Experience Issues #8: once the party is over, how do you keep the connection going?
Thoughts, ideas and tips on how to extend the effect of your event beyond its official end date.
No more champagne.
And the fireworks are through.
Here we are, me and you.
Feeling lost and feeling blue.
It's the end of the party. It’s the end of the event. And the feeling of emptiness and emotional exhaustion starts creeping over the joy and euphoria you’ve been feeling just minutes ago.
Fun fact: it’s not just you.
It’s your attendees as well.
As long as you did a great job creating emotions and activating endorphins during the event, all participants will experience a “happiness hangover” afterward.
Your job is to capture this state and use it to build even stronger relationships and long-lasting affinity with your audience.
Key takeaway: continuing the experience beyond its official end is what makes people crave and come back for more.
“Happiness Hangover” cure
I tend to learn a lot in this life through my own mistakes experiences. And the story you are about to read is not an exception.
I am an avid Cuban salsa dancer. Meaning that pre-covid I would go to a large festival almost every other month, party, and practice at the studio whenever I had a chance.
When do you think I normally purchased tickets to the next festival?
Within 24 hours of the previous one being over. Quite often, while I was waiting for boarding at the airport.
The level of “happiness hangover” would be so high (or low, I am not sure what would be the right description here), that I would spend quite some funds without a second thought just to guarantee that I can get my next portion of endorphins soon.
It took me a bit of time to realize that this pattern can (and should be!) translated to my professional world, and become part of my events strategy.
More often than not, you see events and experiences end together with the last person leaving through the door or closing the browser tab.
And actually, some of the attendees would really love to get a “hangover cure” from you!
So what can you do to make it work?
Ripple effect
Of course, not all experiences are created equally and have an equal effect on the attendees. Yet, the main idea I want you to take away today is the following:
No matter what scale or emotional strength, it is crucial for the success of any event to keep the momentum going and create a ripple effect.
Depending on your goals and resources, you can use different tactics and have quite a lot of fun with them. I’ve gathered a few of them below to get your creativity flowing:
Hooks & hints
I absolutely love using this tactic for all of my events. It’s the easiest one - the key is to let people know (directly or indirectly) that something will be coming their way.
From a follow-up with valuable materials to something bigger like a special offer.
Don’t give it all away at once, but just enough to make people wait eagerly for a message from you.
Surprise and delight
Unlike with hooks & hints, this should be totally unexpected. Who doesn’t enjoy a gift from a stranger?
Gifts are often used as a tactic to lure people in and attend on the day, but I challenge you to flip it around and send the gifts afterward and serve as a reminder about good times you shared.
Bonus points for making it instagrammable and encouraging the recipients to share on social, tell stories, and tag you.
Stepping stones
Just as I was ready to swipe my credit card and get that festival pass, your attendees are much more likely to sign up for your next event, webinar, meetup…you name it, right after a positive experience.
Plan in advance what the next step of the journey should be, if people choose to continue it!
Use hooks & hints tactic to tease it a little bit during, and make an offer within 24-72 hours after while the magic still lasts.
The circle of life
(Just in case you are singing in your head right now, here is the direct spotify link to keep you company)
Probably the most talked-about tactic. Also, the most challenging to get right.
Community.
Ideally, your events are closely intertwined with your community and are both a way to engage and recruit new members. A community doesn’t mean a slack channel or a facebook group - it’s a movement people want to be a part of.
By far, it’s the best way to keep the momentum going beyond the splash of an event.
To me, the key is bringing people in there ahead of time under the “event umbrella” and working on a smooth transition to the wider topics right after. As well as meeting people where they want to engage, which may mean juggling a few channels at once.
I will be honest here, this one I haven’t cracked yet. But it’s on my “next to tackle” challenges list, so stay with me here and on linkedin if you want to observe my wins & struggles over the upcoming months. And join our conversation exactly on this one during Event-Led Growth Summit on May 24 😎
Experience Highlights
Just two for today, both with rapid-fire hands-on ideas for post-event engagement:
Creative linkedin thread about the follow-up ideas - not necessarily after the events, but a lot of golden and unexpected thoughts spread over 122 comments.
Ahrefs twitter thread for the swag lovers - pulse check of what people actually want to get from a brand in 2022.
***
I am typing this from a tiny coffee place in Copenhagen filled with perfect smells of freshly baked banana bread, sourdough, and espresso. I might feel a “happiness hangover” just after leaving this place! So I will probably get a cup “to go” to keep the momentum going for a few more sips…
Thank you for reading this far and being with me through winter and spring. The next time I land in your inbox it will be summer!
See you on June 5th!
Yours truly,
Aleksandra