118: Events Marketing and Data with Jonathan Kazarian

<p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Today, we have the great pleasure of speaking with Jon Kazarian, the Founder, and CEO of Accelevents!</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In this episode, we talk about data, entrepreneurship, marketing, the role of events in marketing, and opportunities for the future of our industry. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">We hope you enjoy listening to our conversation with Jon Kazarian today!</span></p> <p><strong>Bio:</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jonathan Kazarian is the Founder & CEO of Accelevents, a leading virtual and hybrid event management platform recently recognized by Inc. 5000 as one of the top 200 fastest-growing private companies in America. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As CEO, Jon focuses on leading the company’s vision of helping event organizers and marketing professionals transform their events through innovative technology solutions. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As an industry thought leader, Jon actively publishes insights on the events landscape and frequently speaks at industry events such as EventMB’s Event Tech Innovation Summit, BizBash Live, and INBOUND. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jon also chairs the board for the Fall Formal fundraiser benefiting the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Outside of work, Jon has a passion for anything on-water — sailing, boating, scuba diving, and kiteboarding.</span></p> <p><strong>Jonathan’s journey</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jonathan started hosting events while in college. After finding out that his seventeen-year-old cousin had been diagnosed with cancer, he decided to host an event at the Boston Aquarium to raise some money to help her. He needed to sell 185 tickets to break even, and he sold 840! Going into that event, Jonathan knew that to raise the most money he could from running an auction and a raffle, he needed to do it digitally. However, he struggled to find an affordable and easy-to-use t