Perhaps you’re not into animated movies, but take note – the message applies to anything, especially your event. If audience experience is your focus (and it should be), understand that eliciting a strong emotion (positive or negative), lays down the tracks for a strong memory. And the bigger the emotion, the more likely it is to be tied to a “core memory” as Inside Out addresses. Think about it: recall a memory that is important to you. Maybe from earlier in the week when you (insert funny/realistic example here); maybe from childhood when you (insert funny example here). How you felt is likely more salient than the details. It’s like the Super bowl commercials we all anticipate. We remember the ones that made us laugh or cry and the best ones can even go viral. We remember the story of the commercial often better than we remember the company that created it.
You want people to feel that attending your event was a wise decision. And you want them to relive the moments and recall the experiences well after checking out of their hotel or driving home. You want people to spread the news, on social media, to friends and co-workers when they get home. You want people to walk away feeling inspired, energized, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic. To do this, you need to think deeply about what creates emotional connections and then strive to strike those emotional chords.
You have a finite number of moments at your event where you have the attention of your entire audience. Don’t miss the chance to leverage every moment.
Look for opportunities during your event where you can surprise, include and delight your attendees. These are elements that create binding emotions.
Have unannounced speakers, entertainers, musicians, etc. Being from Seattle I was particularly delighted to see Satya Nadella invite Russell Wilson on stage at Microsoft’s Convergence event in Atlanta this year. Fly a drone through the common area with a video camera and project the video for all to see, it excites and delights everyone. Salesforce is excellent at creating surprise moments. Last year they had The Beach Boys play at their event unannounced. It was a complete shock for the audience and a great surprise. Never in my life had I even contemplated seeing The Beach Boys live and now…I have, and I have Saleforce.com to thank for that treat.
Include the audience where possible. Bring them closer to your speakers. Create the thrill of getting to see your keynote speaker up close. This year at Cisco Live, John Chambers walked through the aisles and engaged directly with the audience. If you check out the video of the keynote you can see the excitement and enjoyment of being so close to Mr. Chambers. Mark Benioff and his executive staff that spoke in the main keynote at Dreamforce all walked the floor of the keynote space. Mark made sure he walked down every aisle. This ensured he was no less than 5 seats away from every person in the room at some point during his keynote. I watched everyone swivel their heads to watch him and pull out their phones to snap photos of him as they came by their seat. These people won’t soon forget that experience.
I said it in my first blog, and I meant it. You need to focus on turning your event into a happening. Make it something people don’t want to miss.
When you bring all of these elements together, you have the opportunity to create a lasting impression that goes beyond the immediate buzz of the moment. You are truly able to give your audience an event that they’ll be talking about for a long time to come. And the mark of true success is when they come back next year and bring their friends.
When you bring all of these elements together, you connect emotionally. It becomes memorable.
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As CEO Randy sets the vision for the company, building strategic partnerships, and ensuring the Spur culture thrives. Randy has been with the team for over 14 years and has been instrumental in growing the business and developing our people.