Behind the Event IV: Integrating Sponsors Into Your Virtual Event, with Teresa Zimmerman, Erin Geoffroy, and Kevin Gough

Teresa Zimmerman serves as the Vice President of Marketing at Personify. She leads Personify’s global marketing organization and is responsible for driving market leadership, global awareness, demand generation, strategic events, and product go-to-market plans. Teresa has a rich history of success driving excellence at enterprise SaaS companies, having spent time at Bazaarvoice, Lithium, and Fuze where she oversaw North American marketing programs, including field and solutions marketing, demand creation, advertising, and events. Beyond the office, Teresa serves on the board of directors for BookSpring, nonprofit supporting childhood literacy and resides with her family in Austin, Texas.

A recognized leader in marketing, brand, and content, Erin Geoffroy has spent over 10 years helping organizations tell meaningful stories and create effective engagement strategies. Her diverse background includes developing highly effective national marketing campaigns and digital tools in the software, consumer goods, healthcare, and nonprofit sectors. Since obtaining her MBA in Marketing and MA in Journalism in 2016, Erin has focused on empowering nonprofits and associations to better engage their members and donors through technology and the use of data-driven insights. At Personify, Erin develops and executes marketing campaigns across Personify’s verticals and a suite of products and leads brand marketing initiatives.

Kevin Gough helps deliver high-quality and relevant content to the association market as the Senior Campaigns Coordinator at Personify. He has been a multifunctional member of the marketing team during his time at Personify, beginning within the Demand Generation organization before subsequently transitioning to his current role in the Brand and Communications organization. As a member of the PersoniFest team, Kevin manages the sponsor experience and works to provide the tools and guidance sponsors need to maximize their presence at the conference. When he isn’t at work, Kevin is an avid snowboarder and can usually be found re-reading his favorite books.

What you’ll learn about in this episode: Teresa explains how sponsors reached out to let the team know they were interested in participating in the Personifest virtual event due to great existing relationships How the team worked to build a structure for the virtual event that allows sponsors to connect with virtual attendees Why the team is charging a lower rate for virtual sponsor opportunities than they have in the past for the in-person event Kevin discusses the creative solutions that have been designed for sponsors to increase their visibility Why, even though a virtual event doesn’t offer the same engagement opportunities as a live event, the increase in audience reach makes up for the difference Why communicating with sponsors throughout the virtual event setup is the key to strengthening relationships and tailoring the event to the sponsors’ needs Additional resources: Website: https://personifycorp.com/ Teresa’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/tazimmerz/ Erin’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/eringeoffroy/ Kevin’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kevinmgough/