“Think Like a Fish” to Attract More Attendees to Your Next Event

In the corporate event world, it takes significant effort and marketing know-how to cultivate and attract the right audience to attend your events. In fact, the old adage “if you build it, they will come” is not usually enough to captivate the high-level attendees you need to fill the seats. When it comes to event marketing, I’d recommend that you start thinking like a fish.

What do fish and corporate event marketing have in common? Actually, the phrase “Think like a fish” comes from Bill Stinnett, consultant and speaker to the world’s greatest sales teams. In his book Think Like Your Customer (The McGraw-Hill Companies, $16.95, www.books.mcgraw-hill.com), Bill recounts a story of how his Dad always told him to “if you want to catch a fish, you've got to think like a fish. Bill eventually realized that what his Dad was really trying to say was that in order to be an effective fisherman you first need to understand fish behavior and what the fish think about. Once you know “what” the fish are thinking and how they behave, you’ll then have a better idea of where to find them.

While Bill’s advice is focused on helping sales teams “catch” new customers, I think the “think like a fish” approach can also be applied to the marketing of corporate events. If you’re trying to attract high-level executives to your two-day “Executive Summit”, then you really need to research and understand exactly “what” the audience is thinking about. From that vantage point, you can then put together an event program (and marketing) that clearly demonstrates your understanding of their “world” and how your event (and solution) can help them address the issues they’re facing.

I highly recommend Bill Stinnett’s book for any marketing, sales, and event professionals looking for a fresh take on what fish, or, I mean customers and prospects are thinking about. Happy fishing!

For more information on Bill Stinnett’s sales consulting services, and world-class keynote and breakout presentations visit www.salesexcellence.com. To order Think Like Your Customer, please visit www.books.mcgraw-hill.com.