From Trade Shows to Pharma Events: A Journey Through Healthcare Marketing

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[00:01:11] Hello there and welcome to the Hit Like a Girl podcast.

[00:01:25] My name is Joy Rios.

[00:01:26] I'm the show's host.

[00:01:27] This is a place where we get to talk about how crazy complicated health care is.

[00:01:31] We're all trying to figure it out.

[00:01:33] So I liken it to a puzzle and the puzzle keeps getting bigger and bigger.

[00:01:37] And each one of our guests essentially brings their piece of the puzzle to help us all

[00:01:42] make sense of it.

[00:01:43] So we all have different experiences and things that we can bring and contribute

[00:01:47] to help each other learn and grow and get better.

[00:01:50] I selfishly learn a lot and like to be able to share it all with our listeners.

[00:01:55] So I would like to give you a moment to introduce yourself and tell us about your piece of

[00:02:01] the puzzle.

[00:02:02] Wonderful.

[00:02:03] Well, thank you very much for having me here.

[00:02:05] My name is Paulina Rugg.

[00:02:07] I'm the director of event marketing at Health Gorilla.

[00:02:11] We are a health information network and I've been with the company for about

[00:02:15] two years now.

[00:02:16] I'm originally from Mexico City and I came here back in 2001.

[00:02:21] So I'm loving being here at Health.

[00:02:25] This is my second year.

[00:02:27] Lots of great opportunities networking and just enjoying my time here.

[00:02:33] It is pretty intense, right?

[00:02:35] There's a lot going on and a lot to pay attention to for sure.

[00:02:38] There is.

[00:02:39] It definitely I don't think that there's enough time to be able to do everything

[00:02:43] I wanted to like go ahead and sit in all the different sessions.

[00:02:46] There's like so many really good speakers, but thankfully we're being very busy in our

[00:02:51] booths.

[00:02:52] And it is impossible just to absorb it all.

[00:02:55] There's not enough, literally not enough hours in the day.

[00:02:58] And if you could clone yourself 10 times, you still wouldn't be able to do it all.

[00:03:02] Exactly.

[00:03:03] And even like they record the sessions and all these like you don't have time.

[00:03:07] Yeah, exactly.

[00:03:08] Then you just have to block out your weekend and just be like, OK, I'm going

[00:03:10] to catch up for where I was.

[00:03:11] That's correct.

[00:03:12] I would love to hear more about your journey.

[00:03:14] And of course, selfishly, I want to hear all about from the beginning back from

[00:03:18] Mexico City because I'm just like, OK, what was it like?

[00:03:21] One, growing up and growing up there and then moving to wherever you moved to when

[00:03:27] you moved to the States and then however you got to where you are now.

[00:03:30] I mean, I know that's a lot to cover.

[00:03:31] It's a lot.

[00:03:32] Definitely. I mean, it's like 22 years that you're telling me to go over.

[00:03:36] So where to start?

[00:03:37] I mean, I was born and raised in Mexico City, biggest city in the world or one

[00:03:42] of the biggest cities in the world.

[00:03:45] I was very fortunate to have like a fantastic childhood.

[00:03:49] Love my country.

[00:03:51] It's I don't know if you had like the word.

[00:03:53] I don't know if you had the opportunity to actually go to Mexico City.

[00:03:56] I was there in February.

[00:03:57] Yes. And it was fantastic.

[00:03:58] It's like such a cosmopolitan area.

[00:04:00] So I was very fortunate enough to be born in a place where there's every type

[00:04:05] of food, every type of people and religion.

[00:04:07] And there's so much to offer.

[00:04:10] But my journey really began in the United States in 2001 when my dad was asked

[00:04:16] to move. He used to work for IBM and he was asked to move to the U.S.

[00:04:20] to manage Latin America, like portion of Latin America.

[00:04:24] And it was just like easier to travel for him.

[00:04:26] It was like less expensive, I guess.

[00:04:27] I don't know. And that's really what brought us to the U.S.

[00:04:29] We always have that desire of moving to the United States.

[00:04:34] My dad saw it as an opportunity to have a better lifestyle,

[00:04:38] better opportunity in education, even though that Mexico education is

[00:04:42] really top notch.

[00:04:43] It was just like it was an opportunity to like brother up our careers,

[00:04:47] our minds.

[00:04:49] And once we moved here, I mean, I came with the idea that it was going

[00:04:53] to be like a two year deal.

[00:04:54] We were going to...

[00:04:55] I was going to study here for two years, go back to college over there.

[00:04:59] But once we stayed, came, was like no way back.

[00:05:01] I mean, I lost a lot of my friends and they're on the...

[00:05:04] I mean, I didn't lost them.

[00:05:06] They're still there. I still like...

[00:05:07] My best friends are still living in there and they're like my sisters.

[00:05:11] I have actually my part of my family that is still there and I go back

[00:05:13] and forth and see them.

[00:05:14] But once that I moved here, I did see the world a little bit

[00:05:18] in a different way.

[00:05:19] It was a different lifestyle, a little bit like not as hectic

[00:05:22] and crazy as in Mexico.

[00:05:24] And during the U.S., I mean, it opens up to opportunities around

[00:05:28] the globe.

[00:05:28] So my journey really started.

[00:05:30] I studied hospitality management.

[00:05:32] It was hospitality and tourism management.

[00:05:34] And in there, my career began in the tourism industry.

[00:05:37] I worked for the Mexico Tourism Board for a few years.

[00:05:41] I mean, actually for a year.

[00:05:42] So I was there.

[00:05:43] I was in charge of putting like all their events together

[00:05:46] to promote tourism to Mexico.

[00:05:48] OK.

[00:05:49] And that was such a unique experience.

[00:05:51] That's how I started like in the events part of it.

[00:05:54] Like, I mean, I still do events, but never thinking

[00:05:57] that I will be in health whatsoever.

[00:05:59] I always thought that it was going to be completely different.

[00:06:01] And it was like very several years until I came to health.

[00:06:06] But I was in the tourism industry at the Mexico Tourism Board

[00:06:10] when we had an event at the Convention Center in Miami Beach.

[00:06:14] And I fall in love with trade shows.

[00:06:17] How does that happen?

[00:06:18] You saw a trade show and you're like, I'm in love with this.

[00:06:20] It's just like a lot of information in the same place.

[00:06:22] Was that what it was?

[00:06:23] Just like to see like how many people come from all over the world,

[00:06:27] all with a different goal, but at the same time, like

[00:06:30] they have very same journey, same goal.

[00:06:33] In this case, I mean, the trades are like just very focus oriented.

[00:06:37] So you have in this trade show was like Japan

[00:06:40] and Colombia, and you have like every single country in the world

[00:06:43] that they're trying to promote tourism to their own countries.

[00:06:45] And it was such a great experience just to see

[00:06:49] the different narratives of like how things,

[00:06:52] how to bring people to the booth to really have create excitement

[00:06:56] and create an educational piece to really promote something in return.

[00:07:01] So when I was working at the I mean, when I was at the Convention Center,

[00:07:04] I was like, I think that this is a great opportunity for me

[00:07:07] to really get a better understanding of everything that events have to.

[00:07:10] Because like events is such a vast industry,

[00:07:13] like you have your social events, you have your health events,

[00:07:17] treaches and conventions.

[00:07:18] So I decided to start on that journey.

[00:07:21] I applied for a job there and they hired me like right on the spot pretty much.

[00:07:25] I worked. I was very fortunate because I was actually under a visa.

[00:07:29] OK, yeah.

[00:07:29] So I came here originally with my father with an ill visa

[00:07:34] and that only allowed us to stay here for a certain period of time.

[00:07:38] And I was dependent on my dad.

[00:07:40] What does the L stand for?

[00:07:41] The L stands actually, you know, honestly, I don't know.

[00:07:44] But it is a work visa.

[00:07:46] So only a company from the US

[00:07:50] brings you to the United States to allow you for a certain period of time.

[00:07:54] What the difference is that you are able to apply for a green card.

[00:07:56] That was the whole thing.

[00:07:57] So my dad started applying for the green card.

[00:07:59] But I turned 21.

[00:08:00] And the moment I turned 21, it was like, OK, well, now you're on your own.

[00:08:03] The rules change, right?

[00:08:04] The rules completely change.

[00:08:05] It's like you're on your own.

[00:08:06] Even if your dad had it, it doesn't come back down to you.

[00:08:10] You didn't come back to me.

[00:08:11] So I was like pretty much as you're 21, you're starting college.

[00:08:14] I was like go on your own.

[00:08:16] So I was there.

[00:08:18] I had a student visa.

[00:08:19] And then the moment that I graduated,

[00:08:22] I found this job opportunity that at the convention center

[00:08:25] where they sponsor my visa.

[00:08:27] Oh, that's great.

[00:08:27] So it was fantastic.

[00:08:29] And I worked there for several years.

[00:08:32] I learned a lot of the parts of the industry and events

[00:08:35] and the conventions and the trade shows.

[00:08:36] And it allowed me to see so many different type of events

[00:08:40] from consumers to trade shows and a lot of them in the health industry.

[00:08:44] And I remember one clearly that it really like impacted me.

[00:08:48] And I thought that it was like such an incredible experience.

[00:08:50] And that was like the Academy of Cardiology.

[00:08:54] They have actual hearts like indexed seaview floor,

[00:08:57] just steel like pumping, pumping and then outside of a body,

[00:09:02] and it was just like amazing to see.

[00:09:05] And during that journey, I was like, OK, I have been here for five years.

[00:09:08] Like I really want to do something else.

[00:09:10] I want to try different.

[00:09:12] And I decided to go to the other side of the industry.

[00:09:14] Like we're still in events, but I wanted to be more on the business side.

[00:09:18] So in the pharmaceutical with Anda, which was a pharmaceutical distribution company,

[00:09:22] we distribute product to generic pharmacies or brand pharmacies,

[00:09:28] independent pharmacies.

[00:09:30] So like more on the corporate side, like your Walgreens, your CVS and all of these.

[00:09:34] Then you have your independent pharmacies, your mom and pops.

[00:09:37] You have your hospital pharmacies.

[00:09:39] So we went to different type of events depending on the market that we were serving.

[00:09:43] And I was there for five years.

[00:09:45] I'm curious about OK, so let me ask you some things.

[00:09:47] One about the event part and the convention center.

[00:09:50] I'm like, if you are in I have just we've been to a lot of convention centers.

[00:09:55] So the prep for getting all of these boots set up.

[00:10:00] And like it's a whole industry in and of itself, just like booth makers.

[00:10:05] Oh, it is crazy.

[00:10:07] I mean, it's the whole industry, right?

[00:10:08] Like the reason why the conventions are centers are there is what is the whole reason.

[00:10:12] Yeah. That's what I always say is like it's to create jobs.

[00:10:14] And the beautiful thing about like these events is like the amount of money

[00:10:20] revenue generating for a whole city brings.

[00:10:24] So what comes from these events?

[00:10:27] It's massive. I mean, for us to

[00:10:30] like right now, I'm talking about health care, like to come to the event is

[00:10:34] it starts from like putting a strategy together to then what is it that

[00:10:38] how are you going to achieve those goals?

[00:10:40] Yeah. And then like bringing like our partners to really have like that vision

[00:10:44] and put it into paper and then put it into OK, this is going to be

[00:10:48] our boots done like what is going to be our footprint and what is it

[00:10:52] that we're going to be doing in all of these sections?

[00:10:54] And it's the amount of preparation that takes.

[00:10:57] It's it seems so simple.

[00:10:59] But it's not. No, it's very complicated.

[00:11:02] And not because this isn't the only event that you do.

[00:11:04] Right. So how many events do you are you guys part of per year?

[00:11:09] So you really depends on like we felt like we have about 20 events

[00:11:14] that we either participate or exhibit.

[00:11:16] We have like four large events like the Hiems five HLTH.

[00:11:20] But already that's more than one a month.

[00:11:22] Right. That's like two a month almost.

[00:11:24] So we do like exactly.

[00:11:25] Then the other ones are like on the smaller scale.

[00:11:27] Some of them we attend, but there's still a whole preparation

[00:11:30] to just to attend to make sure that we are sending like the right

[00:11:32] messaging, the right people.

[00:11:34] We are not just going there to just attend and just like walk the floor.

[00:11:38] It's really like being strategic because otherwise they they're not meaningful.

[00:11:41] Yeah, I know. It needs to be purposeful and you're in

[00:11:44] and have a solid strategy of like who is going to be there?

[00:11:48] What conversations do you want to have?

[00:11:50] What goals do you have to get out of that event?

[00:11:52] And I'm sure that is different based on the topic of the convention itself.

[00:11:57] Absolutely. So just as an example, like right now, like for HLTH,

[00:12:02] we are here and we're starting to prep for next year.

[00:12:05] Like we're here. It's like, OK, what's working?

[00:12:06] What's not working? What are we going to do?

[00:12:07] Let's start thinking about it.

[00:12:09] We're going to be doing like for our next event to see what makes sense.

[00:12:13] So it's also like one of the beautiful things about it.

[00:12:16] And I want to see events is that it's a channel between all

[00:12:19] the different departments within our organization.

[00:12:21] We have like to have a very cohesive relationship

[00:12:24] and understanding of our common goals are in order to bring them together

[00:12:30] and decide what are going to be like our goals and objectives

[00:12:33] for each particular event and how we are going to all work together

[00:12:37] towards that same goal.

[00:12:38] And we're going to be like our campaigns,

[00:12:42] what it's going to be like, how it's going to work out

[00:12:44] to make sure that is going to be successful.

[00:12:46] So you are a person that I could probably ask this random logistics

[00:12:49] questions like how often are boots reused?

[00:12:51] That's a good question. It really depends.

[00:12:53] I mean, we actually have like our own booth that we purchased

[00:12:58] not so long ago. We actually just used it for the first time at Hems.

[00:13:01] And we went through a whole process of like, is it more coming into rent?

[00:13:05] Is it more coming into own?

[00:13:06] Because renting the easier thing with like renting it

[00:13:10] is that you use it once you can get like move on.

[00:13:13] Yeah, still expensive.

[00:13:14] Now, if you know that you're going to be using the thing over and over,

[00:13:18] it might be better.

[00:13:19] Like if you got to kind of have like using like

[00:13:21] the same footprint for several years,

[00:13:24] your investment is going to be better worth.

[00:13:26] Yeah. If you have like that single one.

[00:13:29] But so much goes into that decision.

[00:13:31] It does. So we have to go to our fees.

[00:13:33] We have to have like, again,

[00:13:35] our vision cannot just be like our vision for the next six months.

[00:13:38] But what is going to be like our vision for the next five years?

[00:13:40] What kind of events we're going to be attending?

[00:13:43] In our case, we decided to purchase like a large space

[00:13:46] that could be divided into different sections.

[00:13:49] So it's like a puzzle.

[00:13:51] Yeah. So it gets like we can use it for either a configuration of a 20 by 20

[00:13:56] or we can use it for a master, like a 50 by 40 square feet.

[00:13:59] So that's the beauty of it, because otherwise

[00:14:03] buying like these massive things and just using it for one to do

[00:14:07] is not a good investment.

[00:14:09] We know, but there are so many things of like, OK,

[00:14:10] how many meetings do you want to have?

[00:14:12] How quiet do you want those meetings?

[00:14:13] Are you doing demonstrations?

[00:14:15] Are you going to have a theater?

[00:14:16] Exactly. Some of them are two stories when they get really

[00:14:20] on the bigger side of things.

[00:14:22] And depending on the event itself, like the footprint, like you said,

[00:14:26] that all of that, I'm sure that it's not cookie cutter.

[00:14:29] It cannot be cookie cutter.

[00:14:30] It's not.

[00:14:31] So like in this case for this event, like we we start planning

[00:14:35] probably like heavily, like really involved, like about six months ago

[00:14:39] where we decided, OK, we want to have like in-boot sessions.

[00:14:42] What kind of in-boot sessions?

[00:14:43] And I have to be very close with our communications team

[00:14:46] to decide what is it that we're going to market?

[00:14:48] What is it that we either we are putting like more educational content?

[00:14:52] Is it going to be more salesy?

[00:14:54] Do we want to invite our partners or we want to invite some of our customers?

[00:14:57] We did a mix of everything, right?

[00:14:59] Like we try to keep like entertaining.

[00:15:01] We want to use that content that we put there, like not just for the event,

[00:15:04] but we can also like repurpose it.

[00:15:06] So we made that decision ahead of time in order to be able

[00:15:09] to build the booth around to have like that space specifically for that.

[00:15:15] And then it's like, OK, how many salespeople are we going to be bringing?

[00:15:17] Who are going to be bringing from that?

[00:15:19] We also very data driven.

[00:15:21] Yes. So in our case, we utilize the tools that help us measure

[00:15:27] everything that is happening at the event.

[00:15:29] So coming back from the event, we'll be measuring all of that

[00:15:32] for the next six months, sometimes up to a year.

[00:15:34] Wow, really? Yes.

[00:15:36] So what types of things do you mind?

[00:15:37] What types of things do you measure?

[00:15:38] So we are very targeted on our numerical.

[00:15:42] How many meetings happened at the event on the sales side,

[00:15:47] from the leads that we collected, what actually became actionable,

[00:15:51] how many meetings translated into sales.

[00:15:53] Right. And that takes like a sales cycle.

[00:15:56] And it really depends on the type of market that we have.

[00:15:58] Like sometimes it takes three months, sometimes it could be a year or even more.

[00:16:01] So depending on the event that we go or like that.

[00:16:04] And these events are tough because we are hitting a lot of different markets.

[00:16:09] So it's not like we can just say like three months and that's it.

[00:16:12] So we are measuring that.

[00:16:14] We're also like measuring like on our current customers, like we can do upselling.

[00:16:18] So we're looking at that.

[00:16:19] We are measuring our own staff.

[00:16:21] Like how are they doing?

[00:16:23] Are they being productive?

[00:16:24] Are they following up?

[00:16:25] Are they meeting with the times?

[00:16:26] So I think we have a certain amount of pre-skilling meetings.

[00:16:29] We try to be ahead of the game.

[00:16:32] So we start like doing our outreach probably like about a month ahead,

[00:16:35] two months ahead, trying to promote the event.

[00:16:38] And we have like our amazing SDR team, which is part of the marketing team,

[00:16:43] that they start reaching out to the attendees way ahead of the event,

[00:16:47] trying to promote and to get those meetings in place.

[00:16:50] So we're starting to like say like, OK, do they actually come to the event?

[00:16:54] Can we reschedule them if they didn't come?

[00:16:57] And then once they start, like it's just like beginning on that cycle.

[00:17:00] Well, the other part.

[00:17:01] OK, so here's my other questions around attracting people.

[00:17:04] Right. So of course, if you have sessions that are in public

[00:17:08] and you have an audio visual and people can come by and sit that, that makes sense.

[00:17:11] But I've seen some, and especially in Vegas, where people are like,

[00:17:14] oh, we have a magician or we have like the things that will attract somebody there

[00:17:19] and also what you decide to distribute and give away

[00:17:22] like the either collateral versus like swag or gifts.

[00:17:27] Right. And so are you part of those conversations?

[00:17:30] Are you part of those decisions?

[00:17:32] Yes, we're like all these decisions.

[00:17:33] So it's like I do.

[00:17:34] I'm like the one that makes like the final decision pretty much

[00:17:37] on a lot of these things.

[00:17:38] So he's looking into like and also like thinking, right?

[00:17:41] Like if the type of things that we're going to be giving,

[00:17:43] like people have to take it back. Right.

[00:17:45] Do we want to give like this massive thing or do we want to just be also

[00:17:49] more friendly approach, I would say, like something that they kind of easily

[00:17:53] transport and that is going to be meaningful.

[00:17:55] They're not going to get there.

[00:17:56] Like I love coming to these convention centers like and these conventions.

[00:17:59] And we come back with like so many like really good like gadgets.

[00:18:03] And like I give it to my kids or I give it to my husband and all that.

[00:18:06] But a lot of times I come back and I'm like, why?

[00:18:08] Yeah. And you're just going to throw it out.

[00:18:10] And I feel that we're polluting the world.

[00:18:12] And it's just like, why?

[00:18:14] So it's like we try to be very mindful of the things that we are giving

[00:18:18] to make it attractive and then also like being a little bit like playful.

[00:18:22] I think about that a lot as I'm going through the halls.

[00:18:25] I'm like, OK, well, what?

[00:18:26] And also with my own stuff, right?

[00:18:28] If I'm creating anything, I'm like, what I don't want to do is

[00:18:31] put all this effort into creating trash. Right.

[00:18:34] Essentially, like somebody is going to hold it.

[00:18:35] That's cool. And then throw it away.

[00:18:37] Like, well, that feels like a big waste of money. Yes.

[00:18:39] And the same like I mean, that in and of itself.

[00:18:42] Like going back to the polluting area and I just like probably not

[00:18:45] the topic to be here.

[00:18:47] But I do think that it's like it's very important because like when I'm

[00:18:50] putting this like when going back to your question about like the rentals

[00:18:53] and like the owning a lot of these boots are not going to be reduced again.

[00:18:58] It's just like it pollutes like the conventions, like they pollute so much.

[00:19:01] So I've been very mindful as well on that is like, OK,

[00:19:04] let's try to minimize like the collateral pieces like this go digital

[00:19:08] like the carpet. Let's reuse it.

[00:19:10] Let's not go in a white color because the white is going to get trashed.

[00:19:13] So I was thinking the same thing, like even the signage of any of these things.

[00:19:17] Right. Like how much of it actually has an opportunity to get reused?

[00:19:20] A lot of times it doesn't.

[00:19:22] It doesn't. A messaging change.

[00:19:23] So it's just like even if I want to try it,

[00:19:27] then our team decides like, no, we're no longer going to do this message

[00:19:31] for next time. Like, oh, it hurts.

[00:19:32] I know it does.

[00:19:33] One of the things that I noticed in this particular convention

[00:19:36] is that they do a little bit more digital advertising

[00:19:40] so that that way you can just use screens and then you can update the screen.

[00:19:43] Absolutely.

[00:19:44] There we go. So much better.

[00:19:45] We're in a digital world now.

[00:19:46] Yeah, exactly.

[00:19:47] Digital convention.

[00:19:48] And of course, with like QR codes for everything, like help people.

[00:19:52] Even business cards.

[00:19:53] Yeah.

[00:19:53] I'm trying to start like not doing business cards.

[00:19:55] I mean, I know that now we have the lab, but still some people want to.

[00:19:58] And it's like, OK, well, we have like a QR code that we just like

[00:20:02] not have like multiple.

[00:20:03] One of my favorite networking tricks is showing people how to do this scan,

[00:20:06] scan the QR code for LinkedIn.

[00:20:08] And you're just like, look, we're already connected.

[00:20:10] Scan it and the business.

[00:20:11] It's cool when people have business cards.

[00:20:13] But again, what do you do with it?

[00:20:15] You're going to end up transferring that information and then throwing it away.

[00:20:19] Yes.

[00:20:20] Oh, I'm talking about like that.

[00:20:21] We have like our own lead retrieval system.

[00:20:23] So like that sounds like one of the things that I actually work with.

[00:20:26] The way that we measure our success is like our lead retrieval system

[00:20:30] connects to our CRM platform.

[00:20:33] So everything gets integrated like right away.

[00:20:35] So we have like a whole system.

[00:20:36] Tell me more about that.

[00:20:37] So I love the system.

[00:20:39] We have a great partner that it integrates with mostly like all the different

[00:20:43] lead retrievals that exist out there.

[00:20:45] So it is based on an API with that system.

[00:20:50] It connects to the event organizer lead retrieval system.

[00:20:53] So rather than me using like HLTHS app, I have my own one that I can then build.

[00:20:59] It's not just the contact information that I collect.

[00:21:01] I can do like a whole workflow behind it.

[00:21:04] So depending if it's a sales prospect, like a prospect that is going to be for sales

[00:21:08] or if it's a current customer, if it's going to be like for a strategy team,

[00:21:12] there's a different set of questions that we put that we build

[00:21:15] that we can have like meaningful conversations.

[00:21:17] So we're meeting like with hundreds of people that we're meeting.

[00:21:20] It's really tough to just keep up with all of these sessions.

[00:21:23] So it actually has like a really nice voice to text tool

[00:21:26] that you can actually just speak to it.

[00:21:28] It puts all your notes there and then automatically sends it to our CRM system.

[00:21:33] Yeah.

[00:21:33] So then our sales team can really follow up in a quicker and more fashionable way.

[00:21:37] I mean, that's absolutely and you guys are such a data rich company.

[00:21:40] So it makes sense that you would have something like that.

[00:21:42] I swear. One thing I struggle with them like I don't have that sophisticated

[00:21:46] of a system to keep track of everybody.

[00:21:48] And then I don't have an encyclopedic memory either. Correct.

[00:21:53] So being able to like not like being able to recall all that information

[00:21:57] that you get, you know, that comes your way, especially at an event like this.

[00:22:00] I mean, it's like a flood of information.

[00:22:02] So to be able to make sense of it is it is very challenging.

[00:22:06] I don't understand like back in the day how they used to do it.

[00:22:08] Like you'll come and you'll have like a piece of paper on business cards

[00:22:11] and you'll come with your stack of business cards.

[00:22:14] I'm like, that was crazy.

[00:22:15] How do people do it? Yeah, I know.

[00:22:17] So OK, so this has been fantastic just as far as like

[00:22:20] learning the event side of things.

[00:22:22] Are there any other things that you think other people should know

[00:22:25] about what goes into events that I'm not even asking about?

[00:22:28] Because I'm like, this is a huge part of health care.

[00:22:30] A lot of health care happens and conversations and meetings

[00:22:34] and connections happen at these types of events.

[00:22:37] I mean, first of all, I find them that they're so valuable, right?

[00:22:40] I feel that COVID like really put like an assessment

[00:22:42] of how incredible value these events are.

[00:22:45] Like they tried to go to virtual and it's just it's not the same.

[00:22:48] That connection that happens like on the show floor

[00:22:51] where you're like, it's just it's exceptional.

[00:22:54] I know. But my like I have had some my own criticism

[00:22:58] where like it's not a matter of whether this is all needed.

[00:23:00] And like how much actually happens here?

[00:23:03] We're having a ton of conversations and people meet.

[00:23:05] And all of these things are really great.

[00:23:07] But when it comes to the problems we're trying to solve in health care

[00:23:11] specifically and trying to support patients and outcomes,

[00:23:14] they're like a lot of times to the point of what we're talking about,

[00:23:17] like, is this the best use of our money and what we're spending it on?

[00:23:20] You're like, oh, if you spent five thousand dollars on coffee

[00:23:24] when it could have gone to, I don't know, a patient program

[00:23:27] that supported them somewhere.

[00:23:29] But like it's really hard to make that balance, both and are important.

[00:23:32] And I don't know.

[00:23:34] And you're like, it's worth the investment, essentially.

[00:23:37] And that's why we are very data driven.

[00:23:40] Because events are very hard to to see the ROI.

[00:23:44] It's a very gray area that if you don't do it the right way,

[00:23:47] you really don't know if you're getting like your return on investment.

[00:23:50] And I think that back a few years ago, it was like even harder.

[00:23:54] I do think that with technology, it has advanced to just say like, OK,

[00:23:58] we went to this event.

[00:23:59] This is the amount of money that we spent.

[00:24:01] But this is the amount of sales that we got.

[00:24:03] These are the amount of opportunities.

[00:24:04] And it's not just about how many sales you got,

[00:24:08] but it's like how many brand impressions they use,

[00:24:10] how many times did we repurpose our content?

[00:24:12] Like that goes a long way.

[00:24:13] Like how much like how many partnerships did we build?

[00:24:17] So it's like those connections cannot be replicated

[00:24:19] like in a different type of setup.

[00:24:20] I really don't think so.

[00:24:22] The other thing is that like sending like the connections,

[00:24:25] like in a Zoom meeting, it's not going to be the same.

[00:24:27] And sending people to like the other side of the country,

[00:24:31] you're not going to send like all your sales team.

[00:24:32] It's like these are like really good opportunities

[00:24:35] where you can have like the right people meet the right people.

[00:24:39] I love that.

[00:24:40] So I find these events being extremely important for the industry.

[00:24:45] This is where bright minds come together

[00:24:49] to try to come with solutions to make a better world.

[00:24:53] And in this case, like health is such an important part of our society.

[00:24:58] I think that we all want to be better, expand the life, the lifespan.

[00:25:04] And I just find it fascinating, like what we're doing here

[00:25:07] to try to get into a better place.

[00:25:10] I mean, something came across my feed recently that is like,

[00:25:13] no, not only will we live longer, which is great,

[00:25:15] but we want to be healthier.

[00:25:17] Absolutely. I don't want to be mighty, but I'm like,

[00:25:19] yeah, you know, with a terrible health and I'm not able to walk.

[00:25:22] Exactly. What's the whole point?

[00:25:23] Yeah, no thank you.

[00:25:24] We want to have like a healthy lifestyle.

[00:25:26] Yeah. One of the things that I was like actually very fascinated

[00:25:28] about, like on the sessions that I was like looking is how

[00:25:31] like these technologies now allowing us to be proactive

[00:25:35] and get ahead of the game.

[00:25:37] It's like it's not just, oh, I have diabetes.

[00:25:41] How can I get my life better?

[00:25:42] It's like, but how can I prevent it?

[00:25:44] Yeah, that's one of the biggest things.

[00:25:46] How can we not get sick in the first place instead of have to

[00:25:50] deal with all the aftermath?

[00:25:51] Correct. We do.

[00:25:52] It's lovely to hear your passion about the events and thank you

[00:25:55] for sharing everything that you know, because I feel like I've learned a lot.

[00:25:58] And this has been given me an opportunity to ask a bunch

[00:26:00] of questions that I've had about it because I've been to a million of events.

[00:26:04] I mean, as have you, but I mean,

[00:26:07] I have never really had an opportunity to sit with somebody.

[00:26:09] The whole event marketing, I mean, just like, again,

[00:26:11] like you see events and it's like, oh, it's just another event.

[00:26:14] It's just so convoluted.

[00:26:15] Yeah, it's a lot.

[00:26:16] So thank you for making some sense out of it.

[00:26:19] I really appreciate your contribution, Paulina.

[00:26:21] Well, thank you so much for having this been a lot of fun.

[00:26:24] If people want to follow you, connect with you, work with you,

[00:26:27] plan an event with you, where would you direct them?

[00:26:30] I will say LinkedIn.

[00:26:31] I should know my LinkedIn profile, but I honestly I'll have to actually look for it.

[00:26:37] That's OK. What's your first name and last name?

[00:26:39] So you can look for me at Paulina Ragh.

[00:26:42] And that is P-A-U-L-I-N-A Ragh R-U-G-G.

[00:26:46] Gotcha. All right.

[00:26:47] We will include that in the show notes.

[00:26:49] Thank you so much for being here.

[00:26:52] Thanks for listening.

[00:26:53] You can learn more about us or this guest by going to our website

[00:26:56] or visiting us on any of the socials with the handle hit like a girl pod.

[00:27:00] Thanks again. See you soon.

[00:27:02] Again, thank you so much for listening to the hit like a girl podcast.

[00:27:06] I am truly grateful for you, and I'm wondering if you could do me a quick favor.

[00:27:10] Would you be willing to follow or subscribe to this podcast or maybe leave us

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[00:27:21] All those things help us podcasters out so much.

[00:27:24] I'm the show's host, Joy Rios, and I'll see you next time.