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  • Three Hidden Ways Digital Transformation Elevates Your Events

    Three Hidden Ways Digital Transformation Elevates Your Events

    Event leaders hear a lot about digital transformation for events. But is “digital transformation” just a buzzy phrase? What does a truly impactful digital transformation require? And is it worth the time and effort when you have a busy event calendar? 

    Our research and real-life results from clients have shown that a true digital transformation within an organization delivers enormous benefits — including for events. 

    There are four components of a genuine digital transformation. Organizations focus on increasing data and analytics, prioritizing mobile applications, responsibly incorporating AI tools, and deploying upgraded dedicated solutions.

    The potential positive impact on events is enormous. Of course, we see the direct benefits: Digital transformation makes your events themselves much more data-rich, personalized, and effective. Integrations, AI-assisted analysis, and more can help your team better meet attendees’ needs, measure show results, and make smart data-backed improvements.

    We’ve also seen a few less immediately obvious — but equally important — ways that digital transformation positions organizations for event success:  

    1. Increased efficiency. Digital transformation requires investment in both time and money, but the payoff resonates for years. This realization often starts with mindset-shifting questions: Why pay for piecemeal solutions with overlapping capabilities when a single streamlined solution could do it all for less? Why continue struggling with inputs for complicated spreadsheets for tasks that could be automated? 
    1. Greater employee happiness. Frustrations with clunky processes, wasted time spent using systems that don’t work as they should, and being unable to accomplish important tasks on the go can stop employees from performing their best and reaching their goals. They might even seek a new job at a competitor with a more efficient, convenient tech stack and savvy digital-minded approach. 
    1. Ease of pivoting. In the events industry, we need to think back just a few short years — spring 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit — to find one of the most memorable reminders of how important it is to operate with speed and flexibility when the unexpected happens. An organization that has embraced digital transformation can adapt its events strategy more easily for anything, large or small, that comes next. 

    As events become an increasingly valued and integrated part of organizations’ sales and marketing strategies, digital transformation is a universal lift. 

    Ready to take the first steps or accelerate your current efforts? Our new guide, “Digital Transformation: Elevating Events and Beyond,” is filled with the guidance your team needs — from thinking through ROI to overcoming common obstacles and launching. It’s tailored just for event teams and draws on RainFocus’ experience with innovative clients across every industry.

    Get your copy here.

  • Cookies Are Staying, But Zero-Party and First-Party Event Data Remains Crucial 

    Cookies Are Staying, But Zero-Party and First-Party Event Data Remains Crucial 

    “Are third-party cookies going away?” 

    “If so, how should we adapt our approach to gathering valuable customer data in a post-cookies environment?”

    These questions have haunted marketing leaders and factored into their organizational strategy for years. They’ve watched warily as Google has announced — and repeatedly delayed and modified — plans to fully eliminate third-party cookies.

    With the industry giant’s recent decision to cancel its cookie deprecation plan for its Chrome browser after all, many teams are wondering what comes next. Events leaders, of course, understand the importance of a reliable flow of data from attendees that can fuel marketing and sales strategy. The expected end of cookies promised to further increase the pressure to deliver a wealth of zero-party and first-party data that does not rely on cookies and complies with user privacy expectations. 

    So, does the continued existence of cookies change the equation? Not really, according to RainFocus executives who have closely monitored the ongoing saga from both technical and strategic marketing perspectives. 

    “This change may seem bigger than it is from a net-result standpoint,” explained Mike Bushman, RainFocus CTO. “Users still favor privacy when given the choice, as was seen by iPhone users when they were given a similar choice by Apple’s App Tracking Transparency feature.” Notably, although Google’s plan keeps cookies available for users who do not opt out, it also enables one-time disabling that can then be adjusted at any time. 

    “Collecting zero- and first-party data is still going to be critical for marketing teams,” Bushman stressed. “Many Chrome users will choose to disable third-party cookies. Time will tell how much cookies will be marginalized.” 

    Despite Google’s abrupt shift, the overwhelming trend toward privacy and individual choice in data sharing will likely continue. “The era of cookies is still gradually drawing to a close as users gain more control over their privacy,” said Ashleigh Cook, RainFocus CMO, noting that other web browsers such as Mozilla Firefox and Apple Safari have already blocked third-party cookies. 

    “This shift enhances trust and transparency in digital interactions,” she said. As consumers have become increasingly hesitant to share data with organizations in their everyday interactions, B2B leaders must also keep pace with evolving expectations. 

    Ultimately, regardless of how many individual Chrome users opt to continue to allow cookies, a smart business strategy continues to embrace the full potential of events to deliver the authentic, trustworthy interactions that win over prospects and customers. The data points generated from those interactions are mutually beneficial, allowing organizations to provide tailored event experiences while serving sales and marketing strategy. 

    “The adoption of zero-party and first-party data has not been merely a reaction to the so-called cookie crisis,” Cook explained. “It represents a broader movement toward genuine, transparent engagement with audiences.” 

    Learn more about how the RainFocus platform provides valuable data that propels sales and marketing strategy.

  • Everything You Need to Know About Badge Printing

    Everything You Need to Know About Badge Printing

    Badges are a critical part of any event. They grant attendees access to sessions, provide identification and security reassurance, enable exhibitors to easily retrieve contact information, and so much more. 

    Given the importance of badges, it’s essential to select printers and badge stock that fit within your budget and meet your event needs. Fortunately, there are several options for badge printing. This post is your guide to better badge printing.

    Selecting the Right Printers for Your Event

    The first thing to consider when planning your event’s badging experience is print speed. Not all badge printers can operate at the same speed. With large events or others that will require processing a high number of attendees at once (e.g., if all attendees are likely to arrive at the same time), Swiftcolor badge printers may be best. These offer a quick print speed of less than 10 seconds per badge. 

    Pricing and shipping are also factors to consider. For smaller events, Zebra printers may be a better option. These printers print badges in about 22 seconds. Although they are not as fast as Swiftcolor printers, they are easier to set up and are cheaper to ship internationally because of their lightweight structure. 

    Other considerations for printers include quantity of badges needed, the desired color quality, whether or not you need to print double-sided badges, and badge size. Be sure to ask your on-site vendor about all of these factors to ensure you have the printers you need to accomplish your goals.

    Ordering Badge Stock

    Badge stock selection is as important as printer selection. Consider the price, material, size, and tracking abilities. 

    Badges come in both matte (cardstock) and glossy (plastic) options, which each have distinct advantages. Both options offer distinct advantages. Cardstock badges are significantly cheaper and absorb color more easily. Their material is typically heavier than crafting cardstock and offers some water resistance. 

    The primary disadvantage of cardstock badges is that they can’t support RFID or UHF tracking technology for spatial tracking. Spatial tracking is useful for large keynote sessions where access control is not needed. 

    If this type of audience tracking is a priority for your event, glossy plastic badges may be ideal. They are also more durable than cardstock and can include holographic images or UV ink.  Glossy finishes are visually attractive but tend to be a little sticky while printing.

    Common badge sizes include 3.5” x 5.5” badges (considered XXL) and credit-card-sized 2.13″ x 3.38″ badges (commonly referred to as CR80). Smaller badges may be less of a nuisance for attendees while still large enough to display important information efficiently.

    Thinking Strategically About Badge Design

    The next decision is how to design your badges. Because attendees will wear them throughout the event and they will appear in event footage and post-event promotion, they must be both visually appealing and practical. Badge color schemes and layout are important, as is determining which information will be included on the badge.

    Consider designing unique badges for different attendee groups, such as VIPs and returning attendees, and for groups with different levels of event activity access. Design elements like colors and icons can also help attendees find like-minded peers or SMEs. The back of the badge is a great place to display an event schedule, map, or key messages for reference. Attendees can also personalize their badges with their photos or other images.

    RainFocus provides the option for attendees to upload photos for their badge during registration. Photos can be pulled from their profile and printed directly onto their badge. Our badge capabilities provide endless possibilities. 

    Printing On Demand

    When is the best time to print your event badges? Some companies choose to print their badges prior to their event. However, pre-printing is not recommended as it requires extra effort to ensure all the badges are printed, transported, and organized in time for the event. Last-minute and on-site registrations can create additional issues. 

    To keep lines short, we recommend printing badges on demand — which is often faster than pre-printing. On average, printers can print a badge in about 15 seconds. It also gives on-site staff the opportunity to immediately see how many attendees have checked in. 

    Running on a Secure Server

    The final consideration for badge printing is the internet connection at your event. Spotty wifi and other internet problems can create significant registration delays. At RainFocus, we run our check-in kiosks and printers through our own server. Even if the wifi is unreliable or goes out completely, your check-in process can continue uninterrupted. 

    Overall, getting the badge experience right ensures your attendees’ first interaction with your event once they arrive is a positive one. Level up your badging experience by implementing these recommendations at your next event. To see a demo of RainFocus badge printing, click here.

  • What Can an All-in-One Event Management Platform Do?

    What Can an All-in-One Event Management Platform Do?

    There’s no question that events deliver unique value. A rich and varied event calendar is a critical part of any effective business strategy. Each opportunity for interaction with prospects and clients contributes a wealth of data, new leads, relationship-building, and much more. 

    But from small internal webinars to massive user conferences drawing thousands of attendees from around the world, every type of event also comes with particular requirements and specifications. Can one event platform do it all?

    At RainFocus, we’ve always known that a single purpose-built event platform can do it all — and that a single, unified approach to event technology streamlines event planning and execution while fully unlocking the power of event data for memorable attendee experiences. 

    We were excited to read “The All-in-One Event Management Platforms Landscape, Q3 2024.” This new report from Forrester, a leading research and advisory firm, recognizes RainFocus among “notable vendors” and discusses the many use cases for all-in-one event management platforms. 

    “B2B events play a commanding role in B2B marketing, with aggregate spend across all formats consistently among the largest areas for the CMO. However, too often organizations treat events as siloed tactics,” the report explains. “Different teams plan and execute events and make decisions around event technology in isolation, with little consideration given to integrating the different formats to deliver more connected and personalized attendee journeys. Taking a more centralized approach and selecting and deploying an all-in-one event management platform to run all customer facing events mitigates this.” 

    Sound familiar? That classic industry challenge has motivated us at RainFocus from the start. We believe the pivot to virtual events in 2020 and subsequent exuberant return to in-person events have highlighted the importance of a flexible event platform for in-person, virtual, and hybrid events. 

    According to Forrester, the market for all-in-one event management platforms is considered “mature.” The report’s top identified current market dynamics in the event tech industry include macroeconomic factors and buyers’ budgetary pressures, the rise of AI as a disruptor, and the growing importance of fully integrating event platforms into the overall tech stack. 

    “Deep, bilateral integrations help marketers deliver more customized attendee experiences, drive stronger alignment with sales, and augment demand and account-based marketing programs,” the report says. 

    RainFocus also believes in the power of secure, effortless integrations to unlock the full power of events. We’ve built a growing network of technology partners, including Adobe. In addition, the recent launch of RainFocus for Salesforce supports sales teams’ involvement within their familiar daily tech ecosystem.

    As a company that prioritizes innovation and continuous client-centric enhancements, we’re thrilled to see discussion of industry advancement from research and advisory firms and other unbiased expert observers. We can’t wait to see what comes next! 

  • Conversations: Mike Bushman on Generative AI for Events — Trust, Transparency, and Notable New Names 

    Conversations: Mike Bushman on Generative AI for Events — Trust, Transparency, and Notable New Names 

    After steady buzz about the capabilities of ChatGPT and generative AI last year, we’ve since seen countless leaps forward — along with potential new reasons for caution. RainFocus CTO Mike Bushman has kept a steady eye on the space and expertly evaluated each development. Last year, he and other RainFocus executives weighed in on the hype vs. game-changing potential. 

    We’re excited to bring Mike back for another wide-ranging, candid discussion of what the events industry should know about generative AI in 2024. We covered everything from the impact of famous new entrants to the most common current real-life use cases your peers may already be deploying in their event planning.

    The generative AI space is fast-moving. Over the past year, what do you think have been the most significant advancements?

    First, there are more players out there, and others have moved ahead in their releases. AWS Bedrock went from preview to generally available. Having another major cloud player in the mix helps a lot. There have always been many questions around IP, trust, and governance. So, being able to use a trusted provider is really valuable here. 

    We’ve also seen advancements from other big names. There are new models from Google, and new capabilities from Oracle in their cloud. Of course, the models themselves have become more advanced — ChatGPT has had new versions, and Anthropic Claude 3.5 came out as a compelling model. 

    Seeing highly recognizable names enter certainly has been huge. We recently saw another big company make a splash. What do you see as the effects of Apple’s recent announcement of its Apple Intelligence? 

    Apple’s introduction of a smaller model directly on the device is significant. Having processing speed on the actual device without relying on cloud services will be a big advantage. Apple has also done well so far in telling users about what the device can and cannot do, and when questions will be answered off the device. That transparency is important. We’ll have to wait and see the full extent of the broader impact. 

    Exactly. As we’ve discussed before, accuracy and trust continue to be concerns. A recent occurrence that got a lot of attention was Google’s AI-generated summaries of search results that wound up showing completely inaccurate information. In some cases, “answers” pulled from satirical news publications were dangerous if interpreted as fact. 

    For companies, what are some best practices for both content creation and guarding their own reputation when it comes to content out there about them?

    One initial thing many companies are doing is putting clear liability statements out there. Covering yourself on that level is key.

    User feedback will also continue to be very important. A simple and effective UX makes it more powerful. We’ve seen clear “thumbs-up/thumbs-down” options and the ability to validate content through personal verification. That human interaction to show that content is trustworthy is key. 

    On the product side, of course you need to have proper tests in place. Sentiment analysis and others should always return solid results. We’ve even seen times when the generative AI output quality is suddenly wildly different even when a new model has not been released. 

    In any case, research is critical. Often these answers found through AI search summaries provide new insights you were not aware of. They might not be taken at face value, but if you’re including them to seek external validation, it can be very useful.

    Let’s talk more about generative AI use cases in events and where we stand. In our events and marketing survey currently underway, early respondent results have interestingly shown that so far, the majority of people are not using these tools for their events yet. What might be some reasons for the hesitation? 

    Last year, the main focus was developing proofs of concept and verifying technical viability. Understanding costs was another big part of it. As major cloud providers like AWS were still working on their early releases, many people were still in wait-and-see mode. 

    This year, we do see more companies in events actually implementing it — or at least putting it on the roadmap. Next year will bring in many more companies jumping in. Among event tech providers, it’s a similar story. Some are dipping their toes in. More will definitely embrace it over time. 

    Stay tuned for Part II of this fascinating discussion with Mike! We’ll delve into additional use cases for events and get a sneak peek at RainFocus’ own AI innovations in progress within the platform.

  • Building Effective Relationships With Your Event Sponsors and Exhibitors

    Building Effective Relationships With Your Event Sponsors and Exhibitors

    Sponsors and exhibitors are a critical part of an event’s financial success equation. Securing more sponsors and increasing the revenue generated requires teams to work more efficiently and incorporate smart strategies. 

    Event sponsors’ own shifting budget limitations and priorities can make the process more difficult. According to a Boldpush State of the Event Industry report, nearly a quarter of sponsors are looking to spend less on events this year, and a third have delayed signing up as sponsors for financial reasons.

    To retain and gain sponsors this year and beyond, organizations must create compelling packages and establish powerful relationships. Read on to discover best practices for securing sponsors — even reluctant ones. 

    Creating Compelling Sponsorship Packages

    The ultimate goal of every event sponsor is to generate leads, but each organization’s preferred method for doing so differs. Develop a range of sponsorship packages that accommodate the ways your sponsors may want to present their products and services:

    1. Offer New, Unique Ways to Help High-Paying Sponsors Stand Out

    Sponsors don’t want to feel like they’re in a losing battle of capturing attendees’ attention. Consider creative new ways for your top-tier exhibitors to get visibility. Are there certain activities they could sponsor outside of sessions? How about unique spaces outside of the exhibit hall where they can present their offerings? 

    2. Create Networking Spaces

    Dedicate time and space for your sponsors to meet with attendees. For example, allocate a few rooms for sponsor meetings. Doing so helps sponsors feel more confident they will be able to hold conversations and advance their business away from the exhibit hall hustle. 

    3. Give Sponsors a Sample of Potential Data

    Be sure to illustrate what past sponsors have gained from your events, and consider presenting customized material that speaks to their goals. Highlight exactly what lead capture technologies you’ll be using and their benefits. Share how and when you will make that data accessible to sponsors.

    4. Adjust Your Pricing Strategy

    Instead of just a flat rate, consider offering pay-per-impression, pay-per-lead, or bundle pricing. Discounts and greater perceived value can convince budget-minded sponsors to sign. 

    5. Optimize Your Package Tiers

    Clearly communicate what sponsors can expect from each sponsorship tier, including the benefits and costs associated with each tier. Consider discontinuing and adjusting past unpopular tiers. Outline how each tier will meet your sponsors’ specific needs.

    6. Sell Sponsors on Advertising

    Create an advertising plan to present to potential exhibitors early on. Include an outlined audience for emails, social, and website visibility (e.g. full virtual booth, logo inclusion) available before, during, and after your event.

    Building Strong Relationships With Event Sponsors

    Crafting an enticing product offering is just the beginning of creating a mutually beneficial relationship. Building rapport and trust is crucial for sustainable sponsorship success. Event teams should keep the following principles in mind throughout the process:

    • Communicate often
    • Follow up promptly
    • Host dedicated activities or events for sponsors and exhibitors 
    • Be flexible
    • Show appreciation
    • Award innovative booths, presentations, or partnerships
    • Ask for and apply feedback
    • Engage with sponsors on social media
    • Involve sponsors in your event planning process 

    Finally, make the contracting process simple for your sponsors. The more difficult it is for them to get involved, the less likely they are to sign on. Scalable, easy-to-use platforms like RainFocus can help you manage contracts, track sponsor tasks, and ultimately make sure your sponsors get the quality leads they want at your event. 
    Learn about RainFocus exhibitor activation here.

  • How to Make the Right Decisions for Your Event Registration Strategy: Launch, Discounts, and More

    How to Make the Right Decisions for Your Event Registration Strategy: Launch, Discounts, and More

    When it comes to event registration, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. As your audience evolves and your events grow, it may be time to re-examine the details of your registration strategy. 

    Many factors go into a successful registration process. Consider the timing of your registration launch, available incentives, the length of your registration forms and process, and whether or not you’ll accept last-minute registrations. In this post, we’ll compare the advantages and disadvantages of various approaches.

    Setting a Launch Date for Registration

    Many event professionals are eager to launch registration early. Getting attendees signed up as soon as possible can generate excitement, give the team early indicators on attendance, and offer other clues to make decisions around food orders and hotel block reservations. However, launching too early has drawbacks. For example, you may see a higher number of cancellations as attendees’ plans change and their schedules fill up once the event draws closer. 

    So when is the best time to launch your event? The trend may be shifting. According to Maritz’s 2024 Registration Insights Report, 43% of conference-goers now register within the four weeks leading up to the event. The report also states that attendees tend to spend more in the timeframe between 31 and 60 days before the event. 

    To strike the right balance, we generally recommend opening registration two to four months before the event, with the expectation that a significant percentage of attendees will wait until a month before the event to sign up. 

    Offering Pass Discounts Vs. Offsetting Event Expenses

    Pricing event passes is another balancing act. The challenge is attracting a sizable audience while also generating enough ROI to justify the event budget and demonstrate success to company executives. One popular pricing strategy is to advertise a standard pass priced just above your actual target price to leave wiggle room for discounts as needed. 

    Another common way to offset event expenses and entice attendees to register is a tiered early-bird pricing strategy, with passes that become increasingly expensive as the event draws closer. Many teams also offer discounted group pricing. 

    In these cases, the higher number of passes sold as a result of these strategies far outweighs any loss from discounted sales. 

    Long or Short Registration Forms: Which Is Better?

    Event teams need to keep their registration forms concise while still gathering the information they need to process the transaction and personalize attendees’ experiences. Asking too many questions can lead to registration abandonment while asking too few questions can leave gaps in data that become frustrating later. 

    When in doubt, default to a shorter registration process. You can always gather more information about attendees after they’ve signed up. Asking registered attendees for more information before your event is a great way to build anticipation and remind them of your event. 

    For example, you can send a know-before-you-go email to prompt registered attendees to complete their personal profiles or invite them to participate in a pre-event survey. Some event teams present get-to-know-you questions at check-in. The information gathered from any of these options helps you fine-tune your personalization strategy. 

    The Benefits and Drawbacks of On-Site Registration

    Finally, on-site registrations can boost your attendee numbers but cause last-minute complications. Of course, having more attendees means there are more potential customers at your event, and if your platform is equipped to handle the newcomers, getting everyone registered is manageable.  

    But if a large portion of your audience frequently registers on-site, you may benefit from offering shorter, regional events that require fewer meals and no overnight accommodations. You can also reduce the number of last-minute registrations by incentivizing local attendees, who are more likely to show up without registering, to register online. Consider offering a special early-bird discount code to those who live within driving distance of your event.

    Another indirect way to prevent unexpected on-site registrations is to plan a destination event. If all attendees plan to travel, they will naturally register early to book their flights and hotel accommodations in time. 

    For all aspects of registration, knowing your audience is key to achieving your registration goals. Always analyze past event data to understand what motivates them. RainFocus compiles all attendee data into a global attendee profile that helps you evaluate attendee behaviors over time to determine the right registration strategy for every event. 

    Learn more about how RainFocus can simplify registration!

  • Must-Have Platform Features for Unified Events Management

    Must-Have Platform Features for Unified Events Management

    The events channel is much less likely than other marketing channels to have its own platform. Instead, organizations often purchase two or more solutions to deliver all of their events. 

    Combining the management of all events into a single event management platform offers several advantages and allows organizations to consolidate their event tech spend. But it’s important to make sure the chosen platform can meet all requirements for virtual and in-person events of all sizes and in all different formats. 

    When evaluating all-in-one event platforms, first consider compatibility with your other marketing and sales technologies. For example, does the platform meet your organization’s security standards? Can it be repurposed for different types of events? How will your event data be integrated into the customer journey? 

    Reports evaluating the event tech landscape, such as the recent Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Event Technology Platforms, can help organizations find a platform suitable for all use cases. These reports cover platform capabilities, customer feedback, company details, and other important facets. 

    Having delivered thousands of events over the years, we’ve also distilled the most important platform features to keep in mind during your research: 

    1. Flexibility

    A true all-in-one solution should be flexible enough to deliver virtual, in-person, and hybrid events. Does the platform have streaming capabilities and on-site technologies? Does it come with a mobile app? Does it leverage rules-based automation to guide attendees to the right experience?  

    2. Reusable Components 

    There’s no sense in purchasing an all-in-one platform if it requires duplicating work for each event. Look for a platform that enables you to copy registration, branding, emails, and more from one event to the next. Event templates can save your team hundreds of hours of work.  

    3. Universal Reporting 

    A critical component of unified event management is consistent reporting. An all-in-one platform should include multi-event and single-event reporting for identifying trends and areas of opportunity. Industry benchmarks for events similar to your own in size and format also provide guidance. Look for a platform vendor that offers a range of reporting options and benchmarks to support goal-setting.  

    4. Single Integration Point for Marketing and Sales Tech

    Multiple integration points with the marketing and sales tech stack can impair the ability to compare data from event to event. Instead, a single integration point with popular platforms from leaders like Salesforce and Adobe provides a cross-functional view of customer engagement over time. Each team can drive more business through events. 

    5. Top-Notch Security 

    Finally, because all-in-one platforms capture so much information about attendees, they require the highest standards of security. Finding a platform with industry-standard certifications and other security features keeps everyone safe, shielding you from potential lawsuits, fees, and other consequences. 

    6. Dedicated Support

    Finally, the event platform provider should have the bandwidth and expertise to support your complete event portfolio. A partner with proven implementation processes, complete training, and a team to assist as needed will help your events succeed and increase your team’s efficiency.  

    Request a demo to learn how RainFocus unified event management.

  • From Data to Deals: How Sales Reps Can Harness Event Data Without Leaving Salesforce

    From Data to Deals: How Sales Reps Can Harness Event Data Without Leaving Salesforce

    The typical sales rep faces a daunting quota, a busy schedule, and a plethora of account information to manage. They rely heavily on their CRM — most often Salesforce. That’s why disrupting that workflow by asking reps to frequently switch to other platforms to get vital information or complete event-related tasks is a recipe for inefficiency. 

    For events teams, time is also of the essence. Both want fully optimized, memorable events that engage clients and prospects — and help close deals. The new RainFocus integration for Salesforce streamlines information flow and enables sales reps to take actions right within Salesforce. From making sure their prospects register for relevant events to drawing on data from session attendance to create personalized post-event follow-up, sales teams can maximize and accelerate pipeline from the highly valuable events channel right in their familiar Salesforce environment. 

    The real-life benefits are nearly limitless. Here are just three of the many common scenarios during the event lifecycle in which empowering sales reps to connect directly through Salesforce can increase efficiency and impact across the organization: 

    1. Booking meetings at relevant events: Mayra’s prospect Danny is an IT director and member of a buying group at an account she’s looking to sell into. From her LinkedIn research and record notes, she knows he’s been working to obtain a particular new security certification. Without leaving Salesforce, she nominates him to attend her company’s upcoming conference that offers relevant continuing education credits and easily schedules a meeting around his scheduled workshops. At the event, Danny gains new credits and a wealth of knowledge — and has a productive face-to-face conversation with Mayra that helps a complex multimillion-dollar deal advance another step forward.  
    1. On-site arrival monitoring: Sometimes the simplest data is the most vital! As his company’s massive conference kicks off, enterprise account manager Paul wonders if his most high-profile clients have arrived and checked in yet. Paul used to text the events and marketing teams to ask them to check the registration system records and keep an eye out for these VIPs. Now, with the Salesforce integration, he accesses this information instantly on his phone. He greets his clients warmly, helps a delayed attendee find her way later, and monitors attendance scans at sessions and VIP outings throughout the event to ensure they enjoy an optimal event experience. Meanwhile, the event leader comfortably focuses on delivering a top-notch event without being interrupted by attendance questions from Paul and the rest of the organization’s large sales team.
    1. Follow-up actions and content: Each event’s impact continues long after the mainstage lights turn off and exhibitors have packed up. Ellie, who is a regional account director at an organization that just held a successful annual conference, wants to continue the momentum. She knows many target accounts had plenty of representation at the conference. By instantly viewing attendance and engagement reports, she can send emails and content that speak to each person’s topical interests and business needs. Notes from all of her on-site meetings — all of which were also scheduled right through Salesforce — further build out the details. Each conversation picks up right where it left off at the event. As a result, Ellie’s recipients feel truly understood and educated rather than bombarded with generic or repetitive outreach. 

    A robust event platform is a game-changer for events and marketing. It delivers even more value once you bridge tech gaps across the organization. For sales reps who live and breathe Salesforce, meeting them right where they are unlocks a new layer of efficiency and results.

    Learn more about the new RainFocus for Salesforce app here.

  • How to Boost Team Efficiency With Event Insights 

    How to Boost Team Efficiency With Event Insights 

    With budgetary pressures and high expectations from multiple stakeholders, many events teams are looking for ways to work more efficiently while creating memorable attendee experiences. Our newest e-book, Mastering Event Efficiency: Best Practices for Maximizing Your Budget and Delighting Your Attendees, offers a wealth of tips. You’ll find event planning secrets from today’s industry leaders who spoke at this year’s RainFocus INSIGHT 2024 conference.

    One key to event efficiency is the smart use of generative AI. Many event teams save time by using these tools to complete analysis, modify copy, transcribe audio, and more. Our e-book explains how these and other uses can streamline mundane processes and allow teams to focus on strategic work that optimizes attendee experiences. 

    Efficiency also increases substantially when teams fully put data to use. There are thousands of ways to leverage event data to improve events. As we know, events capture more data about customers and prospects than any other marketing channel, but marketing and sales teams need to receive those event insights in time to act on them. 

    When applied strategically, event data helps organizations achieve their goals, including increasing pipeline, retaining more customers, and building brand awareness. Here are just a few of the ways our panelists are using event data most effectively: 

    • Referencing past event data to put together personalized recommendations
    • Building engaging 365-day experiences from popular themes, sessions, and activities
    • Using attendees’ interests and demographics to build connections and bolster existing communities 

    You’ll find these tips and many more in our e-book. Download your free copy now!