7. Operational efficiency helps drive effective experiences
But even as costs level off, better planning and advance advancement aren’t enough to get some events planned on time and on budget, which is why operations teams, as always, are working harder and faster to become more efficient which gives them more time and more money to work with.
Mark Driggs, Traditional Marketing. There is a strong focus on efficiency and effectiveness from a time and cost perspective.
JUSTIN HAYES, INTERSPORT. really. We are being asked to be more careful with our money while still trying to create the same type of ROI numbers related to: [larger budgets.] Customer repackaging.
Justin Rowland, All terrain. To Justin’s point about ROI, clients ask for hard numbers and data to show that the decisions we make are actually the right ones and will benefit their brand. So we’re investing in technology and tracking to figure out the best way to track data and determine ROI [in advance] That way, when we talk to clients, we can show them what we can do, and we can do that on the fly and make adjustments on the spot if needed.
COLIN FAUL, EA Agency. Therefore, in order to be able to create a better experience, we need to find ways to save on the backend in advance. The past few years have been about doing more with less—finding creative ways to create bigger, better, more efficient experiences. So we consulted with a lot of AV partners, manufacturing partners and figured out where we could pre-build, for example, we could roll out modular builds into a lot of unionized large event spaces .
BRYAN GLIBOWSKI, engage and resonate. With larger activations and more complex builds and shorter times, we do things like multiple setups and attack tests during training. We might do three or four simulated setups and strikes with different hands and different experience levels so that we know worst-case scenario, how long it’s going to take to load, for example, if we have to do a show in three hours To prepare, we actually needed nine people instead of the six initially expected. This front-end work also helps improve the efficiency of our on-site integrated installations.
Matt Andrews, High Mark Outdoors. Obviously, time is money. So as a partner that actually builds the structure on site, if we can get something done in two days instead of four, we always try to do that. We prioritize different labor levels and keep costs more focused by keeping hourly wages higher. So if we were setting up on a golf course, obviously we wouldn’t be able to roll 53 feet onto the course. So we’re cross-loading onto the pile bed, and one person’s job might be to drive back and forth with the pile bed, unload it and put it on the main structure. But we will assign that role internally so that we retain [required] Expensive labor for product construction.
BRYAN GLIBOWSKI, engage and resonate. Our national event tours are becoming more and more efficient, but efficiency depends on the type of tour. For example, if this is a sample-centric trip, efficiencies come from getting as much product into the hands of consumers as possible and working with employees to determine where the breakpoints are to maximize traffic based on location traffic at different times. Best ROI If the focus of the tour is to raise awareness, it may be less about the samples distributed and more about how to utilize the time on site, such as changing programming and its associated costs to align with footfall to have the greatest impact Be as cost effective as possible.
Brad Fogel, producer. Work a 10-hour day, 4 hours of which are your prime time. You can get 90% of your engagement done during prime time, so we’re working with clients to reduce hours and adjust hours.
COLIN FAUL, EA Agency. For B2B events, customers will schedule more events into their day, increasing engagement in their schedules and thus increasing efficiency. Learn more about programming, trade show programming, and main stage elements. The events will definitely last longer than 9 am to 5 pm, there are still many events from 9 am to 6 pm or 7 pm now. Therefore, we are working hard to “maximize” each event. What follows is a real study of how [expanding] Timesheets affect labor rates, overtime pay, and more.
JUSTIN HAYES, INTERSPORT. It’s also coaching clients and saying, “Let’s not focus on reaching more and more people, but focus on talking to the right people.” So we leverage our insights and strategy teams to help them find events with the right people, and then focus on launching those events.
Brad Fogel, producer. One thing is playing an important role [in our attempt to maximize efficiency] It’s the weather. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve moved crew call times up two hours or back up four hours because we were chasing starts in good weather – obviously you can get twice as much done in good weather. So as efficiency increases, we need to become a weather whisperer.
