She is a senior marketing leader with proven success in developing and executing interactive marketing strategies for a startup, mid, and global organizations. She has leveraged her advanced knowledge and application of user experience, web design, and Search Engine Marketing throughout her career to build effective marketing strategies that drive lead generation and conversion. Jennifer is also an analytical leader who can identify opportunities to streamline operations, automate processes, and create cohesion across teams, brands, and at all levels of the organization. Today, Jennifer talks with us about the challenges of virtual events and building relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic.

prefer audio: listen here

Digital Marketing in the COVID-19 Pandemic 

[3:02]

Digital marketing as a whole is always going to be the powerhouse. What's happening with the pandemic and the work-from-home setting has thrown many marketers into a loop. They lost the ability to go on-site and do sales calls. They lost the ability to do direct mail campaigns, and everybody is now inundated with email. Everybody is pushing email because it can be accessed anywhere and is relatively inexpensive in marketing to people. It really should be more reactive and have more to do with people expressing an interest and then hitting them with communication that is relevant to what they're asking about.

The Secret to Longevity 

[4:19]

All American Entertainment is trying to focus on building relationships. With successful companies, they know that relationships are the secrets to longevity. The best price is not always going to get you loyalty. It's always going to be the relationships you build, the service you provide, and the trust and brand that will extend your relationship. That longevity of having a consistent recurring customer costs less to keep a happy recurring customer. 

The Challenge in Virtual Events 

[9:58]

Engagement is noted as the biggest challenge. That is the biggest concern of event planners when it comes to virtual events. The things to understand are that you should not expect that your virtual event will be exactly like your in-person experience. There are tools out there that can help bridge the gap between your in-person and your virtual attendance. Some of those are geared towards dynamic engagement.

Know your Audience 

[12:58]

You have to know your audience. You have to identify your audience first and foremost. Then you have to know where they are and how do they consume their content. Start the conversation before you ever reach out to somebody. You have to know who you're talking to and what matters to them. Then figure out where they are 

[14:08]

Figure out where they're having conversations, and make logical decisions based on the data analytics behind the scenes. Make those logical based on somebody in a particular demographic group or someone who has the following interests that may also be interested in other things. Just start knowing your audience and knowing where they are before you start figuring out what tactics you need to use to reach them.

Importance of Relationships 

[15:50]

Building relationships will help you better understand what makes your clients tick. That is the secret to building that long-term relationship. If you understand their pain points, you're one step ahead of them, and then you can help solve them.

[16:20]

In a relationship, you have to understand the other person because they might disregard it if you are concerned. So you have to understand what their pain points are. 

Being Data-Driven 

[20:09]

Social media is one of those things that are very hard to quantify. It's easy to be misled by what you see on a platform. The way that Jennifer addresses it is they try to be data-driven. One of their initiatives this year is that they make sure everything that they are doing is tracked. Then they are leveraging marketing automation to do that. It allows them to get greater visibility into the influence of social media in the life cycle.

Creating the Right Following 

[22:47]

It's also important to know and make sure that you're getting the right following, which can be challenging. You're selling or trying to market to people and you're trying to bring in new customers to make sure you're getting the right customers. With social media, you want to get the right followers. But remember that more is not always better if they're not the right followers.

[24:26]

What AAE is trying to do now is to build their organic and paid strategies and then expand them. They are making them more relevant and more targeted to their audience versus broad. Doing that shows that you don't intend to segment or understand your audience when you're blasting them.

Building an Established Business 

[25:52]

Many get confused with what contents and emails are supposed to do. To reinforce the message that you're going out and trying to do versus really trying to convince or convert someone. It's these micro yeses that you're gathering to get to the bigger. It's great to have it there. That's the money you're leaving on the table when you're not doing these consistent actions that demonstrate a more established business.

Understand your Clients 

[29:54]

Just empathize. You have to put yourself in your audiences' shoes and what they are facing right now. It's not what you're facing. It's about what they're facing, and you need to give them something that shows that you're human. Businesses are in it for money. But it's more about People First.

Listen to your Clients 

[32:56]

A fantastic example of doing market research is listening to your clients and providing a resource for them. You're showcasing your ability and skill in terms of supporting them with whatever questions come their way. 

Keep Practicing 

[34:54]

Do not skip the practice step. You want to make sure that all your speakers' tests are ready, that you know the people on the other end. Do not just assume that your speakers are going to know how to get on your platforms. Prepare and practice before the day of your event. It is challenging, but the greater likelihood of success happens when those practice sessions happen.

 

 

Resources Mentioned


Learn more about Jennifer Best: 

https://aaehq.com/

https://aaespeakers.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jen_best6?lang=en

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenbest6/