For many years, I founded and ran a successful women's conference called The Women’s Success Summit in Miami. To this day I still come across people who fondly remember the event, and derived value from that event, and I often get asked about how to plan, market, fill, and especially, MONETIZE women’s empowerment events.
So I put together this video and blog post with my top 10 things to consider when organizing a women’s empowerment event – or any kind of event, really.
#1 Purpose & People. The WHY and the WHO comprise your event foundation. Your purpose is the guiding light of your event, and having a clear vision of WHICH women you want in attendance will help you with the rest of the elements.
I’ve found that narrow is better than a broad focus when it comes to choosing your audience. So instead of a generic “women’s empowerment” event, consider: is this for entrepreneurial women? Or even more specifically, for self-employed women coaches? The narrower you get, the easier it will be to do #2.
#2 Pain Points and Problems. Once you know WHO your event is for, think about the challenges they are facing that you might be able to address. Consider 3 key pain points:
- The problem they KNOW they have, and ADMIT (the obvious problem — the problem they’re actively looking to solve)
- The problem they know they have, and DON’T admit (the emotional problem as a result)
- The problem they DON’T EVEN KNOW they have (the blind spot)
(For more details on these 3 pain points, watch the video!)
#3 Promise & Premise. Your event Promise is the FUTURE outcome that your participants will take away from their time with you. The Premise is why this event is important right now, or why it needs to be solved FIRST. Your promise and premise will come in handy in your event marketing because they speak to your core value proposition.
So, for example, a women’s empowerment event around “Career Advancement” could be: “By the time you leave this event, you’ll discover and let go of the ineffective strategies and habits that have sabotaged your career success in the past.” And the premise could be: “Because you can’t move forward until you let go of the baggage that holds you back.”
#4 Profit. Most of us want to both contribute to making the world a better place, AND make money from our events. Below are a few revenue streams that could help make your event more profitable.
- Ticket sales (consider multiple tiers and options)
- Sponsorships
- Stage time (careful you don’t create a “pitch fest” — no one likes those)
- Exhibitor tables
- Back end sales of product and/or services, i.e., membership, subscription, etc. (Watch my MANY videos on YouTube on this topic here: https://www.youtube.com/c/MichelleVillalobosTheSuperstarActivator
#5 Program. This is the actual event content and how you deliver it. Speeches, panels, breakout sessions, guest speakers, etc. This will be a big part of why people sign up for your event, so the juicier it looks, the more likely people are to sign up. Remember: “success models success,” so for an empowering women’s event, bring in powerhouse women to lead the way!
Remember to also build in “down time” and integration time, which not only helps people to integrate what you’re presenting, but also provides buffers in case you’re running late!!
#6 Packages & Prices. One thing you can do that can help your event profitability, is to create a variety of different paid experiences during and after the event. I love to utilize meet and greet tables and special exhibitor tables for those who opted in that specific ticket level. Consider what if any bonuses you can give people to add more value and make it easier for them to say “YES!!” to sign up for your event.
#7 Plan. Planning is essential. At the very least you’ll want to have a city and dates to get your earliest marketing underway and to secure speakers and sponsors. Note that (in my world) you don’t have to plan your entire event from start to finish before you start to sell — you just need ENOUGH planned to market and sell your event, and then once you have money flowing in from ticket sales and registrations, use some of that revenue to invest in the event logistics (including hiring someone ELSE to plan for you!)
#8 Promote. There are many strategies for promoting your event, and I’ve found that the BEST way is to enroll ambassadors to go out and promote it for you. For a women’s event, there are SO many women who care about and want to support women’s empowerment. My advice is to find that handful of 10-12 women, and invite them to be on your “Board of Advisors,” the role of which is to get the word out.
You’ll also need a website or Eventbrite page for registration. One of my favorite strategies is a “Bring A Friend” offer, whereby everyone who registers receives an email with a special discount to bring a friend. I love this strategy and I've found it very successful.
#9 Production. Okay, now this is the nitty gritty. You need to decide on venue, food & beverage, production, decor, etc. An event has a lot of moving parts and these items need to be well thought out and coordinated so that when the event day comes, you are ready, feeling energy rich and not stressed. If YOU’RE not empowered, how will your guests be? That’s why I HIGHLY recommend #10.
#10 Planner. An event can be stressful, especially if YOU’RE trying to do everything. You’d be surprised how much goes into planning an event. An event planner will save time so you can focus on the content, marketing and SELLING of your event, which is where I recommend your focus to be.
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If you are thinking of hosting a women’s empowerment event and would like to chat more about my experience and strategies for a successful event, visit superstaractivator.com/go and schedule a time to chat!
Michelle