The days before, during and after a big industry conference are some of the best possible times to engage your target audience. Your recipients are naturally excited about the upcoming meeting, the topics and speakers are top of mind, and communication that relates to the event is going to be extremely relevant to them.

If you’re doing it right, what the people on your list do at the conference can also be a great inputs for further segmentation. When you take these activities into account, you can continue to micro-target communication for the very best outcome.

Here’s how to get results: Send a pre-conference note one week before the event starts. During the conference, implement an omnichannel approach including emails, live interactions, geo-fencing and push notifications. Using these inputs, segment further, and then once everyone has returned home, about 5-7 days later (don’t wait longer than this) send thoughtful follow ups or even a survey. When we follow this strategy, we see results that soar above benchmarks.

During the conference itself, having a plan for frequent, relevant communication from multiple channels is key.

“We can layer on an SMS component where our clients promote a short code or vanity code in the emails and on their website. We’ve even had people put them on bus headrests in the shuttle that goes from the hotel to the convention center.  HCPs can opt in and then get texted in real-time. When they opt in we can message them with things like “Hey, are you planning to attend this speaking engagement in 10 minutes? It’s in the ballroom right ahead of you. Don’t miss it!” 

– Adam Wertheimer, SVP of Partnerships

Here’s What Else to Focus On:

Real Time Data

Whatever the conference topic, look for opportunities to pull in real time data and track exactly what attendees do when they visit our clients’ booths. If you know that Dr. Liz engaged with product A, and Dr. Brooke engaged with product B, that’s going to determine which hyper-relevant follow-up post-conference message gets sent.

Geofencing

Implement smart geofencing so that when the conference attendees are in the right vincity they wil see bespoke banner ads or messaging promoting a panel or a particular booth.

Post Conference Survey

Wait a few days for everyone to return home after the conference and then send out a conference survey, polling recipients about their likes and dislikes. This is great intel to add to segmenting data for even sharper messaging going forward.