Reinventing Virtual Events

CHAPTER 38Ecosystem‐Driven Events

I don't care whether the technology is invented by our employees. I want to bring everybody's innovations into our ecosystem together.

— Masayoshi Son

We are living in the “Decade of the Ecosystem.” By 2030, 90% of business will be driven via the ecosystem, as predicted by Jay McBain, Chief Analyst at Canalys. It's going to be a similar mega‐trend for driving events. We dismiss ecosystems as simply “partner channels.” Do you have an extensive list of integrated partners? Imagine involving them all in an interactive, online virtual event and tapping into their respective networks to create a marketing halo effect of air cover that creates a virtuous cycle of “lead‐sharing.”

Jay also believes in “The end of the marketing qualified lead (MQL). If you talk about the future of marketing, you're not going direct anymore. You may earn one or two of 28 moments” along the customer journey. Customers are “moving through these 28 moments to gather the confidence to make a vendor selection without ever talking to a salesperson. That's over half the cases now. You must only involve sales in the most highly considered products and complex issues.”

Steps to building an ecosystem‐driven event: Pick a partner, decide on a mutual theme, and align marketing ...