Scores of B2B companies that rely on conferences to promote products and networking transformed their in-person events into virtual ones this past year. But the pandemic wasn’t the only factor to throw a wrench in marketers’ plans.

The night before its 2020 virtual event kicked off on June 2, as protests across the U.S. in support of racial justice reached a fever pitch, Cisco opted to postpone its conference for two weeks in support of Black Lives Matter.

For this month’s Brands on Fire feature, we look at Cisco’s decision to postpone the show, how it converted its five-day, 1,000-session conference into a virtual gathering and the strategies employed to build a successful program, engage attendees and leverage social media in an all-virtual setting.

Fitness brands—particularly those tied to a brick and mortar location—are another category that has gotten creative with marketing member services during lockdown. Here is how Blink Fitness weathered the pandemic with community engagement, new wellness services and in-app personalization.

On the cause marketing front, Tazo Tea is getting behind “tree equity,” or the ability for people in every community to receive the benefits that trees provide, regardless of income, race or location. Since not all neighborhoods enjoy these benefits equally, the brand created the Tazo Tree Corp, a tree-planting workforce dedicated to planting and maintaining green spaces in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities of color. Read about the Corp’s formation and inspiration here.

Lastly, we look at how brands can evaluate new social media platforms. Because your organization’s marketing goals, bandwidth, audience and budget should align with that shiny new object before diving in.

Until next week,

Kaylee Hultgren
Group Content Manager
Chief Marketer