right, find qualified professionals to do it for you or don’t do it at
all. Outdated product information, ineffective reader response
features, and lack of follow-up will frustrate and deter buyers.
E-commerce can be a double-edged sword. Make certain that who-
ever holds that sword knows how to use it.
The most critical elements of event Web site design are struc-
ture, ease of navigation, style, technical requirements, consistency,
and personalization.
The selection of an event domain name, and your keywords,
are integral to the ability of others to easily locate your organiza-
tion through the myriad of search engines now plying the Internet
on behalf of those looking for information about your event. The
opportunities for electronic promotions are exploding as rapidly
as the Net itself. Partnerships and cross-promotions have become
commonplace through links, banner ads, tower ads, and co-
endorsements. The key to measuring the success of your electronic
event marketing effort is the availability of tracking systems, in-
cluding your per month traffic, ad click-through statistics, and
overall traffic data on the Web site offering the advertising to de-
termine the site’s viability in your marketplace.82 Chapter 3 Electronic Event Marketing Strategies
TALES FROM THE FRONT
A small regional association sought ways to
present itself as equal to the “big boys,”
and determined that an effective way to do
that was to develop a home page for the or-
ganization. The staff member in charge of
marketing brought the concept to the atten-
tion of the CEO, saying that this was the
promotional wave of the future, and they
were being left out. “No Web presence, no
respect,” was his argument. The CEO
agreed, asking the marketer to investigate
options and report back. What the boss did
not know was that the marketer had a friend
who had established a small Web site de-
sign and maintenance company. The con-
cept had originated with his friend, who ob-
viously wanted the site design business. He
offered a low price and high promises. And
his design concepts were very promising.
The CEO approved the plan.
The organization had its home page on
the Web in short order. It was preceded by
significant promotion, proclaiming the avail-
ability and excitement of the site and the op-
portunity for all to keep daily contact with
the association through the Internet as well
as enjoy the latest information without wait-
ing for the mail or placing phone calls. “Ex-
citing” and “current” were the watchwords
of the promotion.
At first, it was exciting and current for
the proud members. But, as time went by,