Has the events industry forgotten how to talk to clients?
Corporate events aren’t becoming less human, but the way we sell, plan and communicate around them certainly is, says Tina Benson, founder and managing director of Team Tactics. Here, she explores how digital discovery and communication is changing the industry, and why human connection matters more than ever.
Tina Benson
Tina Benson
When I first started out in events, winning business meant days on the phone and getting out to meet clients.
Events were designed through conversation, understanding what people really wanted, asking questions, reading between the lines, and building relationships that often lasted for years. It was personal, energetic, and a valuable lesson in conversation, thinking on my feet, negotiation, and building trust.
Today, the process looks very different. Search engines, emails and, more recently, AI-driven discovery play a central role in how clients find and book events. Much of the communication happens via email threads, and with less office-based working, calls largely go unanswered and face-to-face meetings are far less frequent.
Buying behaviours have shifted, and while we need to work with this change, the vital communication skills that once underpinned successful client relationships risk falling by the wayside.
A changing skillset
SEO, GEO, digital marketing and content creation are now essential parts of the events sales toolkit. Communicating via email clearly, concisely and with personality is a skill in itself and the speed and efficiency technology enables is something we simply couldn’t have imagined 30 years ago.
Yet, when so much of the process happens behind a screen, there are fewer opportunities to develop the soft skills that are central to personal, productive client relationships. This is especially true for younger entrants to the industry that are learning in very different circumstances and typically don’t have the same exposure to conversations, client interactions and real-time problem-solving. This is leaving space for uncertainty and fear to build.
Research from Trinity College London shows that younger workers increasingly feel anxious about workplace interactions, with the biggest sources of anxiety including working with unknown people (42 per cent), face-to-face small talk (38 per cent) and making phone calls (30 per cent).While this is somewhat a reflection of the times, it’s also true that most of us didn’t find these situations easy at the start either. The skills, confidence, and resilience come from doing, and without those opportunities, they naturally take longer to build.
What’s the impact on event briefs and execution?
The shift away from direct communication isn't just affecting individuals, it can also affect the quality of events.
When conversations are replaced by email threads, nuance can get lost. Some of the most valuable insights come from the back-and-forth of a discussion, and it’s often in the small talk that bookends a conversation or the offhand comments where a client reveals what they really want from an event.
Those details are much less likely to surface over email, and as a result, briefs can become more transactional. You might tick all the obvious boxes, but miss the smaller, more personal and value-added touches that elevate the experience and make the event memorable. Events are, at their core, about people, and without strong communication at the planning stage, it becomes harder to deliver the kind of experiences that truly connect.
Supporting the next generation
None of this is about turning back the clock. The reality is that most of the pre-event process will continue to happen online. Clients will search, compare, and shortlist options before any supplier interaction takes place, likely using AI to handle some, or all, of the process. We need to invest in building these digital skills so we remain visible and competitive in the crowded online market.
But we also need to lean into what makes events fundamentally human. Events happen in real time, with real people, and it’s these interpersonal relationships that create loyalty, repeat business, and long-term partnerships.
Leaders need to help their teams develop these important skills by creating opportunities for that experience to develop. That doesn’t mean throwing someone straight into a high-pressure client call – start small and build up.
Begin with where they’re likely already more comfortable, with their colleagues, and ask them to lead an internal call, or take on a section of a team meeting to present a new idea. You could also ask them to sit in on external calls so they can familiarise themselves with format, etiquette and tone, as well as the questions that typically arise and how negotiations and tricky conversations are handled. Once they’re more familiar and comfortable, ask them to lead parts of the conversation.
It can also help to shift the focus of these client interactions. A lot of anxiety can spiral from the pressure of selling, so reframing the situation - that they’re simply trying to understand what the clients need and help them make a good decision - can alleviate some of the worry.
Finding the balance
The events industry has always been about bringing people together. As it continues to evolve, the challenge is to make sure that ethos isn’t lost in the way we work behind the scenes.
However, younger professionals entering the industry today are navigating a very different landscape to previous generations. They’ve grown up in a digital-first world, many have experienced the disruption of the pandemic during formative years, and they are building careers in an environment where communication looks fundamentally different. They don’t need criticism, they need support. Carefully reintroducing this human element is crucial to help them become stronger events professionals, businesspeople, and rounded, resilient individuals.
The opportunity now is to combine both - to embrace the way digital technology and AI is transforming the industry, while making a conscious effort to develop and protect the human connection that makes events and client relationships thrive.