Brandtoberfest is officially 15 days away. On Friday, September 25, BPM is taking over Green Bay Distillery from 1:00 to 6:00 PM for an afternoon focused on better branding, fresh marketing ideas, professional visibility, supplier access and plenty of reasons to get out of the office for a few hours.
If Brandtoberfest has been sitting on your calendar as a “maybe,” now is the time to turn that into a yes. The event is designed to give local business professionals a chance to meet new people, explore premium promotional merchandise, talk directly with suppliers and leave with ideas they can actually use. We will also have free professional headshots available, along with food, drinks, music, swag and plenty of opportunities to learn from other people in the room.
With only 15 days to go, there is still time to register, invite a coworker and make an afternoon of it.
Invest in Your Personal Brand
Companies spend a lot of time thinking about how their brand looks and sounds. Logos get refined, websites get updated and campaigns get reviewed down to the last detail. Your own professional presence deserves some attention too.
Whether you own a business, work in sales, lead a team or represent your company in the community, people often form an impression of you before they ever become familiar with your organization. Your LinkedIn profile, professional photo, industry relationships and visibility at local events all contribute to how you are perceived.
Brandtoberfest gives you a reason to invest a few hours in that side of your professional life. You can meet people outside your normal circle, catch up with familiar faces and introduce yourself to other local professionals who may become valuable contacts later. Those conversations may lead to future partnerships, referrals, vendor relationships or simply a broader network of people who understand what you do and where your expertise fits.
The atmosphere is intentionally relaxed, which makes those interactions easier. You do not need a rehearsed pitch or a stack of business cards ready to go. Walk around, ask questions, compare ideas and see where the afternoon takes you.
Get a Free Professional Headshot
While you are there, you can also update the picture that goes along with your professional presence.
We will have free professional headshots available during Brandtoberfest, giving attendees an easy way to refresh their LinkedIn profile, company bio, email signature or other professional materials.
A current headshot can make a noticeable difference, especially if the photo you are using now is several years old or was cropped from something that was never intended to be a professional photo in the first place. Normally, getting a new one means finding a photographer, booking time and adding another appointment to the schedule. At Brandtoberfest, you can take care of it while you are already spending the afternoon meeting people and exploring new ideas.
Since the event is only 15 days away, consider this your reminder to wear something you would not mind seeing on LinkedIn for the next few years.
Find Marketing Ideas You Can Put to Work
Brandtoberfest is also built to help attendees discover marketing ideas that feel practical, relevant and useful.
Sometimes the best ideas come from stepping outside the normal routine and seeing what other companies, suppliers and professionals are doing. Promotional merchandise is a perfect example. It is easy to keep ordering the same products because they are familiar, but there are far more options available than most businesses ever see.
At Brandtoberfest, suppliers will be onsite with premium apparel, drinkware, technology, gifts and other branded merchandise that can spark ideas for customer appreciation, employee programs, recruiting, events and sales outreach. Being able to see and handle these products in person makes a big difference. You can compare quality, ask questions and get a better sense of whether an item actually fits your brand before committing to it.
The value goes beyond finding a product you like. A conversation with a supplier might lead to a better idea for an upcoming event. Seeing how another business approaches employee recognition might inspire a new internal campaign. Talking with someone from another industry may help you look at your own marketing from a different angle.
The goal is to leave with more than a bag of swag. We want attendees to head back to work with ideas worth discussing.
Talk Directly With the People Behind the Products
One of the biggest benefits of Brandtoberfest is direct access to suppliers who know promotional merchandise inside and out.
Online catalogs are useful, but they can only tell you so much. Talking directly with suppliers gives you the chance to ask which products are trending, what decoration methods work best, how different apparel brands fit and what options make sense for a specific audience or budget.
Those conversations can save time later, especially when you have an event, employee program or customer campaign coming up. Instead of starting from scratch, you may already have several ideas in mind and a better understanding of what is possible.
Suppliers can also introduce you to products you would probably never think to search for on your own. That is often where the most interesting ideas begin.
A Better Way to Spend a Friday Afternoon
Brandtoberfest is meant to feel useful without feeling overly formal. You can browse merchandise, talk with suppliers, meet other local professionals, get a headshot and spend some time thinking about your own marketing in a different environment.
Bring a coworker and you may each notice something different. Someone from HR may spot a strong employee gift idea while someone in sales sees a customer giveaway opportunity. A marketing team member may find inspiration for an event or campaign that had been stuck in the planning stage.
That mix of perspectives is part of what makes an event like this worthwhile. Sometimes a good idea only needs the right room to get moving.
And with Brandtoberfest only 15 days away, there is still enough time to get your team on board and block off the afternoon.
15 Days Will Go Fast
September has a way of disappearing quickly, and Friday, September 25, will be here sooner than it sounds.
If you have been considering Brandtoberfest, get registered now and put it on the calendar. Join BPM at Green Bay Distillery from 1:00 to 6:00 PM and spend the afternoon strengthening your professional presence, meeting other local business professionals, talking directly with suppliers and finding marketing ideas you can take back to your organization.
You can also expect free professional headshots, premium promotional merchandise, food, drinks, music and swag throughout the afternoon.
Brandtoberfest is 15 days away. Get registered, bring a coworker and leave with fresh ideas you can put to work.
