RBI Marketing Meeting 2018

March 2018

Russell Bedford’s first ever meeting dedicated solely to marketing took place in Amsterdam on 9 March 2018, at The Sheraton Amsterdam Airport Hotel & Conference Center.

After a welcome and introductions from each member firm present, Russell Bedford CEO, Stephen Hamlet, gave delegates an update on network developments, which included a first look at Russell Bedford’s new web design and revamped branding.

Leading the keynote sessions, guest speaker and founder of The Upward Spiral Partnership, Martin Bissett, kicked off the meeting with a session on ‘Marketing Magnetism’. Applying his experience acquired during his 20-year career of working with accountants, Martin shared his expertise for developing the structure of his ‘Proven Marketing Strategy’.

After a buffet lunch, delegates worked together in teams on building their own marketing   strategy putting into practise what they had learned. The workshop was followed by Martin’s top 10 tips for ‘Mobilising Marketing momentum’ and then, conclusions and Q&A.

Finally, Stephen Hamlet closed the conference with a useful session on how members can use RBI to enhance each individual firm’s marketing practices.

Delegates had an opportunity to meet and get to know each other the night before the conference over dinner and drinks at a very atmospheric restaurant in the heart of Amsterdam, overlooking the city’s picturesque canals.

A post meeting survey revealed that almost all attendees cited ‘meeting with their peers to share marketing challenges and ideas’ as one of the main benefits of the meeting which makes running these meeting so worthwhile. Russell Bedford aims to run future marketing meetings for members and create dedicated marketing group calls throughout the year to bounce ideas off each other and collaborate on various projects.

Commenting on the meeting, Stephen Hamlet said: “As our first attempt at running a meeting exclusively on the subject of marketing, I have to say that I was delighted at how well it was received, with the enthusiasm our delegates expressed for this type of meeting, and the energy present throughout the entire day. It is fantastic to see so many of our members embrace new marketing practices and ideas, from all four of our regions around the world, and I’m encouraged to know that individual firms are so keen to adopt Russell Bedford branding in support of their own marketing activity. This brings benefits to the practices of individual firms in addition to the network as a whole.”