If true, you're falling behind, says BrightBull's Ricardo Molina.
Worse, you are:
Worse, you are:
- Wasting money on attendance promotion. Like lists and media partnerships, online communities provide a direct road to your target audience. But unlike those roads, communities don't need as much maintenance. "Once built, a community will thrive with just a little care and attention."
- Letting competitors poach your attendees. First-movers usually win. "When your competitors start a community first, all they have to do is say that it’s there and people will join because it’s something new."
- Forgetting about brand loyalty. Communities provide value added. So members "automatically feel good about your brand."
- Failing to lead. "Why would they think of your event as being 'the one' when you don’t run THE online destination for your niche?"
- Skipping customer insight. Insights from a community let you read the industry's pulse, and drive product development, marketing and sales.
- Leaving money on the table. Exhibitors are eager to brand themselves year-round on communities. Why not offer them yours? One large international bank spends half its marketing budget on content partnerships.
