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HelpHOW TO ENGAGE MILLENNIALS AT EVENTS
Millennials make up a huge consumer demographic for many industries. It stands to reason then that this is a group that you really want to cater to for your events. There are a few tricks you can implement for your next conference or seminar to ensure that you especially appeal to millennials.
1. ENCOURAGE SOCIAL MEDIA USE
According to Statista, 90% of millennials own a smartphone; 93% also use the Internet on a daily basis. You can bet that a good portion of the time on mobile devices and the Web is spent on social media.
Use your social network channels to heavily promote the event. Do the same during the event with a Twitter or other social network wall placed throughout the venue.This enables attendees to see posts, tweets, and selfies with the event hashtag from other attendees as they are submitted in real time.
This encourages others to do the same. It creates a trend that quickly generates online discussion as the posts are shared among attendees and their respective social media followers.
2. MAKE THE EXPERIENCE INTERACTIVE
Use the latest technical innovation to create an interactive experience. This can be done via customized app that allows for engagement through people’s own mobile devices. You can, for instance, create an event schedule app that allows users to personalize their own timeline based on the exhibits, booths, and lectures they wish to attend. This also allows exhibitors, presenters, and sponsors to send out messages specifically to their target audience.
Interactive experiences can also be delivered in the form of stationary iPad kiosks. This can include mini games that promote a specific product or company in the process. Watch this YouTube video of an excellent example of a promotional interactive kiosk for Red Bull.
The reason this is such an awesome example is because it requires people to use their mobile devices and also rewards them with a free can of Red Bull for their participation. This creates a form of engagement that forges a strong impression for the brand being promoted.
3. ENCOURAGE GROUP ATTENDANCE
Millennials enjoy attending events in groups. To encourage attendees to bring friends and loved ones along, your event has to be more than just informational stuff. The friends and loved ones are not going to be interested in the lectures or presentations, which is why your event has to have an entertainment element to it.
This is why it’s good to employ interactive kiosks. Similarly, individual booths and workshops should also have some form of interactive game with prizes. (Eventprofs can check out the Event Manager Blog for ideas of fun games for trade show exhibits.) Additionally, you can also add some form of entertainment. This may include a performance from a comedian, magician, or singer to conclude the event on a high note.
To further encourage attendees to bring along their peers, you can offer discount rates for bulk ticket purchases. Make it known in your ads that the event is peer and family-friendly.
4. ADD A CHARITABLE ELEMENT
According to a survey by Washington Post, 84% of millennials made some form of charitable donation in 2014. With that in mind, make a donation to a non-profit organization. Alternatively, you can also invite representatives from a charity group to the event and let them run a booth.
Be sure to heavily promote any charity groups you’ll be making a contribution to. Ideally, the donation should be to an organization related to your industry. If you’re hosting a tech expo, for instance, then perhaps the donation can go towards tech education for schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Before the event, you can even use social media to ask attendees what charities they would like for you to help.
5. HAVE MILLENNIALS ON YOUR STAFF
People have a natural inclination to gravitate towards others that they can relate to. With that in mind, millennials will more likely form a rapport with staff members within their own age range. Ideally, there should be plenty of staff members in their early 20s to early 30s. If you can acquire a guest speaker, lecturer, or entertainer also within the millennial age range, that’s another huge plus.
There tends to be a perception that millennials are “soft” with an overt sense of entitlement and an “it’s all about me” mentality. This sentiment is really unfounded. Many, in fact, are hard workers and dynamic thinkers who can connect better with the majority of those in attendance. If you have a millennial that’s in a higher-up position, then that’s even better as it shows that your company is invested in cultivating young prospects and leaders.
MAKE MILLENNIALS A PRIORITY
By engaging with millennials at your event, you create an atmosphere that fosters long-term customer loyalty. With that in mind, always look for innovative and out-of-the-box ways in which you can interact with an increasingly growing demographic.
Author Bio: Dan McCarthy is an Event Manager at JD Parties, an event management company based in the UK. Dan has 5 years of event project management under his belt. He has worked on many successful events, and currently he shares his knowledge by writing on the company blog. Follow him on Twitter @DanCarthy2.
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