ASSOCIATION GUIDE TO

LAUNCHING A

VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Publ ishe d | May 2020

2 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

MESSAGE FROM DON NEAL

When did your association begin its annual

conference or tradeshow? Was it ten, twenty,

fifty or even one hundred years ago? What

other products within your industry existed in

1920 and lasted until now without an update?

We are now living in exponential times—

Covid-19 is changing the association

landscape and accelerating the adoption

of technological advances that are luckily propelled the association

industry forward. It’s time to embrace this change and reinvent your

organization’s most important product: its annual meeting.

When (not if) your organization pivots to virtual, your event can

continue to be the best manifestation of your organization, as long

as you thoughtfully approach the 9Ps covered in this guide.

Don Neal

Founder & CEO

360 Live Media

If the rate of change on the outside

exceeds the rate of change on the

inside, the end is near. — JACK WELCH

Thought Starters

for Leadership

1. Are you replacing your live event,

or are you adding on a virtual

component?

2. What are your hesitations

for going virtual?

3. Do you have budget to allocate

to tools?

4. If we are taking a Board meeting

virtual, have we looked at our

bylaws to ensure our governance

allows for virtual voting and

quorums?

5. Is your budget able to provide for

subsidized registration fees?

6. How comfortable are your senior-

level people with virtual tools?

7. How has your constituency been

affected by this pandemic?

8. Can you combine other things

from your portfolio into this

event?

9. What is the most important

message you want to convey

with this event?

3 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

P U R P O S E

[ A S P I R AT I O N ]

We have already established that your virtual conference is a product—

people “hire” it to do a job. What, exactly, is that job? The answer lies

within your event’s purpose.

As an association leader, it is your job to ask the question: “Is our

conference/tradeshow performing the job our members hire it to

do?” For the past several decades (or more), association events have

followed the same rote and unimaginative format: classroom-style

learning, repeat speakers and networking opportunities that hardly

inspire meaningful connection.

Through your new virtual meeting, you have an opportunity to

look at the big, blue ocean and turn your virtual conference into an

experience—one your members crave.

One type of experience may blend a curated thought-leadership

forum, applied learning and emerging trends. Think Aspen Ideas

Festival meets Dreamforce meets a hackathon environment—an

experience that connects you to others who share similar issues. It

connects you to companies that can help solve your problems. At the

end of the day, that is what your members want: They don’t want

to buy; they want community, and they want to problem solve.

Moreover, they want their problems solved through collaboration

that only your association’s virtual conference or trade show can offer

them in 2020.

Thought Starters

What is your event’s purpose?

To answer this question, you

must first evaluate, “Where are

we coming from, and where are

we headed?”

1. What is your virtual

event’s purpose?

2. What job does your

virtual conference do,

and for whom?

3. What value does your

virtual conference offer

your members that other

events cannot match?

4 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

P E O P L E

[ A U D I E N C E ]

Think about world-renowned events such as SXSW, TED and Burning

Man. Do you see these events as your competition?

If you answered “yes,” you are correct. Your association competes

with every great experience that conditions your audiences to expect

the unexpected and extraordinary. These for-profit experiences have

succeeded where so many association events fall short—they create

an unforgettable, intimate experience. In today’s economy, one-to-all

marketing is dead. Your members have come to expect a one-to-one

strategy.

You can’t treat all Millennials the same. You can’t treat all women the

same. Take a step back, segment your audience and identify key cohorts

within that audience, because segmentation by age or gender is not

enough. By developing audience personas, you can effectively

determine how individuals within a group think. You can also define

their motivations, aspirations and typical behavior patterns.

Apply the following six filters to segment your audience:

The personas that pour out of those filters will offer you actionable insights

upon which you can apply to your virtual conference marketing strategy.

Thought Starters

Who are your people?

1. How does each person

attending your virtual

conference view the event?

2. What value do they seek

to gain?

3. Who do they aspire to

be, and why?

4. What distinctions define

each cohort and distinguish

it from the rest?

5. What are the common,

shared needs among

your cohorts?

PSYCHOGRAPHIC

DEMOGRAPHIC

ATTITUDINAL

GEOGRAPHIC

BEHAVIORAL

FIRMOGRAPHIC

5 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

Your virtual conference is a product with features, benefits and

rewards. It provides value to attendees for a price. But how does this

tie in to your overall marketing strategy?

Picture a Mercedes Benz—why do people buy it? A Benz has specific

functional, sensory, expressive and emotional rewards. When you

purchase a Benz, you buy more than a vehicle. Each element within a

Benz brings a sense of luxury, stature, pride and prestige to its owner.

As owner of the product (experience), you want your members to leave

your event with that same sense of luxury, stature, pride and prestige—

even if they aren’t leaving in a Mercedes Benz.

WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF YOUR PRODUCT?

What rewards do your members expect from your annual conference

or tradeshow? To find the answer, evaluate the four dimensions of your

event experience:

PHYSICAL How do you bring the virtual event space to life?

Do all guests convene in one virtual meeting room, or do you

divide the audience into intimate breakout rooms?

INTELLECTUAL Does your experience offer a single learning

style, or do you offer various learning tracks that are tailored

to adult learning styles? Is PowerPoint the only learning format

used, or do you find different methods to engage your audience?

PHYSIOLOGICAL How are you fueling your guests? Are you

encouraging meal breaks; or are you energizing them with music

or imagery

EMOTIONAL How does the experience emotionally engage

your members? Can guests unlock genuine connections

through curated virtual networking experiences and

signature moments?

If you understand these four layers and all that they represent, this can

provide an excellent rubric for which you design your experience product.

P R O D U C T

[ E X P E R I E N C E ]

Thought Starters

Can you define your product?

1. What are the functional,

sensory, expressive

and emotional rewards

of your event?

2. How does your event

deliver on the four

dimensions of every

experience?

3. What are the most

meaningful experiences

in your live event that you

want to preserve in your

virtual event?z

4. What do you want your

online schedule to look like?

One session a day?

Year-round?

6 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

Your brand is not the name of your virtual conference or the color of

the logo—your brand is a promise. It reflects your ability to deliver

upon that promise time and time again. Your brand’s reputation is an

amalgamation of your past promises kept and broken.

World-class brands make promises and deliver on them at every

touchpoint. The promises you make to your members should be

consistent at your live and virtual events, throughout your membership

strategy and even when advocating for your organization on Capitol Hill.

Consider the engagement you have with your audience, and ask

yourself what promises you’ve made. Of those, which have you kept?

Which have you been unable to keep? Ask yourself why you have been

able to keep certain promises and why you have been unable to keep

others. Often, you may find patterns arise through such introspection,

detailing what works and what doesn’t.

What is the unique position your event holds in the minds of your

audience? What do you offer for your industry that only you are

uniquely poised to deliver? Find thought leaders and experts who

deliver the same value that your brand promises for learning and

education. Design an experience that delivers the same value you

promised in your membership communications. Create a consistent

brand experience, and be willing to live and die for it.

P O S I T I O N I N G

[ B R A N D I N G ]

Thought Starters

What is the perception of

your conference brand?

1. What position do you

occupy or own in the minds

of your audience?

2. What promises has your

organization made to its

members? Which have you

kept as you transition from

a live event to virtual?

7 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

A misconception among association leaders is that annual conference

and trade shows are one-time events. Promotion and engagement for

your virtual conference should take place year-round.

Does your marketing and promotion carry the same tone and

personality as your event? Is the conversation carried seamlessly

throughout all channels? Have you tried the same media strategy

year after year, or are you ready to tackle innovative tactics, including

geofencing, responsive display ads and product placement? Your

promotion campaign is how you create excitement before your event.

Most association event promotion follows a path of better sameness:

sessions, keynotes, taglines and event hashtags become incrementally

better year over year, but without great impact. Surely the world is

ready for promotion with more imagination. Challenge yourself

to evolve with your virtual event.

Thought Starters

Are you communicating about

your new virtual product with

clarity?

1. Does the marketing

campaign for your virtual

conference look the

same as your live event

marketing plan? Would it

motivate YOU to attend? If

not, what would?

2. How are you promoting

the value of on-demand

content at home?

3. How will you demonstrate

the value of virtual space?

P R O M O T I O N

[ C O M M U N I C AT I O N ]

8 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

How does your event—both conceptually and visually—tell its story?

Consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies design each product to

stand out on a supermarket shelf. How does your event stand out against

all the for-profit and non-profit events your audience could attend instead?

When reinventing your event, your packaging needs to stand out.

Your members should see your branding and think, “That can’t possibly

be the Association Annual Event.” Your packaging is where

your brand comes to life—all creative work included. Down to the very

last font, color scheme or illustration, your packaging creates visual

impact for your audience. Learn to see and speak about yourself

differently—that’s how you reinvent.

Thought Starters

What story does your event tell?

1. Are your messaging, media

and creative (display ads,

brochures and social posts)

aligned, compelling

and timely?

2. Does your packaging

deliver on the brand you

want to create?

3. Does your packaging

appeal to an international

audience who may be

inclined to attend your

virtual conference?

PA C K A G I N G

[ C R E AT I V E ]

9 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

When it comes to your virtual event’s location, hosting an online

event can be more similar to an in-person event than you may think.

Sure, you won’t be conducting a site visit to inspect the exhibit hall,

hotels, or breakout rooms—but you still need to conduct “site visits”

(as in, websites). You should test as may technology platforms as

possible to identify which one will best deliver on your objectives for

your online event.

Additionally, you need to think about the experience of your event’s

virtual environment. How clear is the wayfinding for an attendee or

industry partner? How are you communicating updates throughout the

event so that people know when and where to be? What is the backup

plan for when technology isn’t working as intended? How will your

industry partners engage with attendees?

Finally, you’ll need as many support staff for a virtual conference as

you would on-site. They will just have different role and responsibilities.

Identify ways of refocusing your events team into roles they can

fill effectively and efficiently. For example, perhaps your on-site

programming coordinator can pivot and provide speaker coaching for

the new virtual environment.

P L A C E

[ L O C AT I O N ]

Thought Starters

Where is your meeting?

1. What tools will help best

accomplish your audience

needs? Do you have software

in-house that will meet your

needs?

2. Are you using one technology

platform or would you and

your attendees benefit from

2–3 platforms?

3. What unique experiences

does each platform provide?

4. Where are your speakers

hosting their presentation?

Are they prepared to offer

the best attendee experience

through optimal framing,

lighting, video and internet

connection?

5. Do your speakers have notes

onscreen or off-screen?

6. Is there a person on tech or

ready to provide backup if

the speaker has technical

difficulties?

10 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

Contrary to what you may believe, the price of your product is not

merely the cost of registration. The real price of an experience is what

your audience pays to attend, including airfare, hotel arrangements,

dining and opportunity cost. Does the value of your experience justify

the cost?

We define value as V=Q/P, or quality over price.

Your price point should reflect the other 8 Ps of your event. How does

your price reflect your Purpose? Do you offer enough creativity and

variability in your pricing structure to best serve each audience cohort?

Does your pricing structure fulfill the promise made by your brand?

P R I C E

[ T R U E C O S T ]

Thought Starters

Your price point should reflect

the other 8 Ps of your event.

1. How does your price reflect

your Purpose?

2. Does your pricing structure

fulfill the promise made by

your brand?

10 Things to Consider When Pricing Your Event

1. What is the ultimate goal – revenue, attendees, something else?

2. What are your break-even costs?

3. How has your audience been affected by this situation?

4. What kind of barriers to entry does your audience have for a virtual conference?

5. Do you have time to try out different pricing levels?

6. Do you offer enough creativity and variability in your pricing structure to best serve each audience cohort?

7. What value-add things can you include?

8. Do you have the resources to provide ongoing content or engagement?

9. What are your competitors doing?

10. Is this a one-time virtual conference, or will this become a new offering for you in the future?

11 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

Now, let’s talk numbers.

Before you make the decision to reinvent, you must first define what

success looks like. Do you know the answer? When you picture a

successful annual conference or trade show, what does that mean for

you, your organization, your board and your members?

We measure success using the following 6 Rs:

REACH: Are you reaching the broadest possible audience in your

attendance acquisition initiatives? Are you attracting enough of the

right people?

RETENTION: Is your live audience registering for your virtual event, or

are you filling a leaky bucket?

RELEVANCE: Do you create programs that deliver on what matters,

engage your audience and build community? Does your virtual event

deliver on what the industry needs today?

REPUTATION: Would members recommend your virtual event to a

friend or colleague?

REVENUE: Are you attracting six-digit sponsorships? Do your

exhibitors see the value in the virtual experiences you have created for

them to network with attendees?

ROI: How does your annual conference or tradeshow impact your

bottom line? Is engagement considered in your return on investment

equation?

P E R F O R M A N C E

[ R E S U LT S ]

Thought Starters

Which of these 6 Rs is most

critical to your organization?

1. Is your event growing by at

least 15% year over year?

2. Is your event relevant, and

reaching and retaining the

right people?

3. How could your event

increase your bottom line?

12 360LIVEMEDIA.COM | THE 9 Ps OF MARKETING

It takes courage to admit that the event landscape as you know it

has changed. But to truly move your organization forward,

you must realize: It’s not just about the event.

It’s about the value proposition of your organization, your team and

your leadership, and it’s about asking questions:

• “What will drive our organization forward the next ten, twenty

or fifty years?”

• “Why do we even have an event?”

• “What is its purpose?”

These are the questions you must begin to ask yourself and your team.

Using the 6 Rs as goalposts and the 9 Ps design methodology, you

have the foundational tools to effectively reinvent the most valuable

products of your organization. Going to market with the best product

possible puts the wind at your back and inspires your industry with a

bold new vision forward.

C O N C L U S I O N :

[IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT THE EVENT]

Your event is

simply a catalyst—

a Trojan horse to

carve a path for

your organization to

make the changes

necessary to survive

and thrive.

SCHEDULE A 60-MINUTE CONSULTATION

To schedule a free, 60-minute virtual event consultation

and to talk about your organization’s goals, visit

360livemedia.com/virtual

1717 RHODE ISLAND AVE. NW, SUITE 640, WASHINGTON, DC 20036 | 202 .660.1600 | 360LIVEMEDIA.COM

1717 RHODE ISLAND AVE. NW, SUITE 640, WASHINGTON, DC 20036 | 202.660.1600 | 360LIVEMEDIA.COM

LET’S TALK

Don@360LiveMedia.com