360 degree visitor management

" PARTICIPATING IN A TRADE FAIR WILL HAVE A MUCH MORE EXCLUSIVE CHARACTER IN THE NEAR FUTURE."

Adventics CEO Gunnar Heinrich on a new strategy for trade fair organisers and the associated success tool, "360 degree visitor management".

WHAT IS 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT?

360-degree visitor management, or community management as it is sometimes called, offers event organisers the basis for understanding their target visitor groups, interacting with them and providing them with tailor-made offers. Some still know the term exclusively as "visitor management". But in my opinion, this does not fully capture the scope of the term. After all, community management for trade fairs really means all participants, i.e. visitors as well as exhibitors, staff, association and press representatives and all other stakeholders involved in the run-up to and during a trade fair. And it also covers the entire life cycle of a trade fair event. From interest and profile management for invitations to the entire behaviour management with questions such as "Which stands are preferred? Which surveys are answered? What is the general interaction like?" - Community management optimises the value of the entire event as a 360-degree analysis process.

WHY WILL TRADE FAIRS NEED TO FULFIL AN INCREASINGLY HOST-LIKE ROLE IN THE FUTURE?

Organisers should always be aware of their role as hosts, and not just when considering 360-degree visitor management. Which host would not look after their guests once they have entered their home? Anyone who invites guests to a barbecue usually knows what their guests do for a living, what their hobbies are, what they like to eat and responds to them accordingly. Both on a small and large scale, there are immense advantages in optimising the use of these guest profiles. But I keep realising that trade fair companies could know more about visitors. After all, even if the square metres of the stand end up on the exhibitor's bill, the right visitors to the stand are the real product that exhibitors are ultimately prepared to pay for. But what company could afford to know as little about its products as trade fairs know about their visitors?

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT?

In my opinion, 360-degree visitor management has countless advantages. Because, as already mentioned, visitors to a trade fair are not just another customer group, but also a special "product" that, in case of doubt, tips the scales in favour of an exhibitor's booking decision. After all, trade fairs compete with many other marketing opportunities for a significant role in the marketing mix and thus for their share of the budget. In addition, every visitor and every exhibitor has different roles at a trade fair. In addition to their professional profile and the reasons for their visit, they are also always private individuals, members of a certain age group, influencers for their professional and private networks and much more. This holistic community management system maps this extremely important multi-role issue in its entirety. It enables precise communication with visitors and their individual interests. Ideally, I can accompany participants throughout the entire customer lifecycle and make exactly the right offers to suit the situation.

WHICH ROLE DOES CORONA PLAY IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT? CAN THE CURRENT SITUATION SPEED THINGS UP?

The pandemic and its dramatic impact on the event industry are creating opposing conditions for community management projects. On the one hand, the data basis and legal requirements have never been as favourable as they are now. On the other hand, some trade fair companies are hesitating with implementation because the slump in sales has initially frozen many project budgets. However, corona should definitely accelerate the initiative towards 360-degree visitor management. The current global situation offers good reasons to do so. Trade fair organisers are now required by law to record all profiles of all participants, whether visitors, exhibitors or suppliers, for example. And they have to manage visitors very precisely. At the moment, for example, peak times must be avoided due to the minimum distance regulations, but visiting times and the most popular areas must be known. The number of hybrid or digital events is also increasing due to coronavirus. This is certainly inevitable at the moment, but digital components will also play an important role in the future to complement face-to-face trade fairs. And good, content-rich data is an absolute prerequisite for this. If I don't have that, I don't need to plan, hold and try to monetise completely digital events.

ARE THERE ANY RISKS AND DISADVANTAGES?

Principally not. All aspects of data protection law must of course be planned and complied with in advance. I see inadequate organisation and insufficient use of digital solutions as decisive risks. If you don't plan this properly, you won't have the data quality you need and will incur unnecessarily high costs. Good consulting can quickly minimise these risks and also has the advantage of being able to reliably contribute proven experience and national and international best practice examples. The wheel does not always have to be completely reinvented.

WHAT DO STAKEHOLDERS NEED TO DO TO ENSURE THAT 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT WORKS RELIABLY?

Only if the entire process chain constantly utilises and enriches the information generated by the management process will it be able to demonstrate its true value. This starts with the management, which must recognise the value of the information and promote it throughout the entire organisation. After all, 360-degree visitor management is an issue for the various organisational units. It doesn't just affect marketing or project management and certainly not just IT.

WHY DON'T EVEN MORE COMPANIES IMPLEMENT A 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT CONCEPT?

Good question. For many years, it has been discussed and recognised as a need for action. Nevertheless, many trade fair organisers are finding it difficult. There are already drivers for this topic in the individual event areas of a trade fair. However, successful implementation requires an overall corporate effort to implement this consistently across various events.

WHY SHOULD TRADE FAIR ORGANISERS INVEST IN A 360-DEGREE VISITOR MANAGEMENT SYSTEM NOW IN PARTICULAR?

The simple answer is: because it pays off in the short term. Setting up a stringent 360-degree visitor management system is indeed an investment. But you will already notice the effects at the next event, whether virtual or live on site. Not to mention the long-term benefits that can be expected. When trade fairs can start up again, we will see fewer exhibitors and visitors on site. This does not necessarily have to be a disadvantage if you can manage quality in a targeted manner with a 360-degree visitor management process and the information available. In fact, the individual data obtained there will become more valuable. Participating in a trade fair will have a much more exclusive character in the near future.

Cost awareness is understandable right now. Nevertheless, decision-makers now have it in their hands to create a central basis for success with integrated 360-degree visitor management, especially in the near future. And what do fishermen do when the sea is too stormy? They stay in the harbour and mend their nets. I think it's an advantage that the organisation currently has time for such innovations, which go far beyond the introduction of a technical system. This opportunity should be taken.

Munich, 05 November 2020, © adventics GmbH