Wednesday evening, May 6, Clay Johnston of Richmond OLP partnered with Bill Currie of Archadeck of Central VA and John Wyatt of Mosquito Squad of Richmond to host a networking event for local area service providers in the outdoor living arena. The event, which was a cocktail reception with hors d’oeuvres, was held in the Outdoor Living Brands’ corporate office and the 35 attendees provide services from landscaping, hardscaping, outdoor kitchens and furniture, to architecture, home construction, and painting. What made the event successful was the quality of the engaged conversation between the attendees who are clearly dedicated both to their respective lines of work and the residential and outdoor living markets. There will certainly be a number of referral relationships develop from this event. I’m personally looking forward to following up with Summer Classics and visiting their showroom.
Co-marketed events are a great way to share referral partnership and prospect lists, marketing and planning efforts, and expenses. And Richmond proved that a successful event doesn’t need to be 50-100 people. A more intimate event of 20-40 can yield better conversation and can more easily be hosted in an office setting, which also saves on expenses. Referral Marketing works!