Last month we talked about what you can be doing to help your Athletes (current and prospective) reach their New Year’s health resolutions, but when was the last time you thought about your own goals for 2019?
As Event Organizers, we get so caught up in putting all our energy into our customers and participants, that we fail to focus on a little self-love. As the saying goes, you can’t help others until you’ve helped yourself. And there is no better way to improve than by setting tangible, reachable and measurable goals. At Athlinks Services, we want you to know we’re here every step of the way to help you adopt a few resolutions of your own. Can’t think of any off the top of your head? We’ve got that covered as well. Read on to find out more.
Use Data Insights to Market Intelligently
Take time to dig deep into your race data and pick out important trends. Learn something new about your Athletes and apply those learnings to your next event. Don’t know where to find that data? We suggest starting with registration data and trends. Basic demographic data such as age, gender, location, etc. can help you dictate your marketing strategies for next year’s event, allowing you to thoughtfully change your content to appeal to demographics in which you’re trying to see growth. For industry-wide data trends, keep an eye on Athlinks Services. Athlinks is the world’s largest database of Athlete results, and we are working to productize our data in 2019. Check out our 2018 Data Preview for a snapshot of the data we can provide.
Be Open to Honest Feedback
Race Day data doesn’t lie, but it isn’t the only source of feedback you have access to as an Event Organizer. It can be scary, but when was the last time you reached out to your Athletes and explicitly asked what they thought about your event? We suggest sending out a survey to race finishers post-event and ask them what you can do to make your next event even better. Make sure to keep the survey short and simple and only ask questions that will help you improve for next time. Negative feedback might be hard to swallow, but can often be more helpful than positive feedback. Don’t be afraid to have thick skin and an open mind. JUST ASK.
Create Extraordinary Experiences
2019 will be all about creating extraordinary experiences for your Athletes, Spectators and Sponsors alike. Now more than ever, Event Organizers have a responsibility to create an experience that makes participants feel something. At Athlinks Services, we’ve made creating extraordinary experiences for our clients and partners a priority, and in turn, we’ve given you the tools to do the same for your Athletes.
One tool available to you right now, the Athlinks Mobile App, here to ignite your Athlete experience:
- Event Discovery: Use Athlinks to promote your event and make finding an event easier for participants
- Event Newsfeed: Keep Athletes informed in real-time on Race Day – schedules, maps and alerts
- Live Map Tracking: Provide high fidelity splits and results to make Athlete Tracking easy, reliable and mobile-friendly for all Spectators
- Live Results: Delight your finishers with the immediate gratification of Live Results for both individual and entire event data
- Shareable Finisher Certificates: Keep your event relevant for days after with branded, customizable, shareable Finisher Certificates
Download the latest version of the mobile app today, and be sure to promote and encourage your Athletes and Spectators to do the same!
Experiment With Something New
The number one rule for endurance Athletes is to avoid trying anything new at a race. But for you, the Event Organizer, the opposite may be true. Don’t do away with your tried-and-true tactics for success, but do be open to incorporating new ideas. Test a new pricing structure, or a different marketing strategy. Go after a different style of sponsor. Shake up your race swag from the same old cotton tee and offer something more appealing and on trend. You can find plenty of marketing ideas in our free guide, How to Market Your Event.
Toe the Line
That’s right, get out there and race. Find an event that’s similar to yours (in distance and sporting discipline), and do it. Many Event Organizers have a racing background, but find themselves too busy with business responsibilities to compete. Make time to get back out there to rekindle your passion for your sport. Participating will give you a fresh, first-hand reminder of the little details that make a race stand out. If you can’t compete, find a family member or friend who can, and who will provide detailed feedback to help enhance your event. Showing up to an event that isn’t yours also shows commitment to your industry and to your community in general.
Bonus: Checking out a new event can be a great way to network with expo vendors, spectators and even potential sponsors.
Be Super Social
We’re talking social media. It’s an ever-evolving form of media and communication, and isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Need help navigating social platforms and working them to your advantage? You’ll learn all the basics in our Race Director’s Guide to Social Media. Then, use our Race Director’s Advanced Guide to Social Media to dive in deep. You can learn how to make free or low-cost social media promotions work for you and your event. Or even learn tips to make a race go viral here. You can also take to social media to find who and where your influencers are. Targeting those individuals can lead to trusted promotions, often at the price of just a free race entry.
Open Up
Find new avenues to engage within your industry and community. Reach out to local businesses, charities, or schools that you haven’t worked with before. Network with fellow Event Organizers, Event Organizers from other industries and other entrepreneurs. Dedicate time each week or each month to grow your overlapping professional and social circles. Don’t worry if you don’t yet know where these interactions will lead. Some of the greatest opportunities and learning come from unlikely connections. Be open and proactive in expanding what and who you know.
Don’t Go It Alone
Taking on challenges and setting new goals for yourself and your business can be a daunting, especially if you feel like you’re on your own. That’s where we come in, supporting you every step of the way with new products and ideas to make your job easier. Reach a new goal in 2019 by taking advantage of the unique opportunities you have with us by your side:
- Sponsorship Opportunities: Use Athlinks to provide your Event Sponsors with additional impressions in-app and through branded media
- Media Services: Hire Athlinks to handle the media services for your event, from start to finish, and provide free, branded photos to your Athletes within 24 hours
- Athlinks Promotion: Promote your event to a completely new audience via Athlinks display ads and retargeting audience of 5.1M Athletes
If you have any questions about how Athlinks Services can help you turn goals into actions, don’t hesitate to email us at info@athlinks.com. We’re here for you, in ways that are unrivaled in this industry, and that’s been our ongoing resolution since we launched this business.
Cheers to 2019!
