{"id":17759,"date":"2020-04-02T07:00:11","date_gmt":"2020-04-02T14:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.benchmarkemail.wpengine.com\/?p=44782"},"modified":"2020-06-05T17:18:23","modified_gmt":"2020-06-05T17:18:23","slug":"your-networking-event-is-cancelled-now-what","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.benchmarkemail.com\/in\/your-networking-event-is-cancelled-now-what\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Networking Event is Cancelled. Now What?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year, companies budget out for various marketing and sales expenses. They decide which tradeshows, conferences, and <\/span>networking events<\/span><\/a> they\u2019ll be going to. Making room for these kinds of events is pretty important, as many give businesses a chance for face-to-face interaction with potential customers and partners. It allows businesses to build trust and a foundation for a solid relationship with their prospects. With the right sponsors and attendees, these events are invaluable.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, most public events have been canceled for the year. With encouragement from our government to stay inside as much as possible and practice social distancing, we\u2019re not able to use these kinds of methods right now. Which means we have to increase other efforts to make up for the lost opportunities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ll break down a few alternative methods to keep your marketing and sales efforts chugging right along, all without having to leave your home.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Value of Virtual Events<\/span><\/h2>\n

Just because your in-person events have been canceled doesn\u2019t mean there isn\u2019t another way to bring people together (safely). Virtual events are the best way to still provide that real-time value to your customers, leads, and audience while maintaining a safe distance. Here are a few examples to give a whirl.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Webinars<\/span><\/h3>\n

Webinars<\/span><\/a> are a great addition to any marketing strategy and a wonderful alternative when in-person get-togethers just aren\u2019t possible. What\u2019s even better is that since you\u2019re running the webinar, you can choose the topic. It can be anything you like, as long as it adds value for your audience. Typically, we like to host webinars that center on a particular area of expertise we have. However, given the climate we\u2019re all in, you may want to break the rules a bit and focus your webinar on tips for dealing with this current crisis, or things to do that will help businesses experience a minimal amount of setbacks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Podcasts<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

You\u2019ve been considering starting a podcast for quite some time, but just never got around to it. Well, there\u2019s no time like the present. We all could use a little background noise or audio tips while we work from our home offices, so consider mapping out a podcast strategy. Decide on your angle, a creative name, and then start a calendar that helps you figure out what topics you\u2019ll discuss for each episode. You can even have guests on to chat with that you can set up via a <\/span>Zoom<\/span><\/a> meeting or <\/span>Skype<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>
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3. Facebook Live\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Consider using <\/span>Facebook Live<\/span><\/a> as a way to engage with your audience quickly. Ask your team if anyone would like to volunteer themselves to lead a few. Each team member can choose a topic or area they\u2019re experts in, like customer engagement, customer success, content, marketing, <\/span>social media<\/span><\/a>, etc. and offer tips. Or, they could walk viewers through your product and show them the problems it helps solve and its functionalities. There are a lot of fun things you can do with Facebook Live that will help you engage and maintain a presence with your audience while everyone is at home.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Instagram Live<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Posting an <\/span>Instagram Live<\/span><\/a> video can be a fun way to offer a workshop to your customers. You can go over a particular feature of your product or service offering, then field questions as they come through on the video. Another idea is to interview someone in your industry, which can help increase the exposure the video gets and bring more value to viewers. Watch live videos from some of the accounts you follow and see what they do and decide if this method might be beneficial for you to try out.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Focus on Other Marketing Strategies<\/span><\/h2>\n

Sales are probably down, and not a lot of people are picking up their phones. But that doesn\u2019t mean you should neglect other marketing strategies to help bring in some possible leads. Since you\u2019re already adjusting for lack of in-person events and meetings, it doesn\u2019t hurt to focus on upping the ante on these other strategies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n