Planner Resilience: Valerie Bihet, VIBE Agency

How were you able to adapt during COVID-19 when the meeting and events industry got disrupted?

When I saw this crisis happen, I realized my industry would be hit hard and a digital transformation would be required for all events. I looked to tech companies like Microsoft and Snapchat to see how they were handling things and in the latter, I found a solution. Unlike some of my peers who pushed their clients to reschedule to the fall of 2020, I started looking to 2021. My intuition said 2020 events would all be digital.

So I trained the VIBE Agency team on our new direction and we focused on all things digital: website updates, new marketing programs and content, content, and more content creation to educate clients (and prospects) about how business events could happen on new virtual platforms. Combined with prioritizing our customer service all along, I have been able to keep my loyal customers and even added four new clients to the mix by December. I have also received two industry awards, including being named one of BizBash’s 500 Most Influential Event Professionals, and that is something I am hugely proud of being able to accomplish.

This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series where we celebrate the positivity and optimism shown by planners across the industry when navigating the turbulent waters that COVID-19 has brought the meetings and events industry.   Keep an eye out as we release more stories like this over the next few months.