Creating Memorable Event Experiences | Event Marketing Ideas

Summary

In this video, Ben discusses a strategy to create unforgettable event messages by crafting pass-along stories. He shares a personal anecdote about an employee's experience at a conference, highlighting the power of experiential storytelling. Ben guides viewers through an exercise to develop such stories, emphasizing the importance of identifying the storyteller, setting the scene ('campfire'), creating an irresistible tale, and evoking a specific emotion. He concludes with a real-world example of how focusing on attendee emotions can lead to memorable experiences and stories that are shared beyond the event.

Takeaways

• 😀 The importance of creating unforgettable event messages through storytelling.
• 🏆 A real-life example of how an attendee named Kevin shared his memorable experience at a conference.
• 🛹 The concept of a 'pass-along story', which is a story that attendees naturally want to share with others.
• 👥 The significance of understanding the storyteller's perspective, including their identity and environment.
• 🔥 The 'campfire' concept, which represents the setting where stories are traditionally shared among people.
• 📖 Tips on crafting an irresistible tale that includes a beginning, middle, and end, with elements of transformation, novelty, and surprise.
• 🏅 The role of emotions in storytelling, emphasizing that attendees are more likely to remember how they felt rather than specific details.
• 🤔 A strategy to build a pass-along story by working backwards from the desired emotion to the event details.
• 📝 The exercise of envisioning the storyteller, the campfire, the tale, and the emotion to create a compelling narrative.
• 📈 A practical example of how the speaker tested the effectiveness of a pass-along story by asking attendees to recount their experiences.

Q & A

What is a pass-along story according to Ben?

A pass-along story is an unforgettable narrative that people naturally want to share with others, often because it makes them feel good or proud.

Why is it important for event marketers to create pass-along stories?

Event marketers should create pass-along stories because they help to create memorable experiences that attendees will recount, which can enhance brand recall and engagement.

What is the first step in creating a pass-along story as suggested by Ben?

The first step is to define the storyteller, which involves envisioning the attendee's characteristics such as their name, where they hang out, and their job title.

What does Ben refer to as the 'campfire' in the context of storytelling?

The 'campfire' refers to the setting or scenario where the storyteller would share their story, such as at an office or a dinner party.

What makes a story irresistible to talk about, according to the script?

A story becomes irresistible to talk about when it makes people feel good or proud about themselves, prompting them to share it with others.

How does Ben suggest building the 'tale' or the actual story?

Ben suggests considering elements like transformation, novelty, surprise, and superlatives to make the story engaging and memorable.

What is the most important aspect of a pass-along story, according to Ben?

The most important aspect is the emotion it conveys, as attendees tend to remember how they felt during the event more than the specific details.

How does Ben recommend determining the emotion for the pass-along story?

Ben recommends starting with the desired emotion (e.g., love, appreciation) and then working backwards to craft the story elements that will evoke that emotion.

What was the emotion Ben aimed to evoke in the event he discussed in the script?

The emotion Ben aimed to evoke was love and appreciation for the attendees' jobs and themselves.

How did Ben test the effectiveness of the pass-along story from the event?

Ben tested the effectiveness by calling attendees and asking them to recount the story they told others after the event, focusing on the emotions and experiences they shared.

What was the outcome of Ben's testing of the pass-along story?

The attendees recounted stories focusing on their experiences and emotions, often using adjectives like excitement, appreciation, and inclusion, which aligned with the event's goals.

Outlines

00:00

📣 Crafting Unforgettable Event Messages

In this segment, Ben introduces a strategy for creating memorable event messages by sharing a personal anecdote about an employee named Kevin who attended a conference. Kevin's experience of designing a skateboard with a professional skateboarder after hearing the president of Vans speak on experiential marketing inspired Ben. Ben emphasizes the importance of crafting 'pass-along stories' that resonate with attendees and encourages event marketers to think about creating experiences that transform into shareable stories. He suggests an exercise to develop such stories, starting with envisioning the attendee (the storyteller), identifying the setting where the story will be shared (the campfire), and considering what aspects of the event (the tale) will make attendees feel proud to share their experiences. The exercise aims to help event marketers build stories that evoke specific emotions, which are the most memorable part of any event.

05:01

🎉 Eliciting Emotions Through Event Storytelling

The second paragraph delves deeper into the application of the storytelling strategy by recounting an event Ben hosted for top clients. The goal was to make attendees feel love and appreciation for their work and themselves. Ben discusses how the event's format and the experiences it provided were designed to elicit these emotions. After the event, Ben tested the effectiveness of the 'pass-along story' by asking attendees to recount their experiences. He found that attendees focused on the emotional aspects of the event, such as the connections made, surprises, and memorable moments, rather than the content itself. This confirmed that the event's emotional impact was successfully communicated and remembered. Ben concludes by encouraging viewers to apply these storytelling techniques to their own events and to engage with the content by leaving comments and subscribing to the channel for more event marketing insights.

Keywords

💡Event Message

An 'Event Message' refers to the core communication or marketing strategy used to promote an event. In the context of the video, the emphasis is on creating an unforgettable event message that resonates with attendees and encourages them to share their experiences. The video discusses how to craft such messages by focusing on creating shareable stories that are emotionally impactful.

💡Pass-along Story

A 'Pass-along Story' is a narrative that attendees of an event find so compelling that they naturally want to share it with others. The video highlights the importance of designing experiences that result in stories attendees are eager to recount, using Kevin's skateboard story as an example of a successful pass-along story.

💡Experiential Marketing

Experiential marketing is a strategy that focuses on creating engaging, interactive experiences for consumers to connect with a brand or product. The video mentions a talk by the president of Vans, emphasizing that connecting with the audience through shared passions is crucial in retail, which is an example of experiential marketing.

💡Storyteller

In the video, the 'Storyteller' refers to the attendee who will share the event experience with others. The script encourages event marketers to envision the attendee's characteristics to craft a story that resonates with them, making the narrative more personal and impactful.

💡Campfire

The 'Campfire' is a metaphor used in the video to describe the setting where stories are traditionally shared. It represents the social context in which the attendee might recount their event experience, such as a workplace or a social gathering, and the emotional tone they convey while sharing.

💡Tale

The 'Tale' in the video refers to the actual story or narrative that is crafted for the event. It should be something that attendees find irresistible to share due to its emotional impact or the pride it instills. The video suggests focusing on elements like transformation, surprise, or superlatives to make the tale compelling.

💡Emotion

Emotion is central to the video's theme, as it is what attendees are most likely to remember from an event. The video stresses the importance of designing event experiences that evoke specific emotions, such as love or appreciation, which then become the core of the pass-along stories.

💡Transformation

Transformation in the context of the video refers to a change or development that occurs within the event's narrative. It is a key element in crafting a tale because it provides a dynamic and engaging story arc that attendees are more likely to find memorable and worth sharing.

💡Surprise

Surprise is an element that can make an event story more shareable, as it adds an unexpected twist to the narrative. The video suggests that including surprising elements in the event can lead to stories that attendees are eager to recount due to the unexpected nature of their experiences.

💡Superlative

A 'Superlative' in the video is used to describe an extreme or outstanding aspect of the event that sets it apart. By creating experiences that are the 'best' or 'most' of something, event marketers can craft stories that attendees are proud to share because they highlight a unique and exceptional experience.

💡Backwards Storytelling

Backwards storytelling, as mentioned in the video, is a technique where the creation of the event story starts with the desired emotion and works backward to the initial event design. This approach ensures that every aspect of the event contributes to the intended emotional outcome and the resulting pass-along story.

Highlights

The importance of creating unforgettable event messages through storytelling.

The anecdote of Kevin's experience at a conference, highlighting the power of experiential marketing.

The concept of a 'pass-along story' and its role in human memory and communication.

The significance of building stories that resonate and are shared by event attendees.

The exercise to create a pass-along story, starting with envisioning the attendee.

The 'campfire' concept, where stories are shared, and its relevance to event storytelling.

Crafting a tale that is irresistible to share, focusing on emotions that make people feel good.

The structure of a good story, including a beginning, middle, and end, with elements of transformation and surprise.

The critical role of emotions in event storytelling and how they are the most memorable aspect.

The strategy of working backwards when building a story, starting with the desired emotion.

An example of a successful pass-along story from an event hosted for top clients.

The desired emotion of 'love' and how it was integrated into the event's storytelling.

Testing the effectiveness of the pass-along story by asking attendees to recount their experiences.

The focus on the emotional adjectives that emerged from attendee stories, such as excitement and appreciation.

The conclusion that event content is less memorable than the emotions experienced during the event.

A call to action for viewers to engage with the content and subscribe for more event marketing insights.

Transcripts

Hey guys, it's Ben and today we're gonna cover a strategy that will make your

event message unforgettable.

Okay, quick story. Yesterday, an employee of mine, Kevin, came back from a

conference. I asked him about the conference because I saw a photo of him

on Instagram holding a skateboard. And Kevin responded, "The conference was

amazing, it was so good. That skateboard, I actually designed that with a

professional skateboarder and it was, it was so cool." And I said, "Where was it? Tell

me more." And he said, "Well I did it right after I heard a story from the president

of Vans talking about that the only thing in

retail that really works anymore is connecting with your audience

experientially through their passions and then I made a skateboard." And you

know he said to me, "I was really impressed with Vans." And you know it

occurred to me that what Vans had done really really well was build a

pass-along story for Kevin to tell me about. A pass-along story is a pretty

crazy idea. It's the idea that we as humans, we remember by recounting, by

telling people things. We repeat things and they dig deeper into our memories.

And so, as event marketers it's our job to think about how we can build stories

or really experiences that become stories for our audiences. And it's a

really important thing to consider and really more important is, how you're

building it. So, let's walk through a quick exercise to think about how to

build a pass-along story for your next event. Hopefully, you'll find this, find this

effective. Question one, the storyteller. Who is your attendee? Try to think about

that person, really envision them. Think about what makes their avatar. What is their name?

Where do they hang out? What is their job title? The more specific you can be about

this person, the better. The next question is, what I call the campfire, right. And

the campfire, I call it this because this is where we tell stories, right? Humans

have been telling stories around the campfire since the dawn of time and so,

you almost want to imagine a scenario where your storyteller would deliver

their story. It might be at the office, it might be at a dinner party, right? It

might be amongst their friends while they're just hanging out, like, where

would they tell that story? And you really want to write that piece down too

and kind of imagine the emotion that they're telling the story with. And now,

we're moving on to the actual story. Let's call that the tale.

And you always want to like, think about this as like candy, meaning like, what

could they just not resist telling their friends about. Now, here's a quick hint on

building a story that's irresistible to talk about. When you make people feel

really good about themselves or proud of themselves, that's usually it's

something that they need to tell someone about. So, when you're building a story

you want to think about what will make them feel proud to tell someone else. And it's

not just that a story has a couple different points to it, there's like a

beginning, middle and an end to any good story. So, as you're building the tale you

might want to think about, was there a transformation involved in this story?

Was it something new that they saw? Was there a surprise? People love talking

about something that they thought was gonna happen, but instead something else

completely different happened, right? Was it, was it, a superlative? Was it like the

best or the most that they had ever happened? Like what is peg or a storyline that

you can really build for them? We're gonna call that the tale. And the fourth

question, the fourth question is actually the most important and kind of the most

fun. I call this the message, but you might also want to call this the emotion,

right? Because the message especially in events is the emotion. And I actually, I

learned this from one of the earliest days of my event-planning

career. Someone said this to me and it was one of the most frustrating things

I've ever heard, but also one of the truest things I had ever heard, which is

that, emotions is really all that an attendee ever remembers. They usually

don't remember what you tell them at the event. What they remember is how they

felt at the event. And so that's what you want to focus on when you're building

this message. You want to think about what emotion you want someone to feel,

right? And that's question four. And emotions could be something like,

admiration or do they feel like you understand them, like, empathy. Do they

feel inspired? Do they feel excited? Do they feel loved?

What is an emotion that someone is going to feel, okay? So, we've gone through that.

We've gone through the storyteller, the campfire, the tale, and the emotion. And so,

once you have all those written down, here's the trick to building the story.

You want to work backwards. You start with number four and you work your way

to number one. Okay, so let's try an example of how to

build a pass-along story by using one of the events that I hosted a couple months

ago for some of our top clients. Now, our clients are some of the top event

marketers in the world and we brought them all together in a really cool venue

here in New York. And I'd gotten together with my team in advance to think about

what emotion we really wanted them to feel. And the emotion that we came to

after a lot of debate was that, we really wanted them to feel love. Love and

appreciation for their job and for themselves and for the craft that they

do. Okay, so that's where we started. How do we get them to feel love? We threw

around a lot of ideas for storylines that they would take away and really

what we landed on was that one of the most important things that we could

focus on was, the format of the event and kind of how their experience would play

out throughout the day. Okay, so fast-forward till after the

event, I wanted to test this pass-along story and see how effective we were so, I

called up a lot of the different attendees and asked them not, you know,

"How was the event? Or, "Did you like it?" But, instead what was the story that you told

when you got home? And more than that, who did you tell it to? So, "Re-tell me that

story," I asked them and they did. And the story's more often than not really

weren't about the content that they learned or a certain data point that

they heard, but instead they started to talk about what had happened. They talked

about somebody that they had met at a cocktail hour or a piece of swag that

was now sitting on their desk that they were really excited and surprised by. Or

a musical interlude that had happened right before a speaker and the violinist

and how amazing she was. And really, that's what they focused on, but what was even

better was that interwoven into each of those stories was, the emotion. And they

were using really interesting adjectives and over and over again we started to

hear words like, excitement and appreciation and inclusion and it was

those adjectives that we wrote down, because that was our goal, that's what we

were focusing on. Because remember guys, it's not about how you communicate your

content and what you say, but instead what people are gonna remember inside of

these stories is how they feel. All right, that's it.

Good luck with all of your next events. Please do leave some comments in the

comment section below and let us know what you think. And we'll make sure to see

you next time for the next Run of Show where we will be talking about more nerdy

event stuff. Talk to you guys next time.

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