Rugby World Cup 2011 – business to business opportunities for your company
You may not have realised it, but there are great opportunities to network at a business and social level with visitors coming to the RWC from overseas who have an interest in your sector. This could be potential customers, suppliers, distribution partners, or alliance partners, it is really up to you to make the most of the opportunity – as a minimum you will get some great market intelligence, and meet like minded people. This comes about thanks to the government’s initiative called the NZ 2011 Business Club.
Joining the Business Club is free and simple - see www.nz2011.govt.nz/business
The key to this working is that the international visitor has registered to say they are interested in networking, and with the data available the government agency can match in terms of:
* Country of origin – ie where the person lives – see below
* Area of activity – sector etc.
* Level of seniority – eg owner, senior manager etc.
Here are some key facts to get you excited:
* 85000 visitors over a 6 week period 9/09 – 23/10
* Average length of stay 23 days
* Over 20% of international business club (IBC) members are business owners
* Currently 10,000 registered IBC members
Major visitor numbers by country are:
* 35000 – Australia
* 25000 – UK and France
* 2700 – USA
If you had ever thought about trading with these countries, - and let’s face it most of us have had a look over the pond to Oz – then this could be a perfect occasion.
As small business owners and managers we are being encouraged to host events with the focus on fun first, business second. This is stuff that we take for granted so maybe taking a bunch of people out fishing, doing a wine tour, hosting a BBQ…this is grass roots New Zealand and is the type of real experience that our visitors are looking for.
It may be a good idea to get a cluster of related or connected businesses together – think professional services for example – and do a joint event.
As a marketing agency we are looking at how we can leverage this opportunity for ourselves and also for our clients – our different alliance partners are working with us now to explore these opportunities. The timing is perfect with the government taking submissions for hosting events right now – they will do the hard yards with the e-mail sending and database mining / match-making.
This is a great cost-effective marketing opportunity that raises the profile of NZ as a place to do business, but more importantly for you and me, is a great opportunity to network with overseas business people in our own back yard - and have some fun doing it – so visit the website and get on board – I know I am!
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