People buy from people and we took time to understand Louisa's approach, her values

and why doing business her way means both delighted clients and strong, durable client-agency relationships.

1. As the face of Client Relationships at Activate Events, may we ask you what draws you to the role?

I have always been a people person and I’m naturally a curious person – I like to understand how people and businesses tick, what interests them, what are their challenges and why they do what they do. This helps when looking at how we can help our clients and also look to grow new relationships.

Recovering from the pandemic, we see lots of change and it has been really interesting having very different conversations with clients about how they are managing their events strategy. I was drawn to working with Activate as I felt a great synergy with the team and their ethos of business in putting clients first and giving them great solutions!

2. Tell us a little about your working style and what you believe is important in forging new relationships and developing the existing ones? 

My working style is approachable, honest and consultative. I’m generally interested in the clients and really believe it is important that we develop and nurture our relationships with them. I believe strongly in partnerships and investing in the relationship for the long term. People buy people and our team are a representation of how our business operates – professionally, ethically and with integrity. I suppose that’s why I don’t see myself as a sales person but as a relationship builder.

Our solutions need to match our clients objectives therefore it is important for us to find out what these are, to delve deeper than simply asking for briefs!

3. Given your extensive experience, do you see a difference in your interactions with clients and prospects now versus pre-pandemic? Has anything changed and if so, what are your key insights here?

Yes they have changed, in some respects it’s been easier to grab time with clients on a quick virtual meeting or call rather than getting time in the diary for a face to face meeting. I’m not sure it will go back to pre-pandemic times totally as we are so used to this new way of working. It gives us the opportunity to understand when a face to face meeting is required as a more meaningful discussion and prioritise this.

Virtual technology has certainly served a purpose and we have developed new relationships without face to face interaction but we cannot ignore the value of face to face relationships and the deeper connections we build as a result.

4. What do you think is the biggest challenge for our prospects and clients? And how is Activate answering this?

The biggest challenge we are hearing is what do our clients’ event strategies and calendars look like for the future. There is definitely an appetite to move away from simply virtual events, however, they have provided our clients with greater audience reach and fantastic analytics.

Our clients are most certainly sensitive to how their employees are feeling across different geographies, whether they are comfortable to travel and the volatility of responding to last minute changes. They are therefore looking to us to be consultative in our approach as to what our recommendations would be to support their challenges. Hybrid has been a great middle ground for those clients and we have had to be clear with client’s that this comes at a cost!

5. Tell us a little about the initiatives Activate is planning as a way of improving client and prospect engagement and the visibility of our brand?

Definitely a return to face to face activity for meetings and client events but combining this with some digital think tanks to bring clients and prospects together to learn more about industry insights and network together in short sharp bursts.

We’ve all learnt during the pandemic that shorter events have greater engagement and are more likely to be attended! We are investing in our profile on social platforms such as LinkedIn and Instagram to bring to life our people and events that we do. We have great knowledge and expertise in house and we are proud to give people a glimpse of this.

6. Could you share with us a fun or more unusual conversation you had with any of your prospects?

Working from home I find that allows clients to open up more easily. We all have a need for a conversation and open conversations are easier outside the office walls. People like telling their story and it has sometimes been easier understanding clients’ challenges this way, both professionally and personally. Ultimately, a good rapport is essential for a working relationship to develop. Earning and keeping our clients’ trust is definitely a privilege.

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To keep up to date with our people, places and event stories, follow Activate Events on LinkedIn and #ActivateEvents.



Connect with Louisa on LinkedIn or say hello@activateevents.com.