Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tom Bercu. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Tom, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.
Todays marketing budgets skew a lot to “influencers” and budgets are being reduced or reappropriated towards that marketing angle. In my opinion, while the rise of social media has indeed given more importance and impact to this way of marketing – I feel that there is nothing like a live experience to drive sales and loyalty towards a product. Events are the only way that consumers can see and touch and hear and smell and even “feel” a product, And giving someone an experience (preferably a good one!) is the surest way to have them remember a product. I tell all of my non-profits this as well. For auctions – its experiences that sell the best. People are always going to remember they way you made them feel…
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Tom Bercu Presents has far more to offer than just your ordinary event company. We pride ourselves in partnering with clients to deliver creative live events that are powerful and pack the WOW our clients demand and we are proud to produce. We are connoisseurs in our craft – just peruse the expertise of our team at www.tombercupresents.com, and you will see the creative solutions we have produced for some of our clients.
As you get to know us, you will find that we are a collaborative production team. We work with our clients to deliver powerful live experiences that speak to their target audience, and make their customers fall in love with their brand.. But then again, isn’t that what everyone says? Maybe so, but our record of success speaks for itself.
We’ve been producing award-winning experiences since 2000 for some of the world’s top Fortune 500 companies in addition to a diverse set of corporate and non-profit clients. We are proud of the work we have done, the money we have helped raise, and the positive impact our events have had on peoples lives.
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
I had just graduated college and went into the commercial real estate business – finding locations and development opportunities for chain store retailers. The money was good for a guy in his 20’s, but the work was soulless. So, in my free time, I volunteered my time to work on charity events – not realizing that there was a strong business model behind it. As I worked more events, and met more people, I began to branch out doing free-lance production for corporate event companies – and I found that I loved it. My Father was a bit skeptical about what sort of living could be made “throwing parties”, but in due time I learned that there was more to the event business than just parties. There is a strong marketing / PR / branding side to the industry. There is a strong cause related side to the industry. And the business model that I was able to create was a mix of helping smaller companies grow through marketing events; helping non-profits raise money and awareness through cause related events, and working with larger companies on some really fun parties! I love what I do, and because of that, I work hard at it. I feel like what I do makes a difference to people. The moral of my story – if you have a passion – follow it. And because its your passion, you will be successful!
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
My clientele is all word of mouth / referrals. I spend a lot of time with my clients – forging friendships beyond the workplace… Taking an interest in their well-being and their lives. Being present. And giving them the assurance that I am in it for the long term relationship.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.tombercupresents.com
Image Credits
Etienne Lartigau Photography