The Importance of Post-Booking Collaboration for Events Vendors
So, you’ve submitted your best personalized proposal and won the deal. Good for you! But don’t rest on your laurels just yet — the real work is only beginning!
Building relationships with other vendors helps bring awareness to your company and also assists you in expanding the scope of your business. You will start getting more and more repeat business, which is a crucial step in decreasing the amount of time and money you need to spend on marketing.
What that means is: get to know the other vendors working with you on the event. The better you get along and bring value, the more likely 2 things will happen:
- The planner will be overjoyed that she doesn’t need to become a liaison, moderator, or peacemaker between you (if she does, she’ll remember that about you and will be unlikely to book or recommend your services in the future)
- Other vendors will refer customers to you or loop you into their events — because everyone prefers to work with people they like
You can start to build relationships with other vendors in a few easy ways that will also simplify your job.
Finalize all the details about how your services connect
This will vary from vendor to vendor, but most services will affect each other in some way. For example, if you’re a caterer, contact the venue to understand the exact floor layout and where to locate the bar. If you’re a videographer, check where there will be available power sockets. If you’re involved in A/V, learn what sound system they have on site.
Understand the full event timeline
Events have many moving parts and nothing happens in a vacuum. It can help to know what happens before and after your “segment” — are guests having lunch after an activity or before? What’s the procedure if guests are running late? Being able to collaborate with other relevant vendors can take the pressure off the planner and present you as part of the solution, not a problem.
Share with other vendors after the event
Websites and social media have made it easier than ever to network and build relationships with other vendors. It’s common courtesy to mention other vendors on the “team” when you post about your own role in the event, so take pictures, tag other vendors, and follow them on social media. This is a win-win for everyone and translates into more people sharing your work online.
Collaborating with other vendors (sometimes up to 7 different vendors per event) can still be time-consuming, however, which is why communication via a digital platform like Maryoku can be a lifesaver. Maryoku lets you send group messages, view all the relevant materials in one place, comment with context, and stay up to date with all changes as they happen, including discussing the implications online. Plus as a new vendor coming in, you can get up to speed instantly.
