Posted on November 30, 2023
In today’s rapidly evolving financial industry, it’s crucial for organizations to adapt their events and conferences to cater to the needs and preferences of the next generation of financial advisors. These young professionals, often called Gen Z and millennials, are digital natives who value immersive experiences, personalized interactions, sustainability, and data-driven approaches. By implementing innovative strategies, financial event organizers must reimagine their events to capture their interest and engagement.
This article will explore four winning strategies for tailoring financial events for next-gen advisors.
1. Embrace Tech-Driven Personalization
Technology integration is essential for event organizers to create personalized and memorable experiences. Gen Z and millennials have distinct preferences for attending events, with some preferring in-person experiences and others favoring a mix of in-person and virtual events.
Most young professionals spend an average of 6 hours daily engaging with content on their mobile devices, presenting an opportunity to enhance engagement through interactive elements.
By leveraging technology, event organizers can offer a variety of event formats that cater to these preferences, including in-person, virtual, or hybrid events. The younger generation’s fascination with new technology can be taken advantage of to increase their interest and prompt attendance at your events.
Prior to the event, event organizers can implement customized and branded event marketing strategies to promote the event effectively. Event websites can streamline the registration process and facilitate seamless digital payment transactions. During the event, interactive mobile apps can enhance the onsite experience by giving attendees real-time access to crucial information such as keynote speaker details, session timings, and overall program agendas. These apps can also send push notifications for session reminders, ensuring attendees are well-informed and engaged throughout the event.
A prime example is Money 20/20’s adept use of event management software. By leveraging this technology, they were able to offer personalized schedules to attendees, allowing them to tailor their experience according to their interests and professional needs.
This level of customization is not just about convenience; it’s about creating an immersive environment where attendees feel actively involved in their learning journey.
Moreover, integrating interactive participation tools facilitated a two-way dialogue, a crucial aspect for the younger generation that values engagement over passive consumption. This approach to digital innovation sets a benchmark for how financial events can and should evolve to meet the changing preferences of the next-gen advisors. By following this path, organizers can ensure their events remain relevant, dynamic, and thriving in today’s fast-paced digital world.
The integration of event technology enhances the attendee experience, boosts work productivity by 27%, and reduces onsite staffing requirements. By embracing tech-driven personalization, event organizers can create a seamless and engaging event experience for next-gen advisors.
2. Foster Attendee Participation
Getting the younger generation to participate actively in activities can be challenging, and this is where gamification in your events becomes very important and needs to come into play. The aim is to make the events educational, using interactive features to achieve maximum engagement.
Event coordinators can leverage interactive features such as live question submissions, upvoting, and participation in session polls and surveys through mobile apps to foster attendee participation. By integrating these features, events become dynamic, relevant, and captivating for all attendees. Attendees can actively engage with the content, providing valuable insights and creating a sense of community.
Additionally, event organizers can keep attendees engaged through branded materials, high-definition video broadcasts, and personalized schedules. By creating an interactive and engaging experience, event organizers can ensure that next-gen advisors feel connected and leave the event with a heightened sense of belonging.
Networking as an interactive feature can also be a great way to get the younger financial advisors to increase participation. At the Money 20/20 2023 event, they demonstrated how they took advantage of the younger generations’ interest in AI. They perfected an AI-powered networking app to foster connections with key industry players and make the experience more engaging and productive.
Looking for more interactive features to incorporate into your event to appeal to the next generation of professionals? InEvent Photo Match AI is a facial recognition tool that your attendees can use to easily find event photos in which they are featured. It is as easy as uploading event photos to your event, and your attendees can browse through photos to find themselves.
3. Design Sustainable Venues
The younger generation of financial advisors, mainly Gen Z and millennials, demonstrate a growing awareness of environmental issues and sustainability. They are actively attracted to organizations prioritizing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles. Event organizers can align with these values by designing sustainable events and choosing venues with LEED certification.
Source: greenqueen.com.hk
Sustainable event venues ensure the utilization of renewable energy sources and effective waste management programs. Event organizers can also encourage attendees to make sustainable transportation choices by providing information on public transit routes and discouraging the use of single-use items and packaging. Additionally, distributing digital event materials through mobile apps can help reduce wastage.
Workshops highlighting the importance of sustainable investing and ESG principles in the financial industry can further promote sustainability and provide valuable insights to next-gen advisors. By designing greener events, event organizers can attract environmentally conscious attendees and demonstrate their commitment to sustainability.
4. Optimize Data for Lead Generation
Financial events are platforms for showcasing products and services and valuable sources of leads for financial advisors and sponsors. Event organizers must adopt a data-driven approach throughout the event lifecycle to successfully generate and convert leads from events.
Data collected from multiple sources, such as appointment setting and customer interest data, can be leveraged to identify potential leads and gain insights into attendee preferences. By activating this data, event organizers can track and prioritize leads, focusing on promising prospects for follow-up and conversion.
Integrating this data with customer relationship management (CRM) systems provides a comprehensive view of attendee profiles, enabling personalized communication and lead nurturing. This data optimization strategy empowers financial advisors and sponsors to grow their businesses and reach new customers.
By implementing these four winning strategies, financial event organizers can tailor their events to meet the needs and preferences of next-gen advisors. Embracing tech-driven personalization, fostering attendee participation, designing sustainable venues, and optimizing data for lead generation will ensure engaging and successful financial events.
Conclusion
As you plan your next event, consider how InEvent’s comprehensive solutions can help you integrate these strategies, ensuring that your events keep up and lead the way in this dynamic field. Let InEvent be your guide and partner in this exhilarating journey towards success. Stay ahead of the curve and create memorable experiences that resonate with the next generation of financial advisors.
About the Author / Faisal Mohammed
