Meet with the Client Before the Event

This information will help you prepare for your pre-event call and event date.

 

What is a Pre-Event Call?

The pre-event call is a 30 minute video conference meeting with you, the provider, and the client to go over the details of the event, review content, and ask any questions to best facilitate. This is your chance to really impress the client with your content and present yourself.  A member of the concierge team may join on the call if the client has asked for concierge services. 

 

Once you have been booked on the marketplace it is a good practice reach out (through the chat feature on the marketplace) to coordinate the time for the pre-event call, ideally 10 days prior to the event start date, but this may be sooner to that date depending on the client timeline and availability.

 

A best practice is to ask for a pre-event call only once the client has reached out and booked your session.  That way, you have assurance that the client is truly interested in your services and not just "shopping around".  If a client is asking for a pre-event call before they have booked you, please direct them to reserve your calendar first by booking you on the marketplace for the date and time they would like the event. 

 

Preparing for your Pre-Event Call

Consider the pre-event call as a "dress rehearsal", so we recommend the following:

1. Attire: Professional/ business casual attire, camera ready
2. Setting: Check your background to ensure there is nothing distracting in the camera’s view.  We recommend that you take the meeting where you will be conducting the event from, so if you have a home office, take the pre-event call there or if you are conducting a yoga session, host the session from the area where your mat will be, this helps set expectations for the client and helps uncover any issues with lighting, sound, or internet to be solved for.
3. Video/Audio Check: Ensure these are properly setup before the call
4. Content: If presenting slides or other media, ensure they are ready to share with the client. Make sure they are clear of branding, copyrighted imagery and professional in quality and feel. Slides should have minimal text.  Our clients prefer the slides be used as prompts rather than reading directly from them.

What is Expected of the Provider?

If this is your first time meeting with our client, they will want to know about you, your background and experience, and your content. There is no better person to talk about your event than you, so take this opportunity to really help them get excited about it! Here is a quick listing of ideas to talk about:

• Your content - outline of talk or workshop
• Your Background and Experience
• Why you are Passionate about this

Pre-Event Call Agenda

Once the date and time have been coordinated with the client, ask that a calendar invite be sent with a link to join the conference call will be included.  We recommend you use their webinar platform so they are most comfortable and can set it up for maximum attendee privacy, if desired. 

First, ask the client to share more information about their company culture and why they are looking to host this particular event (i.e. lots of employees want to be more organized). "What drew you to this listing?"  "What goals do you hope to accomplish?"

After listening to the client, go ahead and share insight into your content with a brief walk through/ share slides and handouts, and address any questions the client may have. 

• Gather any logistical information, which may include:
• Demographic information
• Attendee count
• Interaction level
• Preferred webinar platform
• Who will do the intro?
• Will the event be recorded?
• Shall we join the event 10-15 minutes ahead to make sure we are all set to go?
• Any additional questions you or the client may have

If any changes need to be made to your content, please submit those to the client for review 1 week before the event date if possible.

 

Another Note:

garten has a non-solicitation agreement with all of our clients. This means that any providers that are booked from our platform will not be able to solicit their employees. To avoid any issues with this, please adhere to the following guidelines:

1. Remove any business specific branding from your slide decks or handouts. You do not need to add garten, but we ask that any logos or information related to your brand be removed before presenting with the client. 
2. You can have one slide with your website or contact info in case employees want to follow up personally with you, but that follow up has to be initiated by them, not you.
3. Likewise, please do not feel pressured to follow up with a contact just because you hosted a session with their company. 
4. Contact information obtained as a result of this event should not be added to any mailing or outreach lists, unless requested to. 
5. Social media posts about the event cannot be tagged to the company unless you have explicit permission to do so. 
6. Any slides or handouts need to also be free of any copyrighted images or materials unless you have written permission to use them. You can find unlicensed photos for your presentation here if needed: Unsplash