Hertford, England -- (SBWIRE) -- 09/23/2015 -- UK small business owners believe that they should be running events to support business objectives, yet less than one in ten actually does.
The latest research suggests small businesses are neglecting events as part of their marketing mix, despite considering them a key significant growth opportunity.
The stats come at the same time as it has been revealed 96% of people prefer interacting with businesses face to face rather than online, which highlights the importance and inherent opportunity for small businesses to make and benefit from a personal connection with their customers.
Says Luis de Souza, CEO of NFS Technology Group: "Building personal relationships with customers is a key way for small business owners to differentiate themselves from larger competitors, which are often perceived as faceless. Small businesses can easily build and reinforce these personal relationships by running customer-centric events on top of their daily interactions with them."
"The latest technology such as Rendezvous from NFS is a simple to use solution for small businesses which can bring together all aspects of event planning and management within a single platform. Rendezvous can deal with the main aspects of event management, from client CRM information to booking space, catering and other services as well as dealing with commercial aspects such as event billing."
NFS has compiled seven dos and don'ts of running an event for small businesses:
1. Do - know your customer or attendee. Successful organisers understand why people would want to attend their event, clearly communicate those benefits in their marketing, and consistently deliver a good experience on the day.
2. Do - make the most of your network. It's surprising what people will help you out with if you ask, especially if you include brand exposure for their business to your audience.
3. Do - make the most of the technology tools available. Make the most tools out there that can save you time and simplify your event marketing.
4. Do - be different. One characteristic that successful event organisers share is that they stand out from the crowd. Find your niche and build your events around it.
5. Do - encourage those who've registered to attend your event to share their plans and experience on social media. People naturally want to attend events that people they know are going to, and this is especially with the mobile revolution allowing real time updates, so this is one of the best ways of boosting your attendee numbers and event success.
6. Don't - forget the reminders. Make sure you communicate with everybody who has registered for your event through regular reminder emails.
7. Do - keep the conversation going. Your event is just the starting point, so make sure you build on it by continuing to talk to your attendees, in conversation and online.
About NFS
NFS is a leading provider of innovative technology solutions for events. The Rendezvous suite of software delivers fully integrated venue management and combines the operational efficiency with the integration with the key components required in today's digital age.
PR Contact:
Company name: NFS Technology Group
Tel: 0800 731 8451
Website: http://www.nfs-hospitality.com/
Contact person: Peter Carter
Email: peter@nfs-hospitality.com
Address: NFS House, 12 Harforde Court
John Tate Road, Foxholes Business Park
Hertford
SG13 7NW