Rethink: Event Branding

Immersive experiences make your event. But what happens if the branding for it isn’t distinguishable from the basic marketing ops? The immersion doesn’t have the ground to start.

Event branding is a must for companies that want to stand out.

There’s a trick here, though; the event must be branded uniquely, yet capture the same themes and embody your organization’s mission. The difference is a fine line.

And that fine line is energy and movement.

The event needs to feel electric and full of life. Because that’s calling the people in.

But how do you do this exactly? Energy? Movement? Such abstract concepts may seem out of place in the logical world of B2B marketing, but it is the hack that many organizations are missing.

And this is how you harness it.

PS: This isn’t a checklist. It’s a map of what makes event branding actually work. Your route will be different, but these are the landmarks that matter.

What is Event Branding and Why Do You Need It?

Since there are two types of events, virtual and in-person, we are going to treat them differently.

They share similarities that will translate to each other, but they should be treated very differently. This piece will deal with live events.

So let’s define event branding and branch out from there.

What is event branding?

The act of promoting an event, generating awareness, and aligning your event with your brand objectives, themes, and philosophy is event branding. That’s it.

But there is a secret ingredient here. The branding is not the same as your brand. It is distinctive in its approach, and it will create a sub-brand – one that is controlled by you and then by your attendees.

Branding in this context is perception and level of engagement.

Why do you need event branding?

It’s to stand out and create an identity for your event. This assumes you want to do more of them because they do work a lot. If you get the right attendees and vendors in place, your event will generate a customer acquisition pipeline.

But it needs to have clarity. And this is where we start.

How do you brand your event?

A.) Clarity

This one is common across both media, and you’d be surprised at how many people skip this step. Why are you hosting the event? And if you answer with leads, revenue, and the bottom line, there’s a chance you might be in the group of people who do not have clarity.

Clarity is the answer to these three questions:-

1. Why are you running the event for an audience?
2. How do you want to direct the experience?
3. What is the feeling you want to leave the audience with?

This clarity will guide you and help you bring an audience that cares about events like yours. If you let lead gen or conversion guide you, failure will set in. These are obvious, and a good event will translate to those anyway.

In-Person Events

These are the most exciting of the two events. Of course, many will disagree because in-person socializing can also be difficult. It is difficult. And a lot of power to those who overcome their fear and attend these.

And that’s something brand and marketing managers need to understand. Your branding has the colossal task of convincing people to attend your event. These people who might be:

1. Shy
2. Budget conscious
3. Easily distracted
4. Etc.

The point is that the branding has to convince a diverse audience to visit your event out of so many in your geography.

The easiest of these is the speakers. Well-known speakers get in the crowd.

1.) Event Branding Waypoint 1: The Speakers

Let’s talk about Google’s latest event. It has Jimmy Fallon leading the show – this has nothing to do with whether you like or know the guy- but you probably knew he did the event.

Here are the numbers for you to see. Made by Google ’24 vs ’25.

This is self-evident- Fallon made a difference. The event branded itself. While he was the host, the logic still stands. The speakers and hosts make a difference.

But that leads us to the next section, the independent branding of the event. It must and should stand up on its own. That is why the focus on people, energy, and movement is a driving force of attractive events.

2.) Event Branding Waypoint 2: Energy

What do CES, SXSW, and Comic Con have in common? Yes, they’re events. But beyond that?

It’s the energy. And no, not the mumbo jumbo aura kind. But the way it’s delivered is as this once-in-a-lifetime event. (no pun intended)

Many brands know this and try to emulate it. But they come off as too try-hard. That’s why you cannot brand it as this once-in-a-lifetime thing. But instead, the energy of the event must reflect your brand’s value.

As this is being written, ExitFive’s Event, Drive, is supposed to be the best event for marketers. And Dave Gerhardt did not brand it as this once-in-a-lifetime event, but it was specific. It was the best place for marketers to be. And?

It worked. It was a smash hit.

This is the energy- it is the founder’s enthusiasm for the event and a clear goal for it. But events are not static; they convey mobility and sociality. It empowers networking, which brings us to movement.

3.) Event Branding Waypoint 3: Movement

This is where your vendors and the idea come to life. What is the movement of your event? Is it exchanging information and playing games?

No. These are channels, like social media and email marketing, to convey a message. The movement is that message. What does that mean? When you’re branding an event, you will do all the basics like: –

1. Choose a name and create a logo for the event.
2. Use digital and OOH channels to reach your audience
3. drive demand and conversion
4. Choose colors and themes

But movement is the direction of your event- the way it should flow. Where do the vendors sit, and what events and event timings precede and succeed certain engagement plays? When do the speakers go live, and how do they present it?

What can you do to convey this in your branding?

This has two answers:

1. If you have already done an event, it is using the first event’s energy and movement to showcase that you have done it before. It’s using videos and the crowd to draw in more crowds. Like the Exit Five testimonial. It builds on the movement of the actual event. But what if you didn’t have an event before?
2. Okay, so you’re new to events. This is daunting for you. And amongst the sea of advice, you’re met with movement and energy and whatnot.
3. Let’s assume you followed the argument. But if not, what this means is: Clarity is what your audience has in for it.
4. Energy is: why the event exists.
5. Movement is: what direction it needs to take.
6. And then you use these principles to execute your branding. We are not telling you what to do because it cannot be emulated. Your journey is unique. But we can give you a map.
7. So you’re new to event creation. How will you convey movement? It’s by telling a story- why did you bring on these speakers and vendors?
8. What is the reason behind your decisions, and what do you hope will happen?
9. This story is the crux of your branding. Why? Because it signals who belongs at your event. It’s the bridge from movement (what happens) to community (who it happens with)

3.) Event Branding Waypoint 3.5: Building the community – an extension of movement.

The reason why people will come to your events is networking. That’s the reason the extrovert has come from their homes and cozy spots. They know the value of networking here. But that is too much of an alienating conference.

The reason why Exit Five or even Comic Con works is because of the sense of belonging. This is what will give momentum to your event. Like, take GITEX, one of the events in the UAE, which is driven by a community of forward thinkers and B2B marketers.

It is positioned as a premium event that many should attend. And it works! Because it is positioned as a community of: –

1. Elites
2. Forward thinkers
3. Investors
4. Tech enthusiasts.

It is the B2B event because of these four associations with it.

Event Branding is more than generic information. It is an invitation to be a part of something bigger.

And that’s what many effective marketers use. They don’t brand events with simple logos or flood channels with information.

That is a fundamentally wrong approach. The map outlined here is subject to change based on the context. Yes, marketing is that fluid, and that’s the reason why so many get it wrong.

Effective marketing always invites the audience to be part of something bigger. A movement. And events do that- they fulfill the itch of the community while promising attendees the chance of career growth.

The question is, irrespective of the medium, the colors, or the theme, does your event branding do that?