How to think like your Singapore attendee

I've never really had problems finding exciting things to do in Singapore.  After I joined Peatix, the challenge became having to choose from events happening in the same evening or over the same weekend.

So the events are there in quantity and quality.  But the group of people seeking adventurous things to do seems pretty small - events with strong content still fail to attract a crowd when they deserve to.

And often, organisers do not have the time, patience or commitment to communicate their event's value clearly.  If you go to the root of it, often the organisers are so immersed in their own event, it is hard to step back and are think like the attendee.

Here are my suggestions of "How to think like your Singapore attendee":

  1. You're up against all the free events that are *free* AND have free food & booze
    Yes, you're up against better-than-free.  Deep-pocketed brands and government funded agencies are running loss-making / loss-leading events that heavily distorts expectations.  

    So if your event is free, please don't be shy - shout it out.  If your event is paid, it is your responsibility to explain what the attendee gets for paying.  Better yet, invest time in building a relationship with sponsors - it will be worth it in the long-run.

    And don't judge behaviour - everyone loves free, it's just whether they embrace it or scorn those who embrace it (out of jealously).
  2. Think from the attendee's perspective, not your own.
    You the organiser deserve to be paid for your efforts, and content is still king - but don't think of yourself.  Think of why the attendee would bother travelling to your event, spend time and money.  That makes the whole difference of how you describe your event.  And it isn't complex - for live experiences people generally want 1) knowledge - for work or themselves 2) new friends or new business contacts 3) to have fun!
  3. Tell people what they're getting.  List it out.  Tell a story.
    People want unique experiences.  They want a good deal.  If you don't bother describing the speaker, the venue, the other attendees, the food catered, the view, your personal story of why you're doing this - how would they know?
  4. Create a sense of a good deal
    It is common knowledge that in the United States, stores mark-up the price of goods leading up to Thanksgiving, so they can make a deeper cut for Black Friday.  I'm not asking you to lie or mislead.  All I'm saying is that people want to feel like they got a good deal.

Now it's time to get everyone who complains Singapore is boring of the bloody malls and cookie-cutter chain restaurants.  We've got lots of great events happening all the time.  Do we need another Uniqlo, JEM Mall or cinema showing the same Hollywood movie?  You've put together the wonderful content - time to hook the Singapore attendee in!