Boost your hospitality rating!
Corporate entertaining is a great way to build long-term relationships - but it's not cheap! It's essential to make the most of those opportunities, says Robert Courtney. Here he gives us nine ways to do it right - and nine ways to do it wrong…
By Robert Courtney
DO's
Do… get the right mix of events that meet a broad level of your
customer base, sporting, cultural and possibly participative. If
you're organising an extensive programme, you need a plethora of
events to ensure that you can offer everyone something which appeals to them.
Do… plan to target activities carefully. Random invitations going out to
your whole customer database is a no-no. Decide on your activity, and then the
level of staff who would find it appropriate, say CEOs or Sales Executives, and
then invite people accordingly.
Do… get the right host to customer ratio, and the right level.
If all your invitations are not taken up, don't give them out as
freebies to all your own staff, thereby drowning your poor clients
in "home team" employees. And also, make sure you get "peer to peer"
engagement - if you're inviting CEOs, then your CEO should be there too.
Do… remember that partners are often great networkers, too. A CEO's
partner will doubtless be socially adept, but may well also be a senior
manager or director themselves. Far from seeing partners as an additional
expense, they can give your event a boost.
Do… spend your hospitality £ on what will be remembered by the customer,
not on unnecessarily expensive gimmicks. Small creative and personal touches
will be remembered much longer than lavish expense. At CEO level, their own
spending power is significant, so impressing them is more challenging. Do it by
remembering personal details, and by surprising them with creative thought.
Do… consider cultural differences. Your customer profile needs to be
matched with menus, locations, entertainment, etc. This means thinking about
how all your guests will respond to your event - the food, alcohol availability,
the activities themselves. Ensure everyone will be comfortable.
Do… brief your staff on the customer list and their interests,
business with your company backgrounds, relationships, etc. This is
very important. It's senseless and potentially damaging to your client
relationship to put your guys into the event, if they know nothing about
who anyone is, what they do, who is looking after which project, and so on.
Give your chaps and chapesses a full briefing beforehand on any information
which will help the event succeed as a business - and a networking event.
Do… measure the ROI (Return on Investment) of your programme. You must be
able to gauge your success, justify your spend, and use it as a benchmark for
future events. This is where expert events agencies really come into their own,
by giving you solid measurement tools for your programmes.
Do… remember to continue the relationship after the programme.
Firms often make initial contact, wining and dining suppliers and
clients, and then neglect to follow up all that expense and hard work!
If staying in contact afterwards and taking the relationship forward
are not prime considerations, then there's no benefit to the programme.
DON'Ts
Don't… assume that clients are always male. Too many firms fall into the "Old Boy Network"
trap, and focus on rugby, rugby, and more rugby! Consider what impression that makes on the
female directors and CEOs among your clients.
Don't… leave the invitation too late. This is another key point! You need to have
good lead-in time to cover yourself for A and B list mailings. Leave it too late, and
B list nominees will instantly know they're B list. (And guess what? They'll decline!)
Don't… forget to thank the customer for attending, and spending their time with your
organisation. You should also follow up with an evaluation form, which would be part of
your ROI measurement. Customers will understand, and appreciate, your need to measure
the success of any event.
Don't… get the logistics wrong! So many times, an expensive and wonderful
day is spoiled because nobody checked the details, such as access to the venue,
public transports links, food and beverage timings, etc. Check your basics!
Then check them again!
Don't… assume that email is always the best medium for distributing your invitations.
For many business events, it's fine. But for "peer to peer" programmes, the
invitation should come from the appropriate person and have a personal touch. The
invitation and its method of distribution should be scaled according to the level
and profile of the event.
Don't… leave until the official end of the programme, and preferably not
after the customer has left. It's amazing how many host companies' staff
arrive late or leave early! If they won't commit, why should your customer?
Don't… invite any of your staff who won't or can't network. Your guests' time
is precious, so don't subject them to employees who lack social etiquette or who
cannot communicate at the right level.
Don't… invite a customer if you already know they are elsewhere engaged or
unable to attend. Co-ordinate your invitation sending and keep a customer history.
If the marketing department invite a client and discover they are on holiday, make
sure everyone knows that. It looks very poor if that client receives a second
invitation from the finance director! Keep customer histories which include
which invites they declined and why.
Don't… assume the right to invite the customer. A CEO is a busy person,
and it's possible that you - as a supplier - are not the biggest item on
his or her radar! It may not be appropriate for you to invite them - it
may be that your own CEO should contact them.
Robert Courtney is Account Director at First Protocol,
a London based international events company specialising in strategic, precise, "Face to Face"
communications. With a reputation for original thinking, innovative environments and memorable
experiences they specialise in conference organisation, special events, corporate hospitality.
Find out more at www.firstprotocol.com
