The positives of holding in-person events

In-person events such as our 79th Golf Invitational can be crucial in creating and developing our relationships with clients and partners. Our Investment Director, Curtis Webster, discusses how we utilise our in-person events to establish lasting business relationships in all areas of the world.

Curtis Webster
Investment Director

December 12, 2023

The Seventy Ninth Group’s global presence continues to grow on a daily basis. Our expansion into different territories across the globe has meant that the importance of nurturing our relationships with clients is greater than ever. Although we have teams and offices worldwide, we still believe in maintaining a physical presence in all territories.

Photograph of The Seventy Ninth Group gold event

One way that helps us to do this is with our annual golf invitational event. Held at the Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, this event provides us the opportunity to meet and engage with our clients face-to-face. Events like these are incredibly important to us as a company because it allows us to personally thank all the people who have helped to make our business a success, with 93% of 500 marketers believing that in-person events can provide attendees with a valuable opportunity to form in-person connections in an increasingly digital world[i].

The rise of virtual events

A picture of a laptop screen with a virtual meeting

Although the COVID-19 pandemic slowed the events industry down, it allowed for the rise of virtual events where people could still connect digitally. Virtual events are great, and they definitely still have a purpose when wanting to create relationships between businesses and clients, and here at the Seventy Ninth Group we are no stranger to them, with our CEO Natalie Bellis taking part in Master Investor Sector Focus: Going for Gold Webinar earlier on in the year. However, I feel there is a real preference towards in-person events, specifically as 76.6% of organisers consider in-person conferences critical to their organisation’s overall success[ii].

The rise of virtual events highlights the importance of humans’ place on creating connections when making business decisions as companies were quick to innovate to create opportunities to engage with their stakeholders. Before the pandemic, virtual events were growing in popularity, with the sector valued at almost $78 billion in 2019[iii]. Although this shows that their growth was already on the rise, this was accelerated by the pandemic. Virtual events platform 6Connex says virtual events were up 1000% in 2020, as they saw more than 52,000 events and subevents on their platform since the pandemic.[iv]. There is definitely a place for virtual events in business, and I believe they work as an easier way to connect with people all over the world.

A hands-on approach

Photo of Curtis Webster, Investment Director at the 79th Group talking to other men at the event

Personally, although I see the benefits to virtual events, for me there is nothing like connecting with people in person. Whilst it’s good to build a foundation virtually, I have witnessed relationships with clients and partners really blossom when face-to-face. It is great to put faces to names and learn more about those interested in the business, and in return they get to know more about us and the company. 82.8% of organisers believe that in-person events provide an ideal networking environment[v], and when looking at our business strategy, events like our recent annual 79^th Golf Invitational in Dubai are key in order to keep growing and the momentum of our success.

At our events, clients can expect to interact with the team, including myself, Dave, Jake, and Natalie. We are at the forefront, as we truly believe in our business and want it to succeed. In-person events allow the opportunity for people to not only get to know the business, but the people behind it as well. The face-to-face relationships we get to build with clients and partners as a result of this are imperative for the success of our business.

With that in mind, we try and make all of our events new and exciting each and every time. We want the attendees to have a memorable experience and hope that our most recent event has achieved just that. Our events are incredibly important to us, and with statistics like 95% of 500 marketers believing that in-person events can have a major impact on achieving their company’s primary business goals[vi], events like our golf invitational are crucial, in order to create and cultivate lasting relationships with clients.

Our success with in-person events

The success of our roadshow of events in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Dubai last year have shown us the benefit of creating a physical presence when bringing our offering to new jurisdictions and this goes beyond increasing our client base, we have forged long-lasting business relationships that have enabled us to further expand over the last year – these networking opportunities have proven to be invaluable to us as a growing company.

We know that in order to keep growing as a company, it requires dedication from all involved. We never shy away from getting stuck in, and everyone who works for the company is the same. The hard work and dedication from the team meant that this year’s event was like no other, and a step up from events we have run in the past, being the perfect balance between being entertaining and a networking event.

A photograph of Adrienne Kelbie and Dave Webster smiling stood next to each other

The future of Seventy Ninth events

As a company, we recognise the importance of maintaining a presence outside of our UK headquarters, and events like our 79^th Golf Invitational allow us to do just that. Virtual and in-person events are something that will always be a key part of our strategy at the Seventy Ninth Group, so 2024 will undoubtedly have more to look forward to. The engagement with our clients and partners is crucial in the success of our events and I can’t wait for the next one!