Use Chicago as your Client Appreciation Event...

This city has so much to offer and at this time of year albeit cold outside there is no shortage of things to do. All business men expect a trip to Morton's, Gibsons, Ruth Chris etc for a meeting. Or a pre-printed holiday card. The key to business is standing out, differentiating yourself from your competitors. Just think for a moment, how many holiday party invites have you gotten that result in an evening at a hotel? While yes this may be the best way to go for a large scale event what about your smaller ones?? The every day gestures you make for your clients. Have you even seen everything Chicago has to offer??

Next time instead of sending a bucket of Garrets popcorn how about sending tickets to:

"A Christmas Carol" at the Goodman Theater.
OR
Second Citys Exceedingly Dysfunctional Holiday Revue.

There are so many things I can't list them all, (plus Chicago Traveler already has a good start)

Don't forget to check out the city of Chicago Special Events. It's the best way to stay up to date on things going on in the city. They are most often free and a great way to entertain clients. Especially those coming from out of town.

- Chicago is great raw material, USE IT!

3 Online ROI Tips

Landing pages:

What does yours look like? It's your first impression and you want it to be a good one. So put some effort into it. The look and feel of it should be spectacular but so should the content. Make sure each page is directly addressing the people you are driving there. If your not getting the conversation rates you expected tweak it! Make small incremental changes till you get it right. Sitting on something that is not working and hoping that one day it will is just like sending $100 bills into the shredder.

Personalize your URL's:

First off it's easier for people to remember. It also adds as the human element to surfing the web. People will identify with the words much better than http://www.sheepskin.com/viewItem.asp?ItemID=SL000082&UnitCde=1&Desc=Ladies%20Olympia%20Fur%20Trimmed%20Boot&VendorDesc=&Search=N#.
(Although they are really cute boots ; )

Optimize your Pay Per Click Campaigns.

These can be very low-cost and effective if done correctly. Try running tests and more than one at a time before you launch to larger markets to make sure your are targeting people correctly. Here's an idea:
-run two ads at the same time, changing one item in your test ad to see how it affects your conversion rates. After you run the two ads for one or two weeks, take the better converting ad and make one minor tweak to it. Then run these two ads against each other to see which outperforms the other. Keep repeating the process to make your ads better and increase conversions.

ROI is your money maker, be purposeful with the way you use it. It may be the difference between a Hyundai and a Jag...

Attract Your Target Market...

Chances your name is not Michel Jordan, Brad Pitt or you plan on giving away free BMW’s to the first 100 guest. So why else would people come to see you?

Knowing your audience, and targeting the right individual is an essential part of hosting an event. Conducting online surveys can ensure that your speakers message gets to the core of your attendees, stirs excitement, and creates buzz about future events.

A host needs to understand what type of content attendees expect and demand in order to produce high quality events that leave an audience coming back for more. Not to forget creating the opportunity for your own ROI.

Find who it is that’s following you and how you can help them! Knowledge is power. Utilize this information to leverage yourself and create a successful event.

Ask a few demographic questions in addition to one or two psychographic or purchasing questions to help you accurately qualify real prospects. Using surveys before, during and after your next event can help maximize success.

To create your own customized online surveys go try Survey Monkey.