Earlier this week, I posted some initial points on successful event marketing. Today, I’ll share what I think are four keys to help any event be successful.

Know Your Audience
Too many companies, businesses and even festival and event groups spend more time marketing to themselves instead of their potential audience. Many events have several tiers or several different demographics for their events. It is important to know all your audiences and to target your event messages to each one. The SBA has a helpful article about establishing clear guidelines on how to drill down and learn about the people you're trying to reach.

Your marketing message is not just the image you project in media. It is also the message you send to your staff, vendors and participants. From the way you reply to an email to the way you answer the phone. Positive correspondence to everyone involved in your event is key so they will continue to partner with you in the future.

And you must allocate your budget to grow for impressive creative and solid media plans and strategy.

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Events and Festivals are in my blood, and I love it.

I attend them. I produce them. I develop and execute marketing plans for them. I even got engaged at North America's largest fireworks show.

So that makes me some kind of expert. At least our clients think so.

I do love discussing and analyzing everything about events to help groups get the most effective use of every dollar they have to produce events. Our experience with Kentucky Derby Festival, Butchertown Art Fair, The Cup Experience (Louisville's 2008 Ryder Cup Host Committee) and the Kentucky Bourbon Festival has brought a few things to my attention.

First, many festivals and event companies don't realize that partnering with key groups like a PR or marketing firm, can improve communications and get professional insights that an event group, working alone, may not otherwise have. Many groups choose to handle these efforts internally, in an effort to conserve costs, but it is not the best use of their time, skill sets or resources. Event groups should focus on what they do best...events.

Secondly, far too many event groups have no consistent theme. When I was a judge for the Kentucky Festivals and Events Association event materials competition, I was amazed to find the amount of work that carried no consistent theme and had no clear message they were trying to deliver to their audiences.

Lastly, event groups need all the help they can get. If "It takes a village to raise a child," it takes an entire community to successfully promote and produce an event. Seek out volunteers, who can recruit more volunteers. Find experts in marketing, crowd & traffic management, concessions, signage and recruiting to build teams that will help with the event you're planning and for future growth.

Later this week, I'll share what I think are four keys to successful event planning and management.