 |
The Benefits of
Leveraging All Events
People are looking to your web site right
now to find out about your events. You know that if your information
is incomplete, inaccurate, out-of-date, or missing altogether you’ll
not only lose an opportunity to build attendance but also leave
a negative impression with your web visitors. They’ve already
demonstrated interest by coming to your site, you don’t want
to disappoint them.
Being a Good Host Means You Welcome Your
Guests
But what happens when you lease your facilities
to another organization? Does it matter if “their” event
appears on “your” site calendar? Unless you’re contractually
obligated, it’s “not your job,” even though your
organization’s name is associated with the event. Like it or
not, people will come to your web pages in search of information
about the presenter’s event.
Ask yourself:
• What
impression of your organization persists if you fail to provide
the information visitors are looking for, or merely hand them off
to another source?
•
Do you want to exercise editorial
control over how your organization is presented to the general public?
•
Would you like visitors to linger
on your site to learn more about you?
How Big Is the Issue
Hosting events have a significant impact
on web traffic. Let’s describe several different scenarios:
1. 50-100 serious dancers, ages 12-24 and from as far away as 200
miles, will attend a weekend workshop hosted at a university. The
dancers will work with 10-15 instructors and the weekend will feature
two public performances with expected audiences of 500-1,000 each.
Although the university is not sponsoring the event, its rental
fees have been discounted because some students and staff are participating.
You can expect 50-70% of the workshop participants and concertgoers
to visit the University web site for information about the weekend’s
activities.
2. A local group is renting your main concert hall for a performance
by a popular choir on tour from Europe. 1,500 people are expected
to attend. 40-60% of the concertgoers, many from outside your local
area, will visit your web site for information.
3. A voter education group is hosting a political debate in your
main theater and expects anywhere between 500 and 2,000 people to
come. 3,000 people will visit your web site for information.
4. You lease your athletic facilities for a summer sports camp that
draws between 200 and 400 kids for each of the two two-week sessions.
1,000 people will visit your web site for information.
The Host is Always Held Responsible
It is in your self-interest to list all
events, even if not every one is “yours”. Making a good
impression is good for your image. Avoid creating obstacles you’ll
have to overcome later when you don’t (or can’t) answer
information about what is going on in your facilities. The visitors
who come to your web site are a part of your future; they may not
know or care who “owns” the event, but they are going
to associate it with you nonetheless.
Leverage the Opportunity
A visit to your site is a prime opportunity to market your organization,
events, and mission. Web visitors are open to learning more about
you; the cost of marketing to them is minimal compared with their
high value to your organization. Why pass on this opportunity?
• By
providing the information people need about any event, you make
it easier to promote your mission and your events. The functions
you host for others broaden your marketing reach. Properly leveraged,
your sales costs decrease and your marketing effectiveness increases.
• Make
the most of every site visit.Your sales costs will go down and marketing
effectiveness will increase.
The Solution
eventDB makes it easy to communicate detailed information about
any event through your web site. Now your site can easily become
the single source of information about all events that are associated
with your institution.
The Bottom Line
You want everyone who visits your web site and attends events at
your organization to have a favorable impression of you and your
facilities. You want to encourage visitors to find out more and
grow to support your organization and its mission. Myxa’s eventDB
is a simple, yet powerful tool that makes it possible!
return to top of page
Copyright
2002-2006 Myxa Corporation
|
|
