Business Enterprise Institute – Member Engagement and Growth
Strengthening engagement despite
a changing member base
“If you want to connect more deeply with your clients, strengthen those relationships, and retain and grow them, Bespoke is the team to help you do it. They’re masterful at creating brand experiences that show our clients they are seen and understood.”
Elizabeth Mower, President
BEI Exit Planning Solutions
Opportunity
The Business Enterprise Institute (BEI) provides training, marketing and planning support to its several hundred members who advise business owners through the exit planning process. BEI engaged Bespoke to help plan and execute the organization’s annual conference, which was designed to help participants share best practices, network, and gain exposure to the offerings of sponsoring industry vendors.
Bespoke Insights
Bespoke applied its sharp intention-setting focus to every aspect of the event from purpose and content to design and execution. The discovery process revealed opportunities for BEI to better connect with the changing demographics of its member base. Bespoke also saw that BEI could better use the conference to increase membership and engagement with its programs and services.
Strategy
Bespoke transformed BEI’s approach to—and role in—the conference from coordinator and facilitator to one that fully showcased BEI’s capabilities and member benefits while also increasing the event’s value to participants. With a clearly defined conference purpose and desired outcomes, Bespoke helped build compelling event content with the right keynote speaker to communicate the right messaging for the specific audience.
We also turned BEI’s industry-leading exit planning foundational course for advisors into an optional bootcamp experience at the conference’s front end. In addition, we created an engaging sales center for BEI that served as the gateway for each new attendee’s conference experience. The center highlighted BEI’s best-in-class education offerings and business advisor tools and helped attendees learn how to get the most from the conference. Other additions included creative networking opportunities and solution circles, which provided intimate moments for people to connect to discuss challenges and share best practices.
Results
The purpose-driving changes Bespoke made to the conference resulted in stronger connections between BEI and its attendees, with participation growing more than 60 percent over the past four years. In addition, Bespoke has leveraged our contract experience and venue relationships to upgrade BEI’s conference locations as well, further driving interest, attendance and delight with the participant experience.
