Spring has always seemed to be an amazing time for new projects. With the sun shining and flowers blooming, the spirit of the city can energize, invigorate your soul and help you forget that you’re working so hard…right?!? It’s also a time to take a fresh look at ourselves, do some mental spring cleaning, and find ways to better ourselves personally and professionally. The Next Level team has done just that!
We’ve decided to take this newfound energy to review and revise our marketing strategies for Next Level. We have been and still are, fortunate to be referred by word-of-mouth and grow organically. In the last few years, as we’ve focused on some of the basic marketing tasks, we’ve now decided to expand those initiatives and hire a marketing agency to help us with continued growth.
The marketing agency conducted a 360 degree analysis of Next Level, which consisted of interviewing a number of our clients and vendors for candid and anonymous feedback. It was a powerful experience, reading insights from people we’ve worked with for years, to receive constructive criticism. I didn’t expect many surprises, since we already perform debriefs with each client after every event, and are aware of how we performed against client expectations. However, what was especially impactful from this review was hearing more about our process, and how we differentiate from the competition through these client testimonials.
I am really proud of our team and the success we’ve had thus far. Feedback from this survey was consistently positive regarding our creativity, commitment to quality and being fun to work with. Something I found really unique was that our clients felt our connection to and excitement for their projects; our enthusiasm helps them stay focused and motivated. Often, our clients will request that the Next Level team join forces with their team, instead of being just a hired vendor, to create a synergistic group rooting for the same end goal—a successful event that leaves a lasting impression to all who attended.
In the Event Industry, you have to be organized and prepared for change. There is so much that’s coming at you, at any given point in time and from many different avenues, if unprepared, it’s a recipe for disaster. I would say that people in our industry are tough graders. We’re perfectionists and most often also control freaks (and I say that with love and respect)…it’s essential to our jobs! It’s all in the logistics and communication, and thankfully, this is something that people highlighted as one of Next Level’s strengths. We like to think of ourselves as a company of event firefighters—we roll with the punches, we put out metaphorical fires, and have a lot of fun doing it together.
A resounding theme of this analysis was that they want to hear even more from us and what we’re continually working on. I will take that on the chin as I’m one of those people who would rather “do” than “talk about what I’m going to do” but alas…I have heard these suggestions loud and clear! I will leave you with some photos of our recent projects as well as something I recently read that stuck with me: “If you aren’t having fun, you’re doing it all wrong.”
Now it’s time to spring into action! Be sure to keep up with behind-the-scenes and inspiring event photos posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
