A customer or partner event is a coordinated relationship programme, not an invitation to a booth or a hospitality activity. It has a defined audience, a relationship objective, account or partner context, appropriate hosts, a relevant experience, a follow-up plan, a responsible owner, a system for recording outcomes and measures that reflect relationship and commercial value. Because the relationship already exists, the objective is rarely lead generation.
Customers and partners are not leads. They already know you, so the question at an event is not who are you but what do we want this relationship to become.
A working definition
A customer or partner event is any gathering, around a trade show, conference or on its own, whose purpose is to strengthen an existing relationship: a breakfast, a dinner, a roundtable, an advisory session, a user group, a workshop or a partner summit. The central question is how an organisation can use industry events to strengthen customer relationships, expand accounts, activate advocates and create productive partner conversations.
Checklist
What makes it a programme
- A defined audience
- A relationship objective
- Account or partner context
- Appropriate hosts
- A relevant experience
- A follow-up plan
- A responsible owner
- A system for recording outcomes
- Measures that reflect relationship and commercial value
Checklist
Typical objectives
- Protect the relationship
- Improve customer outcomes
- Identify expansion opportunities
- Gather feedback
- Activate advocacy
- Build a partner relationship
- Coordinate an integration
- Generate referrals
- Resolve risk
- Strengthen executive alignment
Framework
Relationship models
One event may support more than one stage, but the team should define a primary objective before planning.
Reference
Where this guide fits
| Topic | Where it lives |
|---|---|
| Executive meetings and briefings | Executive Event Strategy Guide |
| Meeting requests, scheduling and mechanics | Exhibitor Meetings Guide |
| Structured buyer-seller programmes | Exhibitor Buyer-Seller Meet Guide |
| Dinners, receptions and roundtables as events | Side Events Guide |
Reference
How this guide is organised
| Part | What it covers | Lessons |
|---|---|---|
| Start here | Definition and ownership | 1 and 2 |
| Plan the programme | Objectives, segments and formats | 3 to 5 |
| Design and invite | Customer and partner experience, invitations and hosts | 6 to 9 |
| Customer and partner outcomes | Advocacy, expansion, enablement, referrals and advisory boards | 10 to 14 |
| Technology and data | Systems, messaging, data governance and backup plans | 15 and 16 |
| Measure | Relationship and commercial measurement | 17 |
Frequently asked questions
What is a customer event at a trade show?
A planned relationship activity for existing customers around a trade show or conference, such as a breakfast, dinner, roundtable or briefing, with a defined objective and follow-up.
How is a customer event different from lead generation?
The relationship already exists, so the objective is usually retention, adoption, expansion, feedback or advocacy, not capturing new leads.
What is a partner event?
A planned gathering with partners, such as a workshop, summit or roundtable, to align, enable, coordinate, co-sell, integrate or refer.