Top Types of Events for Achieving Business Goals

Organizing and visiting business events are integral for your company. These can contribute to boosting your brand awareness, increasing sales, and taking the company forward. The trick is in identifying the types of events that will best help your business. In this guide, you’ll learn more about various occasions, ranging from social to corporate and networking types. Check out the following events and learn how they can contribute to achieving your business goals!

Corporate Events

This term refers to a wide list of events your business can organize. Since it’s a corporate occasion, a company needs to be its host. However, the visitors can range from employees, business partners, stock owners, and the general public. Depending on the type, it could be a one-time or periodic event. Check out the best suggestions on how these events can help your business goals!

Trade Shows / Expos

If you want to present your products and meet customers and partners, ask yourself what events that secure close contact with your audience. Trade shows and expos are critical events for any industry. Most expos are annual, such as the E3 – Electronic Entertainment Expo. As for trade shots, notable ones include The American International Toy Fair, The Global Retail Real Estate Convention, etc.

The idea of a trade show is to gather multiple brands from the same industry. Each company can acquire a booth to present its brand and products to interested parties. Therefore, it’s crucial to make your booth attractive and offer exciting content to visitors.

Depending on your goal, successful trade shows can deliver the following benefits:

• Promoting new or existing products
• Talk to potential customers and business partners
• Building marketing and sales contact lists

Conferences

A conference is the main event type in any industry. For example, the International Conference on Economics, Business, and Management gathers experts in these areas from various countries. Conferences could be national, regional, or worldwide, but they have one thing in common. They usually gather hundreds or thousands of people interested in a particular topic.

Large-scale conferences often last three to five days or even longer. These types of events include multiple speakers and presentations on related topics. They often have a social component, which is an excellent chance to expand your contact network. You can use conferences to establish new business relationships and strengthen existing ones. Conferences can help position yourself or the business as an expert and even boost sales.

If you visit a conference, make sure to participate in as many activities as possible. But if your business organized this event, always choose a suitable space. Pick a big enough room to accommodate all participants but not one that will leave too many empty seats.

Seminars

The objectives during a seminar aren’t different from the ones you have at a conference. The difference is that a seminar is a single event. It rarely lasts more than several hours or one business day.

If you organize a seminar, pick a topic that attracts great interest from the desired audience. For example, Robin Sharma organizes The Titan Summit occasionally. It’s a collection of seminars that focus on maximizing productivity, improving your wealth and motivation, etc.

Seminars focus on delivering valuable information to visitors. You can organize a seminar for your employees where you will present the new customer loyalty program or any other change implemented by the company.

If your business hosts a seminar with you as a speaker, you can use it to position yourself as an industry expert. Seminars should be educational, and you can even charge entrance tickets. If it’s free to attend the seminar, make sure to collect the contacts for your mailing and other marketing lists.

Workshops

Workshops are often a part of other corporate events. For example, you can organize workshops during a conference or trade show. These activities can help attract visitors to your booth and promote your brand or product.

A projector screen and several rows of chairs are often enough for a workshop. The idea is to resemble a classroom, and most workshops have limited seating. You want to focus on attracting the right audience and high-value partners and visitors.

Art and craft workshops are popular events where you can share your knowledge on the topic. These are great for improving your credibility and positioning yourself as an expert.

Networking Events

Networking or social events have become more virtual due to the pandemic. If you are an industry expert, a simple online Q&A is an excellent way to strengthen the relationship with existing customers and attract new followers. You can also organize online classes and webinars.

As for traditional social events, a party is always an excellent excuse to gather the community. You can celebrate the business’ launch or anniversary, or think of any other valid reasons. It’s possible to even pick a theme for your parties, such as autumn or Super Bowl. It all depends on your niche, but ensuring people have a good time is a great way to boost brand awareness and your network of contacts.

Fundraising Events

Fundraising is specific for organizations like non-profits, charities, and sports clubs. As the name suggests, these activities focus on generating funding. You’ll find different types of events in this department, so it’s all about choosing a fitting one.

Auctions

Charities often go for auctions since they end up making more profit than in other events. If you gather the right individuals and companies, they’ll be glad to pay more for an item to show their readiness to give back to the community.

The experts suggest publishing the list of items you will place for sale. You can go for artwork, but also things that belonged to celebrities. Some charities often offer dinner with an industry expert or a famous person.

Gala Dinners

The Queen Charlotte’s Ball has over 200 years of tradition. It kept its charitable core but has also become a glamorous event that gathers members of the upper society. Your gala dinner should also focus on gathering top members of your and related industries.

These events must include a luxurious meal and entertainment. Depending on your resources, you can call a famous local band or go for national and international level celebrities. Each guest pays for a seat at the table. During the event, they can participate in competitions like raffles and auctions. If it’s a charity event, you can find sponsors that will agree to give up on their portion of the profit.

Sponsored Sporting Events

Iron Man, Tough Mudder, and similar obstacle courses are great event examples in this category. The idea is to post a challenge but ask the contestants to raise funds for sponsorships.

You can organize a wide range of sporting events, although most of them focus on individual runs. For example, long-distance walks and relay races are popular. The organization is a bit tricky since you’ll need licenses and could even require a road closure. Thanks to the technology, you can try organizing an online virtual run. You design an app that people use to show their progress, and they pick when to complete the challenge. Based on the results, you pronounce the winner after the countdown expires.

Product Launches

Product launches are an event that focuses on sales. The idea is to promote a new service or product. It’s also possible to present a new upgrade to an existing product, but make sure it’s meaningful enough.

You can organize a product launch for a handful of experts instead of inviting the general public. Apart from relevant industry representatives, contact the media since you want maximum event coverage. During the product launch, make sure your visitors get small gifts or samples.

Community Events

Community events are the ones you organize in your area or city. They have a light theme and aim at gathering people in a single location to strengthen relationships.

Here are some suggestions to consider:

• Street parties. You can put on some music and offer free samples of your new drink at a street party. While these can gather large crowds, make sure you get all the necessary licenses first.
• Litter-picking events. If you want to show corporate responsibility, collect litter around the neighborhood. You can rake leaves and even offer small services, such as gardening, to your neighbors.
• Hobby-based events. For example, you sell crayons and want to promote them. You can organize an event in the neighborhood where children and adults could come to try your crayons. Think about a hobby related to your niche and come up with a suitable community event.

Festivals

You’ve attended at least a single music festival in your life. It’s a series of events that gathers performers in similar (or different) genres. A festival doesn’t have to use music as a theme. You can gather food enthusiasts or any other talented people. Think about something related to your niche since you’ll want to use the chance to present your brand and products.

Key Takeaways: Finding the Proper Type of Event

The good news is you can pick from many types of events available. However, it’s crucial to pick the ones suitable for your company and niche. Begin by considering what your goals are. Auctions and gala dinners are brilliant ideas if you are a charity. But if you want to promote a product, trade shows, and launch events are a better fit.

It’s vital to prepare the event to the smallest detail. You can find inspiration in other similar events organized before, but make sure to deliver an engaging experience to the visitors. If you create a memorable event, you’ll boost reputation, sales, and overall business growth!