Gemma Moore, staffing director at experiential agency, TRO, explains why the staff selected to deliver creative events and
experiences are equally as important as the event itself.
I’m sure we are all familiar with the adage 'the first impression is the last impression. It’s mainly attributed to
our everyday human interactions, but it’s also equally applicable to brands showcasing themselves within the
live event space. Often the window of opportunity to engage a consumer with a brand at live events can be
limited, and gaining cut-through is often challenged by other competing voices in the room.
Follow a human first approach
These days, getting the fundamentals of staffing right is simply not enough. Staffing needs to be elevated by
applying a humans first approach to every touchpoint.
This approach requires building an authentic connection with a candidate from the very beginning of their
recruitment journey to provide a deeper understanding of what motivates and inspires them.
Being able to match candidates to the work that they love encourages genuine engagement with the brand
that they are representing. This passion is then passed on when they are interacting with consumers, which
ultimately increases the return of investment for said brand.
The humans first approach is equally as important when it comes to candidate retention.
Working as a
freelance promotional member of staff can sometimes be a lonely place, and once ‘the buzz’ of working at a
high energy event wears off, it’s important to remember that connection and community should always ‘be
on’.
Creating and maintaining a community requires dedication and should be underpinned by inclusion,
transparency and supported by the wider agency network. This supports retention because ‘connected’
candidates are more likely to put their trust into one agency, as opposed to many.
They’ll always choose the
agency that demonstrates genuine care and support.
Candidate retention then supports the creation of core teams of product/brand experts, meaning that
expertise is retained, and brand advocates are born.
Play the long game
Now that a community of carefully selected, fully engaged, super connected and highly trained brand
advocates are in place, addressing the seasonality of live events can still have an impact on candidate
availability.
It is important that clients and colleagues are educated on the nuances of freelance promotional staffing and
the impact that this can have on candidate availability to support longer-term planning, or as I like to call it:
‘the long game’.
Don’t be afraid of setting reasonable parameters with clients to provide adequate lead time to hit the brief,
but also consider how to connect the candidate with the client to showcase their brand expertise and
demonstrate their value.
Take an integrated approach to scheduling to allow for effective diary management of the candidates, this will
help lock them into your live experience calendar and retain their expertise.
Lead with care and compassion
Seeing your candidates in their natural habitat is vital. It not only maintains your connection with the
candidates, it also provides ongoing context as to how they are performing, how they are evolving as well as
their motivation and engagement levels.
With a ‘humans first’ hat on, you must remember that many factors can impact the performance of even the
best candidates, and sometimes such factors may not be immediately obvious.
Burn out, brand fatigue and extensive travel can play a part here, and being able to recognise and address
these issues to protect both the candidate and the brand with honesty and compassion should always be front
and centre.
Give valuable feedback
The word feedback can often instil a sense of panic. However, you must remember that acknowledging and
celebrating the positive, is just as important as addressing the more complex matters at hand.
Addressing feedback in real time with honesty supports the humans first approach and demonstrates to
candidates that their performance, development and welfare is a priority. Feedback should not be limited to outbound only. An open-door policy to feedback is beneficial in providing
insight from the candidates and can provide a point of view or suggestion that had not been considered
before.
Whatever your next event is, remember that it’s not only the brand who is front and centre – it’s also your
people.
When it comes to event staffing, don’t underestimate the value of adding human touch points – it will only
change your event game for the better.
