TCC Podcast #176: Behind the Scenes at TCCIRL with Elaine Wellman

Special Midweek Bonus Episode. TCCIRL is just around the corner, so we invited Event Strategist, Elaine Wellman, to join us for the 176th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast. When we first published the podcast, we regularly posted two episodes a week. Now that's a rarity... thanks to the behind the scenes info that Elaine shares about TCCIRL, we didn't want to wait to publish this on.  We talked to Elaine about: •  the path she followed from public relations to coaching to event management •  how she landed her first solo event project and launched her business •  the mindset shifts needed to recognize when business isn’t working •  when you need to “go with the flow” at events and when you shouldn’t •  the different ways you can approach events (it doesn’t have to be big) •  doing the things in your business that others won’t do because they’re hard •  the truth about The Copywriter Club In Real Life •  the extra things that are truly unique about TCCIRL •  the stuff Elaine thinks we should be doing differently •  the difference between a great event and one that underwhelms •  how to get the right people to attend an event •  how to handle the stress of hosting or attending an event •  when you need to consider getting an event coordinator to help •  how to know whether the event coordinator you’re considering is the right one •  the food that VIP ticket holders will get to “experience” This one is a fun behind-the-scenes discussion of the planning of TCCIRL and the importance of events—you won't want to miss it. Click the play button below, or scroll down for a full transcript. Or subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher so you never miss an episode.   The people and stuff we mentioned on the show: TCCIRL Copywriting Event Prerna Malik Publicis Why Events are Rocket Fuel for Your Business The Event Planning PDF The Event Retreat Leaders Lounge Elaine’s website Kira’s website Rob’s website The Copywriter Club Facebook Group The Copywriter Underground   Full Transcript: Rob:   This episode is brought to you by The Copywriter Club In Real Life, our live event in San Diego, March 12th through 14th. Get your tickets now at thecopywriterclub.com/tccirl. Kira:  What if you could hang out with seriously talented copywriters and other experts, ask them about their successes and failures, their work processes and their habit, then steal an idea or two to inspire your own work? That's what Rob and I do every week at The Copywriter Club Podcast. Rob:   You're invited to join the club for episode 176 as we chat with our Event Planner for TCCIRL, Elaine Wellman, about planning events of all sizes, why it can be a good idea to work with an event planner, why some events are life changing while others are kind of blah, and how events can deepen client connections. Kira:  Welcome Elaine. Rob:   Hey Elaine. Elaine:         Hey you guys, been so long since we talked yesterday or maybe... Rob:   All we do is talk to you lately. We are in the throes of planning a pretty big event with you. Kira:  Yes, we are a month away, as Elaine likes to remind us. It stresses me out a little bit to think about it, but Elaine, we met you three years ago before our first event in New York City. Prerna Malik had introduced us and I think we were, I remember we were halfway through the planning process when we were just like, ‘Oh, we need help.’ And luckily, we met you and you were able to swoop in and help us produce the event, the first event and make it a success. So, you've been integral to the process and you've also seen how the event has evolved. We're going to get into all of that. But let's just first start with your story. How did you get into this business? How did you end up as an event strategist and planner? Elaine:         It wasn't really by design. I guess I'll try to give you the short version here because we have a lot to talk about. But I majored in college in communications and went into public relations. And some of your copywriters might be able to relate to the PR industry. I don't know, but it is a huge burnout job for sure. I ended up at an agency, a really small company that morphed from PR to doing a lot of events. And in public relations, the area that I was in, I did events for my clients, but my major focus was on getting publicity for them. And I always liked events because they're really tangible when you're working on them. It's something that you create and you see it and you bring it to life and then it ends unlike getting publicity, which is this unending, everlasting project. So, I always liked events. And then the company I worked for just morphed into focusing on events, getting a lot of event clients, it was pretty unique. The owner is French and we got all these French companies that were doing events in New York and ended up doing a lot of trade shows, really small boutique trade shows, a little bit upscale, which was great training grounds because in a trade show, there're so many audiences. There's the attendees, the visitors, my own client, the trade show owner, the speakers, the exhibitor. I mean, there's just a lot of different audiences. So that was really great training ground and one of the big clients did... their big show was in Monaco. So, for like 10 years, I went to Monaco every year on a business trip. So that was really great. And along the way, I actually got certified as a coach and floundered around in what area I was going to specialize in with my coaching business and eventually put it all together and came back to what I can do with my eyes closed, which is events. And then switched up my coaching business to focus on events and retreats and eventually brought the coaching back in to help people DIY their event if they're not really ready yet to invest in higher level done for you support like you guys do. So, then I work with people in that way through my group program. Rob:   The French company you worked at, that was Publicist, right? Elaine:         Actually, no. I did work at Publicist- Rob:   Because I was going to say, we found this connection that you and I had both worked at Publicist. Elaine:         We did and that was the major burnout. Oh my God. Rob:   Right. For me too. Elaine:         Publicist bought a PR agency that I was working for that I was VP of the consumer group and there was the big grip in the key to why they bought it. I made the most money that year in corporate that they bought the company and it was like the worst year of my work life at the same time. Rob:   Interesting. I wouldn't describe my experience as awful when I was at Publicist, but it was a lot of work. I mean, it was definitely the kind of thing that you can burn out from. So jumping forward then, that first client that you did on your own, tell us about how that project came about as you are branching out onto your own, you're not planning events with the company anymore, but doing your own thing. Elaine:         Oh, that's interesting. I was working still part-time for that small event company and working on my coaching business, which, that went through a lot of changes. At first, I was working on happiness because I had gotten over my own depression and then I switched that wording, hello copywriters, to mindset because that seemed to resonate more. And then I eventually was like, ‘Oh, I have all this marketing background, let me do mindset and marketing.’ But I was really never able to get that coaching business going. I think a lot of it was my own mindset crap. So one day in the mastermind group I was in, I basically surrendered my business and I was like, oh my God, it's like you're in the Facebook group getting ready for your mindset call. What's working, what's not? And I'm writing, my business is not working. Oh my God, am I going to say this out loud? And I did. And a couple of weeks later, my coach said, ‘I got a download in yoga, I'm going to call you.’ And she said, ‘I know you probably don't really want to do events, but I'm getting proposals for an event this summer. Do you want to get me a proposal?’ And I did. And then the next thing she did was a retreat in Costa Rica. I'm like, ‘Well, yeah, that's really fun.’ And so I just sat back for a little while and I ended up getting on her team and doing various things on her team, including several events and retreats and some other projects still working part-time. And after about a year of doing that, I was like, ‘Okay, yeah, this is where I want to put my stake in the ground. I'm loving the event and retreat work.’ Kira:  And how can we deal with the mindset piece of it because we're talking about mindset here when you are pivoting and it is hard to realize my business isn't working, something's not right. Or maybe I'm just not into it. How do you recommend copywriters handle that when that happens so that it doesn't feel like a failure, but it just feels like a next step and you handle it with more grace rather than just pushing back from it? Elaine:         Well, I love what you said, Kira, because it's so easy for us to beat ourselves up and we're such a success driven society and what that means and all that. But everything does lead us to where we got. I mean, if I hadn't had been burnt out at Publicist, I wouldn't have gotten into events in the first place. You know what I mean? So, even though that was a horrible year of my life, if that didn't happen, I would be in a totally different place. I mean, it's definitely real and it's definitely challenging, but I think being gentle with yourself is really important and giving yourself some space, which is what I did. Like I said, I mean, I did have a part-time job still so I had some money coming in, but once I surrendered that business, I was like, ‘I don't have to figure this out today or this month,