Time to Shake Hands
As the Coronavirus fades into our rear-view mirror, the shift to in person events is underway. Blame it on isolation fatigue, boredom or whatever adjective fits the bill, but management and investors are booking flights in droves despite the higher costs with air travel and the potential for catching the ‘Rona’ or worse, the ‘Flurona’ (no, 'Flurona' isn't real. However, it is entirely possible to catch the flu and Covid-19 simultaneously.) While not always the most cost-effective in terms of time, money and effort, the benefits of in-person vs. virtual events are clear—deeper engagement and the higher likelihood of leaving with a new investor or research coverage.
If you haven’t done so already, you need to replenish your travel fund taking into consideration inflation. Rental cars, gas and even Uber rides — up 12% recently, according to the marketing research firm NielsenIQ — are siphoning corporate travel budgets. Besides transportation, hotel, airfare, and miscellaneous expenses such as IT, AV, and swag, food and printing costs have risen too.
Before you confirm attendance, dust off and update your one-page factsheet and investor presentation (a quarterly must-do), making sure both are as sharp in print as on a computer screen. Reducing dark backgrounds and minimizing graphics can help further reduce outlays.
To get the biggest bang for your buck, combine attendance at industry conferences with a few investor meetings. Let your IR team know your conference schedule well in advance so they can arrange meetings in the city of your choice. Investors often book 3-6 weeks out so be sure to let your IR team know as soon as you register for an event.
Don’t forget to recalibrate your presentation style. Zoom has trained us to present from the shoulders up in 20 minutes or less without interruption. Focus on your smile. Make eye contact. Research shows smiles help you earn other’s trust and make others feel good. Watch out for non-verbal communication cues too which can be far more important than the words actually being said.
Face to face meetings allow for a natural, spontaneous interaction making it easier to build relationships which can lead to more opportunity down the road. While the cost effectiveness of Zoom meetings can’t be beat, there is nothing like a day of investor meetings which can ultimately can save you time and money. You can get a lot of information out of a few minutes of small talk with an investor which can help you hone in on key points of your presentation and drive the conversation where you need it to go.
Mind-numbing conversations and awkward moments be damned. If we’ve learned anything from these last two years, it’s be human. And smile.
