In this episode, Victoria Rasmussen, marketing director at BW Events Tech, shares how her team approaches sponsorship across roughly 19 events a year, split between 10 direct sponsorships and nine partner-initiated events. She argues that prioritizing sponsor relationships over transactional revenue creates a longer, more generous cycle for both sides, and that most sponsor reporting problems trace back to registration flows that never asked for the right data in the first place. Rasmussen is also direct about one industry habit she thinks is overrated: handing sponsors the full attendee lead list. For event professionals building or refining their sponsorship strategy, this episode covers what data to collect, when to collect it, and what a genuinely strong sponsor experience looks like from the sponsor's side of the table.
"I tend to prioritize partnerships because it's a very generous cycle."
— Victoria Rasmussen
"If you want data, you have to ask for it at the beginning."
— Victoria Rasmussen
"Lead lists for the entire event are overrated."
— Victoria Rasmussen
"People are craving the human touch and that personal connection."
— Victoria Rasmussen
"Don't just benchmark against what you did last year."
— Victoria Rasmussen
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Victoria introduces her role at the 100% remote, Barcelona-based team and talks through her go-to event day shoes and current watch/read list.
Rachel:
Welcome to "Event Experience by Bizzabo," the podcast where we bring the best and brightest event experience leaders together to share stories, tips, and lessons learned from creating some of the world's biggest events. I'm Rachel Moore, your podcast host. For this episode, we're welcoming back a familiar face and voice from Bizzabo's recent webinar, "How Event Teams Can Deliver Better Sponsor ROI."
Rachel:
Victoria Rasmussen, marketing director at BW Events Tech, sponsors several events throughout the year. Wait until you hear how many. And she shares insights on building relationships and leveraging data for better sponsor ROI. It's time we look at the sponsor side of your event experience.
Rachel:
[00:01:00] Welcome back, everyone. Another episode of "Event Experience" is ready for you, and our guest is ready.
Rachel:
She is the marketing director at BW Events Tech, where she sits at the intersection of critical thinking and creativity. I love those two together. And that translates a deep understanding of event tech and logistics into brand strategy that actually resonates. We all need that. Since entering the industry in 2017, she's brought a problem solver's instinct to every role, a perspective sharpened by her MSC in marketing and business analysis from the University of Edinburgh, and her roots as a technical project manager.
Rachel:
Jealous of all these things 'cause it sounds pretty awesome. Almost too good to be true, but it's not too good to be true. She's actually here. Victoria Rasmussen is our guest. Victoria, thanks for joining us.
Victoria:
Hi. Thanks, Rachel. It's great to be here
Rachel:
It's awesome to see you again. I, I get to share microphones with you again after we had you on a recent Bizzabo webinar. But for anyone who [00:02:00] is listening or watching, listening to or watching this and doesn't know you you especially just from the only two sentences I just said about you and described you I would love to toss it back to you and give you an opportunity to tell us more about yourself.
Rachel:
What is your world like? What's your day like? What's it like to be Victoria for a day?
Victoria:
Oh, amazing question. My favorite question I ask myself every morning. So I work for BW Events, as you mentioned, and we are 100% remote, so I have the pleasure of being based in Barcelona, Spain. Um, It's a lot of fun. Fun two to 10 schedule. But it's been really great. I'm really passionate about, like, the events community, and especially here, I mean, in the US, but also in EMEA, meeting so many amazing event professionals.
Victoria:
Yeah, life's good.
Rachel:
I am, like I said, I am le- legit jealous. I mean, Barcelona is awesome. I've never been. I have had the privilege of going to Edinburgh and actually my niece got to study there as well, so I'm always just like, "What's it like to be surrounded by the most amazing, like, [00:03:00] castles and historical buildings ever?"
Rachel:
And then also you get to have what is it? The deep-fried Mars bars and deep-fried Snickers bars I think they had there, too.
Victoria:
Yeah. So good.
Rachel:
Yeah. My husband was all like, "I can't believe you're eating that." I'm like, "What are you talking about? You're having haggis. Come on."
Victoria:
Well, I mean, I feel like it ties to my Texas roots 'cause we do the deep-fried Twinkies. So just really have a passion for deep-fried. Here we got the croquettes, you know,
Rachel:
Y- yes. Oh my gosh. All right, deep-fried. This is a deep-fried episode, everyone, so everyone should make sure you find us on social when this episode comes out and also say, "And by the way, my favorite deep-fried thing is this." But I-- Well, see, w- this is perfect. We've already dabbled a little bit into some, some more kind of personal questions, getting to know you stuff.
Rachel:
I have a few more for you. One of these is gonna be a little, it's a repeat, so anybody who did watch the webinar that you were on about sponsorship for Bizzabo is gonna know the answer to this question already, but I'm gonna ask you here. What are your go-to on the ground event day shoes when it's like, "Oh my God, several hours, we all [00:04:00] have to be running around," what are you wearing?
Victoria:
Yes, heels. Just kidding.
Rachel:
I'm like,
Victoria:
to surprise everybody. Uh, No, ASICS Sambas are my fave.
Rachel:
nice. Very nice. Always
Victoria:
Never wear heels on site.
Rachel:
No, I mean, it's, I guess it's good to have them in a bag somewhere. I gotta tell everybody I have aband- I think it was pre-COVID I ava- I abandoned them, and I'm just like, "I don't need them. I'm not gonna do it anymore." So, I'm so glad that comfortable sneakers and stuff too are kind of more the trend and have been for a while.
Rachel:
Yay. Is there anything that you're listening to, watching, or reading these days that you cannot put down? And it doesn't have to be work or events related
Victoria:
My best friend got me hooked on Stardew Valley. I know it came out, like, 10 years ago. But that's where a lot of my free time has been going.
Rachel:
I love That,
Victoria:
and I'm in a fantasy and romance book club
Rachel:
That's amazing
Victoria:
So yeah, we just had a meeting yesterday.
Victoria:
We read [00:05:00] Across the Vanishing Sky for anyone who likes thrillers mixed with a little bit of romance
Rachel:
Ooh, all right. Nice. I am a big fiction girl, so I might have to go check that out. Yeah, don't feel bad either. Like, I think "Avatar: The Last Airbender," I mean, y'all, I have a tattoo on my shoulder or my arm of them, and w- I didn't tap into that until it had been out for almost 10 years.
Rachel:
So, you know, sometimes these shows, they just kinda recur and they come back around for people. Does there happen to be a particular social post or a piece of media or even a hot take about events that you thought was interesting lately?
Victoria:
Yeah. Well, Rachel, you know I'm also a LinkedIn girly. But Opus actually had a really interesting post recently that was talking about the new different trends when it comes to F&B, which is not an area I usually touch on, but I'm very passionate about food in general. And so just what we're seeing about like at events making food more experiential, you know, making it be something people actually wanna eat instead of just sustenance.
Victoria:
I think my biggest take from [00:06:00] that though is that event planners always need to make sure there's enough. There's nothing worse than when there's not enough food on site
Rachel:
Oh my gosh. Yeah, just like I gotta be honest, my husband almost-- We were talking about places we've been. He almost left me in Dublin one time, he says. He's very proud to keep recounting this 'cause he's like, "You were getting hangry, and I was done." And I was like, "That's fair." 'Cause I, I turn into, like I literally turn into, you know, the, the Snickers diva commercials.
Rachel:
That's me. Yeah, I turn into that. I am not pleasant to be around. I try to work on it, y'all, but sis gotta eat, so if I'm the one that's going up there and rolling up and they're like, "Oh, there's no-- I'm sorry, there's no more food?" What? And so it, it's not a good turn of events.
Victoria:
Yeah.
Rachel:
pun intended. Yeah. Good point. Thank you so much. Yeah. We've actually, we've touched on F&B a, a little bit here, too, on some of these episodes as well, whether it comes to like, non-alcoholic options being a, a kind of a, a very welcome adjustment that people are doing. So yeah, so we talk a lot about [00:07:00] events on here, and what I'm really excited to have you back on for is because we did have you, you were one of our panelists on a recent webinar.
Victoria breaks down BW Events Tech's sponsorship volume, roughly 19 events a year, and explains why she prioritizes long-term partnerships over one-off transactional deals.
Rachel:
It is now available on demand, everybody. And you absolutely should go, by the way, go watch it because we did. We're not lying. Victoria and I are not making this up. There was a tornado scare that happened, and it made it quite interesting on top of it just being generally interesting because the topic that you were an expert sponsor panelist about was how event teams can deliver better sponsor ROI.
Rachel:
So you, like I said, you were in the hot seat of being the sponsor that was representing sponsors on that webinar. So first of all, I wanna set the stage a bit. Can you share with us the scope of how many events you, your business, your company sponsors each year, and maybe describe a little the types of events that you sponsor?
Victoria:
Yeah, of course. So we have a very active field marketing schedule and we're just hoping to grow that even more year over year. Like mentioned, very [00:08:00] passionate about the event community and giving event organizers a place to just chill and actually network and enjoy being around each other. It's a little meta.
Victoria:
So leading into that, I think last year we ended up doing a total of about 19 different events. 10 of those were sponsorships and then the other nine were either events that we kind of initiated and brought in partners for, or we sent people to Suitcase or Scope Out. Always love to do a little bit of research before you commit to a sponsorship.
Rachel:
Mm-hmm. 19. 19 you said. So the 19th-- 'Cause there's, there's 12 months in the year, so that's, there's a couple months where you're doing more than one.
Victoria:
Exactly. Some months are better than others.
Rachel:
Are we in busy season right now or does that, or is it kinda just span?
Victoria:
Oh we are kicking off, I think we even have in three weeks from now, so the week of [00:09:00] September 14th, I think we're involved in some way or another with four different events/activations, whether we're attending a conference... actually no, that's five.
Rachel:
Oh my God. Okay. Even
Victoria:
Yeah, it's busy.
Rachel:
Well, see, and that, that's helpful because I wanted to kind of lay the groundwork because these are all insights that our audience of event planners want. They're like, "How many are you dealing with?" There's a lot, which obviously means, and it's super interesting to hear you say, too, like you're sending suitcase, you know, so you're sending people out to be like, "I want you to go get a read on this event if it's something we want to sponsor," that is happening, and that's really interesting.
Rachel:
And I want to point out something, too. So in the webinar, for all of you who do go take it in on demand, there was a recurring theme in your responses that I really appreciated about what's important to your brand is you do select who and what you'll sponsor, and that theme is relationships.
Rachel:
We kept coming back to [00:10:00] it, which was really cool and interesting. So, one might assume that it wouldn't be relationships, it might be revenue or ROI. But you're talking about relationships. How do you think those two connect? Like, how do you connect relationships and revenue in your approach to sponsorship selection?
Victoria:
Yeah, 100%. So for us, we're really unique because we know where we sit in the industry. We are a pla- platform agnostic event agency. And so for me, I tend to prioritize partnerships because it's a very generous cycle.
Rachel:
Yeah.
Victoria:
Like, you invest in your partners, you know, they understand that you value their partnership.
Victoria:
And it, I think it adds a little bit of skin in the game and that commitment to working with each other
Rachel:
Yeah. Yeah, that makes a ton of sense. So, I mean, I think we work in the events industry, right? It should all be about relationships, but when your focus is on partnerships and trying to cultivate those, and I love the whole platform agnostic thing too. [00:11:00] You're like, "Listen, we've gotta be the thing for everybody, as many people as possible."
Rachel:
You really are. So it's way less transactional than you are trying to kind of foster those more long-term. How long have you had some partners for a long time? Like, are we talking years for some of these folks, or...
Victoria:
Oh, for sure. Yeah. Exactly. So you know, BW has been around since about 2012, but we really gained traction during COVID with our event tech expertise and helping companies move digitally. Since then the number of partnerships we've had with event platforms, mobile platforms, et cetera, has just grown, I don't wanna say exponentially 'cause that wouldn't be data accurate, but it's always stronger than ever.
Victoria:
And so it's amazing to see some partners that we've had especially we'll just say since 2020 see their capabilities grow, see how they've grown as a platform. And I truly believe each platform, you know, every good brand has a USP, a unique selling proposition. [00:12:00] And so depending on our clients' needs, what values they're looking for, it's amazing to be able to recommend a platform or, you know, take whatever platform they're on at the moment and expand the capabilities of maybe you don't need a change where you're at.
Victoria:
Maybe, you know, we just need a little extra help to explore capabilities.
Rachel:
That really just seems like that increases your credibility then, because you're not focused or trying to push one particular platform ahead of everybody else.
Rachel:
You really are trying to say, "Well, I'm, we're looking at your situation based on what we know," which is vast, because I would imagine because you are doing all these sponsorships, you're seeing the whole landscape and stuff, but you really are able to be like, "Well, let's lend you some expertise that we have.
Rachel:
It can be a little objective for you," and just that kinda added context, if you will, and really help them make the right decision, right?
Victoria:
Exactly
Rachel:
Yeah, 'cause listen, I love going to events, but you go to a lot, so I imagine you see you're just able to [00:13:00] have the kinda like omniscient view of like all the platforms and all the things they can do and all the trends that are happening and the developments and stuff, right?
Victoria:
Yeah. No, it's crazy to see just-- And also too how fast the industry is developing and just the capabilities gaps are closing and getting tighter year over year
Rachel:
Yeah. Yeah, tech moves fast to no one's great surprise.
Rachel:
We'll be right back with more Event Experience after the break.
Speaker 5:
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Victoria explains what separates a great sponsor experience from a transactional one, including a shoutout to proactive communication and shared content planning.
Rachel:
We're back with Victoria Rasmussen to ask her how she defines an exceptional sponsorship experience from event teams that she works with.
Rachel:
Now one thing you mentioned in the webinaras a, an entity that does sponsor oftentimes you're not provided, like, a wealth of insight into the strategy of the event team that's planning the whole experience. I call that out because I know our audience are event planners.
Rachel:
They're all like, you know, we're the ones who want the sponsor to, you know, have an experience with us, and maybe they don't see the inner workings of how we're running everything. What they do experience is how we are interacting with them, what we are giving them. And this is where your perspective as someone who sponsors is pure gold.
Rachel:
What are some of your favorite aspects, like the things that define a great sponsor experience for you? Like, how do you know you're like, "Oh my gosh, this event team nailed it. I'm so enjoying this sponsorship experience." What makes that happen?
Victoria:
Yeah. [00:15:00] I mean, I think great communication. I know that's very cheesy. Shout out to Lauren from Bizzabo. She is one of my favorite people to partner with. Her run of show documents and prep is just absolutely phenomenal. And so it's really exciting to be included in the process beyond maybe a larger event where you are just another number, you know, take your booth, submit your specs but where you're really able to craft something that looks at the objectives of both parties and it's not just like, "Hey, wanna bring the event community together," which a lot of events are like, which is great, but we wanna create maybe a memorable experience and showcase and have discussions about X, Y, Z, and we want to bring, you know, A, B, C people in the room, and really working together to cultivate that audience as well as build content together.
Victoria:
For another event we're [00:16:00] sponsoring, we are really excited to be the opening party sponsors, and so it's been really fun actually even being involved in like, hey, some of the activations and different FNB and just different elements and really feeling like it's a true partnership versus something we're just sending a check over for.
Victoria:
I think that makes a big difference
Rachel:
Yeah. and really, you know, speaking to our event planners who are fans of the show and listen to it to do better and be better. But it's like, yeah, I mean, think about how any of us wanna be interacted with if, like, we're, you know, gonna go spend maybe a chunk of change you know, of our own money perhaps somewhere.
Rachel:
We want to make sure that doesn't feel super transactional, like, "Well, just give me your money and that's all I care about," right? You wanna feel like they're, "Well, wait, can we talk more?" You know, can we have, have that partnership and develop this?" Right?
Victoria:
Yeah, 100%. I think also too, you know, brand is very important to me as a marketer, as I'm sure [00:17:00] you agree. But just being able to inject a little slice of your brand into the overall, like, sponsorship as a whole. And also when the sponsorship teams from the event side are just really... And I know it's hard, I know everybody's, like, really tight on time, but when they set up the strategy to begin with and are super proactive and loop you in, there's nothing worse than feeling like, you know, you've been left behind or feeling like as a sponsor you're driving your sponsorship
Victoria answers a webinar audience question about improving sponsor reporting on lean teams, and explains why the fix starts before registration even opens.
Rachel:
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah, I would imagine 'cause listen, a- and this actually lays up the next question really well because everyone's busy. Everyone's running with probably lean teams. I mean, you know, I know from your side you're doing the 19 field events a year. You mentioned like there's one week that you're like in five different spots, you know?
Rachel:
And it's like, ah. So you can just imagine there's that leanness exists, and I know, I, and my dear event profs, I'm talking to you out [00:18:00] there right now. I know you're on lean teams. I know you are just like, "Oh my gosh, it's Monday right now, and I..." You know, whatever day of the week it is that you're listening to this.
Rachel:
But it's like, it's you're just trying to get through, and you're trying to be that stellar, and you are trying to give a sponsor like, you know, BW Events and Victoria, you're trying to give them that, "Oh God, how can I just give you that kind of just stellar experience as a sponsor?" so this question was submitted by the audience in the webinar.
Rachel:
And again, reminder everybody, the webinars are awesome. Like you submit questions, and we answer them at the end with the panelists so you can get your own, you know, it's a lot, you know. This podcast is great, but you don't really get to ask us things in real time versus on the webinars you can.
Rachel:
So go attend it. But this came from someone in the audience on the webinar. They said a lot of event teams know their sponsorship reporting needs work but they're already stretched thin, so this gets into that lean teams thing, and they, but they're like, "But we know the reporting that we give the [00:19:00] sponsor needs to be better."
Rachel:
So it's coming from somebody who, or a team it sounds like, who's like, we may- maybe it's one person, maybe they're just, they are, they're just super thin team. They have to get reporting to the sponsors, and it sounds like if I'm gonna assume stuff, they probably are getting feedback like, "Is this it?
Rachel:
Is there not more?" Or maybe it's not robust or maybe it's not timely. So, and that's a lot based on, well, we only have so many people on the team and hours in the day. So how could that team maybe improve one thing that would make everybody's experience better?
Victoria:
No, that's a great question. I think, and so sorry, but you have to start from the beginning in what you're collecting. Like If, you want data, you have to ask for it at the beginning. So I would recommend before your registration is even launched, make sure you sit down and work with your reg teams to figure out what types of data your sponsors are gonna want.
Victoria:
Like, you know, they probably don't [00:20:00] care about how many vegetarian or gluten-free meals are available. You don't need to share that whole part of the reg, flow. And also for GDPR compliance, you shouldn't necessarily share all that data. But if you can collect feedback about, you know, what your sponsors feel like is missing or maybe even just take time before it kicks off, before registration kicks off to do some research.
Victoria:
You know, chat with your BFF Claude but just kind of figure out what types of things are valuable for reporting in general, whether it's like company to size, industry, et cetera. And make sure you're getting those data points from your registration flows. So I would say time is of the essence, like you have to be strategic before things even kick off.
Victoria:
And if that's not the case, I know sometimes reg platforms are really cool and they offer maybe kiosk, like additional [00:21:00] questions or maybe you log in again and additional reg questions are thrown your way. Like there are ways to get those data points, but getting it from the beginning and working with your registration flow teams to make sure those questions are implemented in the first place is gonna be the least hassle possible.
Rachel:
That sounds, that makes a ton of sense. I love that you mentioned too, it's like you don't have to do that in a silo. You can figure it out. And even like you said, based on what registration platform you're using, maybe there's opportunity to go back in later and all, it's, and that, that makes a ton of sense 'cause it's almost like a nurturing kind of thing, where it's like, "Well, we got this initial stuff from you, but hey we have a couple more questions just to keep, you know, kind of
Rachel:
refining your experience,"
Victoria:
Maybe before they're able to go in and add their sessions, you know, maybe there's just two more questions that are a blocker before they're able to access that. So yeah, so there are ways to, like, corral that data, but honestly, just getting it from the get-go is gonna save you the least amount of heartache
Victoria shares her hot take on attendee lead lists, what data points actually matter to sponsors, and why compliance has to be built in from the start.
Rachel:
Yeah. [00:22:00] Can I ask, is there ever, like, a data point that you feel sometimes is absent from... Or when it's absent, if it's absent, you'd be like, "Ugh, I wish this, they had included this in the reporting and now I've gotta go ask for it," or it's just not there and I'm frustrated. Is there anything like that?
Victoria:
Yeah. I mean, you know, the big four, first name, last name, email address, company. I really like though when industry is included. It helps break things down a bit more if you know, like, hey, I know my key target industries that we're looking at first. But honestly too, and this is my hot take as a former lead retrieval specialist from back in the day but like lead lists for the entire event are overrated.
Victoria:
Like those aren't connections that you guys nurtured unless you had a crazy big sponsorship where your name was everywhere and you were also speaking and your brand was exposed at least eight times to somebody. If you don't have that [00:23:00] spark of connection, it's just a lot more work to drive it. And also when your person maybe receives your email list or is reached out to by a rep, they're gonna be way less likely to be interested in connecting with you if there isn't that personal touch.
Victoria:
I won't say it's completely useless though, because you never know who maybe needs exactly what you're offering. But just think about how many emails you get in a day, Rachel, or in LinkedIn messages.
Victoria:
especially like AI generated, all the subject lines are the same. Like people are craving the human touch and that personal connection.
Victoria:
So if your sales reps are at an event, they're your boots on the ground, you know, they should be scanning badges, but really for only like valid opportunities and, you know, valid future opportunities. And they should take notes. Make sure your lead retrieval device has a notes field and your sales team uses it.
Rachel:
Oh, absolutely. Gosh, just to be like, [00:24:00] "Oh, I'll just remember it." You will not remember it. You will not, especially if it's like a multi-day and that, you know, you talk to 50 people after that person. You're not
Rachel:
gonna have that retention
Victoria:
and you know, sometimes people are scanning right and left. I can't tell you the number of times as someone working at the desk, I had my badge scanned, I had my eyeballs scanned, crazy stuff. But you know, those marketing teams probably weren't happy to have this leader retrieval specialist in their totally different industry mailing list
Rachel:
I love this though. I mean, that really does that lends a lot of insight into why... I mean, I thank you so much for that too, because it's like, well, I know how this works, and I know all the fields and the things that are important and how you actually do scan and how these how the operations of it works, of it works.
Rachel:
But it's just so-- And that's such good in- good feedback too. And so event planners that you're listening or watching great insight there into like, "Oh, let me make sure I get those fields 'cause those will be helpful, advantageous and whatnot to [00:25:00] the sponsor." And you know, more data better, and then they can narrow it down from there, right?
Rachel:
Because better not be missing it at the end and be like, "Oh crap, we could've asked that. Darn."
Victoria:
100%. And
Rachel:
Yeah.
Victoria:
yeah, and make sure that, like, whatever you're doing as sponsors, I'm sure you know, but just, like, compliance is a big thing. Make sure you are processing that data and getting consent from those end users that, you know, it's gonna go to all these people
Rachel:
that's really important. I mean, anyone who's uses HubSpot I think they just, you know, I, and I know they're not the only ones, but like there was a little alert saying, "Hey, new GDPR rules went into effect in the EU, so you need to be mindful." And they're like, "Okay. Yep, you're right."
Rachel:
Better to err on the side of compliance rather than run afoul of that, for sure.
Victoria predicts more personalized swag and a shift away from year-over-year benchmarking, then closes with advice for busy event professionals.
Rachel:
I have one final question for you. I can't believe we're already like, you know, 2027 is literally just a few months away.
Rachel:
Victoria, do you have any predictions that you might like to share about what's ahead for 2027 for events, sponsors or [00:26:00] events? Whatever you got. Anything interesting, you're like, "This is totally gonna happen"?
Victoria:
Yeah. All right. Buckle up. I think we're gonna see a little bit more fun in events in terms of like activations and stuff that people can do to create and really like solidify their experience
Victoria:
I mean, just like instead of maybe to dig deeper as an example, instead of maybe just getting like a T-shirt as a piece of swag, you know, maybe you get a custom charm bracelet with different charms that represent different things from the event. Like, I think, I mean, this ties a bit back more to personalization, but I think we're gonna see things get a bit more tactile in terms of like objects that we collect, but they're gonna be shiny and pretty and personalized and brand relevant
Rachel:
I want a charm bracelet now. Man. All right. Whoever's out there, find out what events I'm going to and just make sure there's charm bracelets, 'cause
Victoria:
You [00:27:00] get one charm for each event
Rachel:
Oh my gosh, I would love that. Oh, it'd be like the Kentucky Derby kind of thing or like, what do they call that? The Run for the Roses or something like that.
Rachel:
I think they... Yeah, let's do it. I love these ideas. Well, Victoria, awesome to have you on always. I know we're kinda coming to the end of our time. I do have the easiest question of all which is a nice way to wrap up. Where can our listeners find and follow you online?
Victoria:
Yes, I am on LinkedIn. So feel free, Victoria Rasmussen, Critical Thinking Meets Creativity
Rachel:
Victoria wants you to sit down and breathe as you hear her advice for event profs to skill up.
Victoria:
Event planners, event organizers, I love you. You're doing great. Take a breath. Take, like, even just 30 minutes, turn off all your notifications, [00:28:00] and just sit down and breathe and be strategic. Like, nothing is that important that it has to happen right this second. Maybe sometimes on-site, but fortunately, we tend to have quite a few weeks of prep before that happens.
Victoria:
But I feel like sometimes we end up being so reactionary that we miss the opportunity to use our big, beautiful brains and be creative and be strategic and put ourselves in other people's shoes and just have time to think.
Victoria:
give yourself some grace, but also, like, buckle down and take that 30 minutes to be strategic
Victoria:
And I'm really excited because I feel like this sentiment is really going around the industry. But like metrics are important and it's what we did last year, or we have more reges than last year. And just benchmarking without any strategy or thought and just comparing to last year, no, please.
Victoria:
It's not good enough. Like, your attendees, are taking time [00:29:00] out of their lives. A lot of the time they're traveling really far or they're giving up a day in their office in front of their computer where they could be getting stuff done to come to your event to network. And so you should really take the time to figure out what it looks like for your attendees to have a successful event, what it looks like for your sponsors to have a successful event, and create those benchmarks and metrics from scratch.
Victoria:
And, you know, you can look at what you did last year, but don't just benchmark against what you did last year
Rachel:
Thanks again to Victoria Rasmussen for joining us on Event Experience, and thank you for listening. If you're enjoying the show, we'd love to hear it. Connect with us on social and subscribe, rate, and review us wherever you're listening.
Rachel:
Also, don't forget to share the show with your colleagues and friends. You can find transcripts and key takeaways of each episode on bizzabo.com/podcast. On behalf of the team, thank you. We'll be back again soon with a new episode of Event Experience.
