The CMO’s New Best Friend - Their Speaker Network

Created for: Event Marketing, Marketing, Field Marketing, CMO’s, etc.

A special thank you goes to the industry experts who contributed their wisdom to this post:

• Rachel Stephan, CEO, Snöball
• Beth Surmont, VP of Event Strategy and Design, 360 Live Media
• Michael Hoffman, CEO & Founder, Gather Voices
• Bryan Funk, VP of Marketing, Virtuous ‍‍
  

A Powerful Realization

In the ever-evolving world of event marketing, one of the powerful, yet underutilized assets a marketing team has, is their speaker network.

The Untapped Potential of Speaker Networks

Speakers are often highly curated by the event team, are deep subject matter experts, trusted resources, influencers, brand advocates and content engines. And when effectively managed, they can be a cornerstone of your marketing strategy, influencing brand awareness, sales, partnerships, and customer engagement and expansion.

If you think about how networked your speakers are with your customer base and your target customer persona, it becomes incredibly motivating to find ways to maximize that network. 

Real-world Impact

Consider the impact on your event when speakers are aligned with your overall event strategy. The same can be said for the impact on your brand, when speakers are aligned with the overall marketing strategy. 

They can host meaningful conversations without the pretense of selling something, which can create a ripple effect of brand awareness and ultimately drive leads. And Just like how their expertise and influence can turn a standard session into a memorable experience, resonating with your audience long after it's over, they can have a similar impact on many other types of campaigns.  

Very High ROI

When developed in a mutually beneficial, collaborative way, leveraging a speaker for another activation can be incredibly cost effective, with a much higher likelihood of success than what a ghost writer, intern or ChatGPT might produce. Even if it’s not a speaking engagement, your notes would give you a solid indication as to the various forums this trusted resource could perform well in.

The reason the speaker will have a high ROI:

• They are a trusted resource so there is less risk in flopping.
• They will likely involve their network to ensure the activation has the best likelihood of success.
• The speaker is used to collaborating on content so if it is Co-Authored Content, a Guest blog post, a success story, etc. they will likely take on some of the responsibility of helping to create the piece. That reduces the time and expense for your marketing team.      

The Ultimate Marketing Utility

Which is why it makes sense that the most innovative marketing teams work in tandem with their event team to target these individuals for field events, market research, webinars, case studies, white papers, etc.

Content Engines & Collaborators

‍As content becomes easier and easier to create and distribute with AI, marketing teams are going to have to find ways to rise above the noise and create high quality content at a very high rate. However, the ChatGPT blog post is only going to get us so far. Which is where the Speaker Network comes in. When done right, these motivated experts can help create very meaningful content, with a built in network to help the content convert. 

The Challenge 

As we continue to do more and more research on this topic, we are finding that the obstacle to maximizing this incredibly powerful network is a systematic problem. Meaning, there isn’t a system to easily tag, track, search and activate the ideal speaker with the right expertise. 

As a result:

• It is hard to find cohesion between the event team and the marketing team
• Speaker information is dispersed in multiple places across multiple individuals and events.
• Which leads to the loss of critical data, difficulty in Updating Data and communication breakdowns

The Efficiency of Speaker CRM

This is where Sessionboard's Speaker CRM comes into play. It's more than a management tool; it's a strategic asset. 

Imagine having a centralized platform where you can tag, track, communicate, and activate your ideal speakers for various marketing activities, from webinars to white papers. This not only saves time and resources but also amplifies your marketing efforts, saves an incredible amount of time and creates alignment across the organization.

Conclusion

Your speaker network is a goldmine waiting to be tapped. With Sessionboard's Speaker CRM, you're not just organizing events; you're orchestrating a symphony of brand amplification, customer engagement, and sales growth. It's time to recognize and maximize the potential of your speaker network.

Discover how Sessionboard can transform your event marketing strategy. Schedule a demo today.