Event Planning Guide
Informational events highlighting specific procedures can be a great way to attract new clients, and also push existing clients to move forward with a procedure they have been considering. Events can also have other benefits to your business beyond the revenue generated during the event, by increasing online exposure and brand awareness in the community. Below you will find our suggested guidelines for a successful event.
Creative Designs to Support the Event
- Email Blast
- In-Office Flyer
- Website
- Direct Mail (If applicable)
- Print Media Ad (If applicable)
Execution:
Email Blast
- Begin the event advertising 6 weeks prior to the event using email blasts to your existing client base
- Frequency:
- 6 Weeks prior to event
- 2 weeks prior to event
- 3 days prior
In-Office Flyer
- Have an in-office flyer to hand out to every client beginning 6 weeks prior to event
- Have an in-office sign-up sheet for RSVP’s
- Frame the flyer and have posted in the waiting areas, front desk, and each treatment room
Website
- 6 weeks prior to the event, post a web ‘pop up’ for all visitors to announce the event
- Post on the specials page
- Post on the applicable procedure page(s)
Social Media
- Cross Post your event to your social media sources following the same schedule as your email blasts.
- Facebook – Create an Evite in Facebook to invite all of your followers to the event
Direct Mail (If applicable)
- If using, send direct mail to selected addresses 4 weeks prior to the event
- Many vendors will cover the cost of direct mail postage if the event is supporting their products or services
Print Media Ad (If applicable)
- If possible, place an ad in your local newspaper to run the Wednesday and Sunday prior to the event in the Social Living or Lifestyles section.
- This is relevant to consumers typically between the target age of 45-65, so know your target audience for the topic or services being advertised.
Event Agenda Planning
It is important to hold the interest of the audience, and events can fail if there are too many services highlighted. This can be overwhelming to the consumer, and also not allow enough time to truly discuss the benefits of the services and allow the attendees to ask questions. Below are some of our recommendations for planning the night’s agenda.
Services:
- Highlight no more than 3 procedures during the event
- Offer a live demonstration of the procedures (if applicable), followed by a Q & A with the audience
Special Offers:
- Offer a promotional price that is exclusive only to attendees
- Deep discounts are not needed; a modest discount coupled with some great value added bonus procedures can be very affective. Create special packages for the evening
- ‘Free’ or ‘Giveaway’- Have a drawing for a great prize (typically a free treatment) for one attendee that evening
Testimonials:
- Invite clients to the events that have had the services, who can give a short testimonial during the presentation
- Recommend 2-4 ‘testimonials’ per event
- Offer a small gift of appreciation to any client who agrees to attend and offer a testimonial
Staff:
- Have sufficient staff on hand to answer questions & demonstrate products and services
- Keep a staff member at the front desk at all times
- Attendees may come early or need to leave early. It is crucial to have someone at the front desk at all times to assist in tracking who has attended, and most importantly make a purchase or schedule an appointment upon leaving.
Vendor Participation
With advanced planning, your partner vendors can offer tremendous support in offsetting the cost of any event and helping to drive the success. You should discuss all of the below with your vendors, whose products or services will be the focus of the event. Not all of these options will be applicable to every event.
- Free product to use during the live demonstrations
- Discount on your next order, possibly based on the volume of what you sell that evening
- Marketing Costs- reimbursement for advertising costs such as newspaper or direct mail
- Product samples for goody bags to attendees
- Refreshments – Reimbursement for the food and drinks for the evening.
Sample Event
Procedure Highlight – Coolsculpting
Evening Agenda:
6:00-6:30
- Meet and Greet with light appetizers and drinks. Staff engages clients and gives tours of the facility
6:30-7:00pm
- Physician led power point highlighting the science of the procedure, demystifying how it works and what the results can be achieved. Views pre- and post-requirements, ideal patients for the procedure, and views a good selection of before and after photos.
7:00-7:30pm
- Live demonstration
7:30-8:00pm
- Patient Testimonials and Attendee Q & A
8:00pm
- Drawing for prize(s) and thank you’s to all for attending
Closing of Event
- Make sure the front desk personally thanks each person as they leave, and gives attendee a goody bag
- Encourage every attendee to make an appointment for a consultation before leaving, if not a procedure
- Ensure you have the Name, Email, Address and Phone Number for each Attendee
- This can be gathered by having each person fill out a form when they arrive to be entered into the evening’s drawing
Post Event Follow-up
- Make a personal phone call THE NEXT DAY, to thank them for attending
- Offer to schedule the consumer an appointment to come in for a consultation or a procedure
- Survey the consumer- have 2-4 questions you ask each consumer so that you can understand what people enjoyed and how you can improve the next event.
- Send an Email THE NEXT DAY to each consumer thanking them for attending, offering them an appointment, reminding them of any discounts they should take advantage of, and inquiring as to their enjoyment of the evening.