“67% of all B2B content marketers consider event marketing as the most effective strategy.”

That, to me, is huge. Let’s ignore the Social Media and Email tidbits first because we all know how important it already is and give Events its 15 seconds of fame.

I’ve been involved in Event Marketing for the past 6 years, and I never get tired of it. However, I’ve met so many Marketing students who look down on Event Marketing; I’m not going to lie, sometimes I get offended. I’ve heard many people say “It’s just events.”, “It’s pretty much just project management.” and worse, “Anyone can do events.” Sorry to break it to all of you, but Event Marketing is not as simple as our club conferences (that takes a year and a team of 50 students to plan), no matter how large scale they may be.

After running a series of Canada-wide events over the summer, I realized that it requires a more strategic approach, more collaboration with external partners, and a bigger responsibility to add value to the brand and its shareholders.

What is more, instead of having a team of 10-15 “Vice President of xxx” to do a lot of the legwork, often, event marketers have to take on the project by themselves or with a small team of professionals who don’t have the time to keep going back and forth with aesthetic decisions. It requires high-level decision-making, negotiation, budget monitoring, and communication skills to succeed. And being naturally enthusiastic and energetic is instrumental in rallying a corporate office to get out of their comfort zone (i.e. their offices and desks) and mingle with the public.

Event Marketers make an average of $39,000 annually. Yes, it’s a little bit below the Social Media Coordinator’s $45,000 salary. But with the increase in industry’s awareness of the value and impact of events, not just for B2B but B2C strategies, I wouldn’t be surprised if that average increases. Plus, it’s definitely more fun for all those who enjoy having a lot of human interaction in their lives. The take-away: do not write-off Event Marketing from your career path selection. Although it’s nothing like the impact of digital, it’s a growing trend that deserves our attention.