A Review of 2021!

A Review of 2021!

We are almost through 2021—almost a Deja-vu of 2020. It was another tumultuous year, but as always, I am looking for the silver lining. And yes, there were some. It is through these silver linings that I see how 2022 will look and I will discuss that in next week’s TMC.

What and where are the silver linings from 2021? Here are a few of the top good experiences from the year that is almost passed.

  • We got vaccines. We are working toward “herd” numbers for vaccines to really take effect for the good of all versus just the individual. We are still not at those needed numbers and there are many small pockets of issues in every province, but overall, we inch forward. From this, we get the return to events and activities, schools, and such. Vaccines have brought us the return to live experiences. I attended a live face-to-face conference last month. It was cool—it had been over two years since I had done that! We can watch our kids play in gyms and arenas, which means sponsors are getting “eyeballs” again at the local and amateur levels. Fans are back in the seats at professional sports. I can travel for business (and non-essential purposes)! We still have a long way to go, but 2021 brought us closer to, versus farther from normal.
  • We continued to deepen relationships (well, at least the successful organizations did). We went further in relationships in 2021 than ever before. Perhaps because that was necessary and all we could do as, for the most part, events had not returned, and we had to salvage programs and partnerships. But what we learned in 2020 about the need for deeper relationships did not flit away—it has stayed the course and hopefully will continue to be a positive ongoing outcome of COVID. The deeper the relationships with our partners, the better the outcomes for all stakeholders.
  • Digital marketing has continued to develop, and today, we are better users (both as marketers and consumers) of digital than in 2020 when we were thrust into it, and tried to wade our way through understanding and figuring it out. (Like it was truly something new when it had been around for eons, but we really did not pay enough attention to it!) For many organizations, going digital in a big way (for tracking, activations, learning, etc.) has been on the radar for five to ten years, but never made the budget cut. It was engaged in 2020 (but remember those budgets were already planned, so it was not digital planning but rather digital reaction), but 2021 brought planning and measured results with digital. This has been a huge blessing. We are getting where we need to be in the digital world in relation to sponsorship and 2021 took us there in a big way.
  • 2021 brought better productivity for the home office. The reality set in as many organizations are still not back “in office” or in-office daily. A return to the office did not happen in 2021 as many expected. This has meant further establishment of options for the future. After what will soon be two years of staff working remotely, more companies are coming to the realization that work can be done effectively and efficiently from places other than the four traditional downtown office walls. This has caused many sponsorship-oriented organizations to learn how to truly do digital and virtual events, and general day-to-day business differently. Sure, we miss the face-to-face interaction at the water cooler, and that will have to return in some way, but we have grown to enjoy working from the cottage, beach, or ski hill while delivering on expectations in an effective and timely manner. We need to truly move forward with successful work/life integration.

I believe 2020 opened our eyes to new ways of thinking, new opportunities, and a glimpse into the future. 2021 has allowed us to nurture those learnings, adapt them, and put them into practice, even if it is just a start and not fully accomplished. But 2021 has allowed us to be part of the future, today! As Kapil Tetarwal said, “The choices we make today create the future that we are dreaming of.”

Farewell to 2021 and thank you for what you have given us these last 12 months. I hope we all can take these silver linings and build on them.

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