Some say Marty should have never gone to the old west or the first two Godfather’s were enough but, I disagree. Without them, however, we would never have seen the Doc fall in love or how Michael Corleone dies. These movies complete the trilogy; can’t have one without the other. You can’t have Star Wars without Return of the Jedi and you can’t have the Ocean movies without Ocean’s 13…. well maybe not the later, but you get what I’m saying.
Anyway, this is my ridiculous segue into my third post on taking advantage of social media after an event.
So, now you had this great event and SO many people showed up because of your awesome promotion skills. You took pictures/ videos, you hashed, you tagged, you checked- in, you connected with people and told them how to stay connected with you via your “Connect With Me” cards.
Now what to do! First things first. Take off those ridiculously uncomfortable, fabulous shoes and now that you’re comfy, you can get to work.
Follow- Up
Following up with a potential client, a current client or the custodian that helped you set up your booth is equally, if not more, important then meeting them in the first place. I mean, look at it this way. If you were an employer interviewing for a new position, who would you remember the most; the person that came in and had a nice interview or the person that came in had a nice interview PLUS sent you message thanking you for meeting with them? You would probably choose the later. Same thing goes with this. If someone gave you their business card, call or email them. If they left you a comment on Facebook, send them a comment back. If they reached out to you first, follow up with them in that same matter. You don’t want to call someone that mentioned you on Twitter. That is a social media no-no in my book.
Keep Them Connected
Let’s say you attended a trade show and afterward two vendors from the show contacted you. Company A said: “It was great meeting you! Thanks for stopping by our booth.” Company B said: “It was so great meeting you Becky. I’m glad we finally got to meet in person. Let me know what you think about the ideas we talked about at the show. Also, if you have any suggestions for us for next year’s booth, I would love to hear them. P.S. I hope your doggie is feeling better.” Which company would you be more inclined to respond to? (Jeopardy music plays) Ok! Time’s up! If you chose Company A, you would be wrong! Well actually, it’s more of an opinion question than a right or wrong question. I personally think more people would respond to Company B’s follow up than Company A’s. Company A could have sent out that same message to every single person they spoke with at the event. While Company B’s message was waaaaaay more personal. They mentioned your specific name, wrote about a specific topic that was discussed at the event (also good so you will remember them), asked a question to gain feedback and mentioned something personal. All of these are good tactics to use to stay connected with your clients and/ or customers.
Pics and Vids
Going through the photos and videos from the event is always my favorite part. These photos and videos hopefully captured the mood and feel of the event. They are a great way to show everyone that was there and those that weren’t what it was like. So, go ahead and post those pics! Even the ones where your boss is putting bunny ears on the intern. These photos give your company a more personal and fun feel. Unless your business is consultation company on how to be serious all the time, then I think it’s totally ok to post those kind of pictures. [Disclaimer: Please be aware of your company's social media policy before posting pictures or videos of any kind.] Once you have posted your pictures you can encourage the people that you met at the event to tag themselves in the pictures. Tagging is always fun. As long as it’s not the illegal kind.
Did you learn your lesson?
Remember when Mom said, “Go to time out and think about what you did”? Then asked you afterward, if you learned your lesson? Well, this is kinda like that; only less time- out and more reflection. You can always learn from your challenges, mistakes, and even triumphs. Take the suggestions, compliments and complaints and make a case study out of it. What worked well? What was the most horrible idea ever? Compile all of those thoughts and save them for next time; for the next event.
Whew! I’m exhausted just thinking about all the work that you all need to get done. Now go… and Learn. Share. Grow.
Anything else that I missed? Comments? Other strategies?
