Have you ever considered the event rockstars of the world? Those who truly know how to put on an experience to remember? In the documentary, exclusively on Netflix, “I’m not Your Guru” Tony Robbins states;
“Your life didn’t change in a moment, we think it does, but that moment is just where, from the last several years, you finally said ‘enough’ and made the change”.
So, what is the moment where you decide to change something? What is the change? Moving on from a pain, learning something new, stepping into the unknown, it could be a lot of things. Not many know how to step into that next phase better than Mr. Tony Robbins. Whether you agree with him or not, he is indeed a powerhouse. He’s a multiple New York Times bestseller, and one of, if not, the face you think of when someone says ‘self-help’. He is also by chance, an incredible thought leader on how to put on unbelievable events.
Now you may be wondering what does this documentary and Tony Robbins have to do with online registration or events for that matter? Well, let me tell you.
This man knows how to throw an event!
Take away the self help aspect, I realize that could be off-putting to some. Let’s just stop, take a deep breathe, and marvel at his event, “Date with Destiny”. Working here at Webconnex, we are more passionate than most about events, it is the reason we built the insanely robust RegFox. If you strip this film of its well made documentary style, the good camera angles, smooth flow, etc. what was most impressive on how concise an event was being thrown. The event lasts almost weeks, costs almost 5 thousand dollars, (all inclusive from what we saw) and each day will last about 12 hours. You, my event industry friends, know that can be quite a daunting task to keep people entertained and engaged for this massive of an event.
Here are three takeaways from this documentary and Mr. Robbins successful events.
1. Know your audience.
As event organizers it is important to know your audience and fine tune your event for that specific demographic. Tony Robbins’ team had clearly done their research on the ideal demographic for their event. If you have ever wondered about how to market your event to a group of people, you should give this documentary a gander. You’ll see that ultimately, you want your marketing to draw people who want to be there, not people you need to beg to be there. While most of this documentary is focused on the heart behind what they do, you get a nice glimpse into how they frame this event specifically for their demographic.
2. Take care of the details for your registrants.
Don’t force your registrants to think of how to be present at your event, provide and cultivate that environment for them, by taking care of the details. Consider all of the tiny things to keep your registrants free of distraction. These are paying customers, the least you can do is figure out some ways to keep them from worrying about the typical “things” while trying to absorb all this good info you are attempting to convey to them. Go beyond keeping them fed and caffeinated, and take care of the minute details that will allow a streamlined experience for the attendee.
3. Have a village.
Fortunately, as shown in the documentary, Robbins seems to keep good people around him. He understands it takes a village to turn an event of this size into a successful one. One thing to take note of is his appreciation for his team/volunteers. Mr. Robbins mentions in the film, while thanking some of his staff/volunteers, “Moving a chair makes a difference, having water ready [for the guests] makes a difference. When small things are missing, that is when it can fall apart”. These things can’t happen without a team of support. The team seemed to be in agreement, and understood the importance of the attendees having everything else provided for in order to be distraction free and ready to receive from the event.
Mr. Robbins, amidst the books, the fame, (and even the fortune) understands a few small but very powerful principles that help make his events ones that his registrants remember for a lifetime. If you are someone who is interested in the wonderful world of events (and if you are reading this, you undoubtedly are) I would highly encourage you to take a look at this documentary. Besides seeing an incredibly well made documentary, you will get insight in how to help make your next event a tour de force. You can view it now on Netflix.
