Why we Sponsor Retail CIO Connect
We spoke to David Fontinha at Do iT Lean to see why they sponsor Retail CIO Connect. Do iT Lean is a services company dedicated to building web and mobile applications using OutSystems low-code platform.
Who: Do iT Lean
Where: Retail CIO Connect
When: May 2022
Benefits: Outstanding method to make your brand completely identifiable and overtake competitors by showcasing products.
We chose to sponsor Retail CIO Connect this year, as we are trying to expand and create recognition for our brand in the UK and we believe that Retail CIO Connect was a great way to do so. Sponsoring has given us a great opportunity to showcase our services to the right audience. We are passionate about what we offer, and this is our chance to share that.
All of our 1-1 meetings have been great, with everyone very engaged and interested in what we do. We’ve made a lot of good long term connections here, as some people we have spoken to have said they would like to keep in touch after the event, as they may find our solution useful in a 6 - 8 months or even a year. So even for future customers, we have already built that connection.
Having everyone here in one place is invaluable, as we know they are interested in what we have to offer. It would take a lot of time to meet this number of people usually, with lots of waiting time in between communication too, which is why it is so important for us to attend these events in person. So, attending this event definitely makes the process of gaining new potential customers a lot easier.
We attended the welcome drinks on the first night at Retail CIO Connect, which was a great way to meet everyone in an informal setting. It was important for us to attend the drinks, as we wanted to show our faces before the official day 1 of Retail CIO Connect and have those small initial interactions beforehand. For example, we met two guys at the welcome drinks, which we connected with on LinkedIn there and then. We since spent time with them at the evening drinks as well as the barbecue, which in the end led to us explaining what we do and them wanting to follow up the next day. As we had already built that connection and discussed our business in that casual setting, it made the whole process even smoother.
As for everyone we have met during our 1-1 meetings and outside of those, they have been fantastic in terms of job title and company. Everyone we have spoken to are big names in the IT section of their firms, which you could tell from the quality of conversations we have had. This was exactly what we were after when we decided to sponsor, as it cuts out the middleman and goes straight to the decision maker. There is no waiting around, and they are just as interested in our solutions as we are.
Overall, across the 2 days, we officially had 8 1-1 meetings, but in the end had so many more that were unplanned. All the delegates are here for a reason and are super interested in hearing what our company offers. A lot of people are curious and looking to understand, "why did these guys fly here directly and specifically for this event? What do they have to offer? Why would they fly here if they were not confident about their product and service?", which lead to a lot of good conversations.
It is important for us to gain as much exposure as possible, and Retail CIO Connect has helped us reach our UK audience. Out of the 8 organized meetings we had, at least half of these should lead to good follow ups after the event.
The organization of the event overall has been great. All the concierges have been fantastic, we did not ever need to reach out to them ourselves, they would come to us and ask if everything is okay and if there is anything that we need. All in all, everyone was super, super helpful.
Sponsoring Retail CIO Connect will definitely have a positive impact on our 2022 business goals, in terms of being able to network and build connections here in the UK. We have had the opportunity to meet great people, with great ideas – which has not only benefited us by boosting our recognition, but also will help us grow in the industry from hearing new points of views.
We hope to attend Retail CIO Connect again but are also interested in many of the other retail events that WBR offer. It’s definitely important for us to have a presence at these types of events, as meeting in person goes a much longer way than an email or LinkedIn request. Especially after the pandemic, people want to meet face-to-face, and this is the place to do so.
If you’d like to join as a sponsor at Retail CIO Connect, then get in touch and find out more about how you can get involved.