There are many ways to better serve your current clients. Yet most people who have a small budget could not even imagine investing in a big event to serve current clients. Well, I went on a search for those that are doing it and discovered Kyle Porter. Kyle is the founder of SalesLoft, a software to streamline prospect development. He reviews the decision he made to invest $250,000 plus into one event and even bringing in a big named speaker like Gary Vaynerchuk. Kyle and I discuss how events can deepen relationships and improve loyalty too.
Target Audience: Salesloft is focused on organizations that sell to other businesses. SalesLoft helps them to accelerate their pipeline generation – meaning connecting with more prospects and converting them into qualified opportunities.
What is a Pipeline?
This is a term used for Sales executives that monitor and manage the number of opportunities they have from a sales perspective of a business they are trying to win.
Kyle truly believes in not spamming or sending out too many emails yet still sees that consistent communication is still important for building relationships. However, making it a sincere outreach in a way that matches their needs is what makes the difference. Promotion is important in getting any word out.
The Power of Events
Kyle shares what happened when he made the decision to double this year’s EVENT. Based on goals and calculations Salesloft had $75,000 to burn. 55% of the attendees were customers and 45% were other (speakers, etc). Another goal was to get over 50% of the top 100 customers at the event. He and his team wanted to spend a lot of time with their current customers. In the end, 10 opportunities manifested that represented a 5 figure profit!
Getting Gary Vaynerchuk to Speak at the Event
Kyle wanted Gary to speak because he admires the way he does interviews online and spreads inspiration to entrepreneurs. He talks about getting people’s attention. Gary emphasized how this does not happen with spam. Gary believes in working to help people that adds value to their lives.
