BIBA 2017 – Time for a digital audience too…

Well, with just a few days to go until we make the trip to Manchester Central for what might be the last BIBA Conference there, the team are working hard on getting the final aspects of each of the projects to support our clients ready.

Apart from some outstanding designs of which we are really proud, we have certainly seen a lot of our clients and other exhibitors ‘upping their game’ this year – and this is even before we get to the venue itself and see any final surprises.

We’ve noticed already a clear increase in the volume of exhibitors looking to engage with the audience before the event – building a strong social media presence, using LinkedIn for example to build momentum to their attendance at the Conference and share the key messages that they are looking to push to attendees. We have talked to clients over the last few years about seeking to broaden the scope and reach of their investment and messages beyond the hall at Manchester Central – accepting that despite the efforts of the organisers and BIBA themselves, that there will always be a much larger audience interested yet unable to attend than those that actually make the trip.

Zurich and Ageas have really upped their game this year, as well as LV= building on past achievements and no doubt this will increase in the final few days. It will be exciting to see how this continues during the Conference and whether the market is really seeing BIBA 2017 as a turning point in the engagement of social media and content generation, or whether it will wither away as Manchester becomes a fading memory.

Our own experience has clearly shown that a well-structured campaign at events such as BIBA, including engaging content that really resonates with the audience, can deliver a real improvement in how customers/brokers engage with the brand and the views and comments that they have about key issues. But, the challenge is to get something that the market will see as interesting…saying the same old things or repeating the comments of others isn’t the way to go. It is essential that you have an opinion – get that right and the results will follow. Don’t just think of the written word, but look to engage with film too. A recent blog from my colleague Sarah Bean clearly showed the depth in which this is now being used by decision makers.

For those attending BIBA, please look out for all of the team that are attending from brandformula and the work to support our clients – we hope that you’ll love the results as much as we do. For those who aren’t making the trip – do keep in touch with everything that goes on via social media and let me know what you think afterwards – the winners and those that could try harder!