From Inaugural User Conference to Strategic Marketing Partnership
The Challenge
FRONTSTEPS, a leading SaaS company serving the community management industry, wanted to launch its first user conference in a market where competitors already owned the event calendar. That meant building a name, a position, and an audience from scratch.
As the conference gained momentum, so did the partnership. FRONTSTEPS recognized an opportunity to take a more strategic approach to its growing portfolio of conferences, trade shows, and customer experiences, connecting each investment to larger business objectives while allowing its internal marketing team to remain focused on core priorities.
The Approach
What began as a single user conference evolved into a comprehensive event and marketing partnership, with Adelska taking on an increasingly strategic role across FRONTSTEPS' event portfolio.
Built FORWARD from the ground up
Conducted competitive research, developed the conference's positioning and brand identity, and launched its inaugural event in 2025. Led everything from content development and speaker preparation to event production, attendee engagement, and onsite execution.
Expanded into event marketing
Took ownership of FORWARD's marketing strategy and execution, including audience segmentation, email campaigns, social media, registration growth, and attendee communications.
Elevated executive and leadership experiences
Expanded the partnership to include FRONTSTEPS' leadership launch, supporting content strategy, speaker selection, presentation development, executive preparation, and full event production.
Managed major industry trade show activations
Oversaw sponsorship strategy and fulfillment, booth design and production, branded merchandise, and onsite execution. Developed exclusive after-hours experiences, managing everything from targeted invitations and guest engagement to event production and post-event marketing.
Connected event investments to business outcomes
Introduced more intentional audience targeting, prospect engagement, and post-event reporting to help FRONTSTEPS evaluate event performance and identify opportunities for customer growth and sales pipeline development.
Became an extension of the team
Established a consistent, integrated approach across the event calendar, combining strategic planning, creative development, marketing, and production while allowing the internal team to focus on core product and business priorities.
Services
Event strategy
Event branding
Event production
Event and trade show marketing
Speaker coaching
Email marketing
Social media
Sponsorship and programming
Ticketing and registration marketing
Post-event reporting and pipeline measurement
Trade show facilitation and logistics
Invitation outreach and RSVP management
Event app management
Notable Results
Grouped by what they actually measure, not scattered as a highlight reel.
NPS OF
from Forward 2025 to 2026
Industry standard: 50+
83 → 100
APP ADOPTION OF
40% → 83%
from Forward 2025 to 2026
Industry standard: 55–65%
STRONG EVENT MARKETING ENGAGEMENT
30.8%
Email open rate
Industry standard: 15-22%
8.2%
Click-through rate
Industry standard: 2-5%
Across the Forward 2026 campaign
21%
OF ATTENDING ACCOUNTS ADVANCED IN THE SALES PIPELINE
following an invitation-only industry networking experience, demonstrating the potential of targeted events to support business growth.
Event Highlights
FRONTSTEPS Forward
Building an Industry Conference from the Ground Up
What began as FRONTSTEPS' inaugural user conference in 2025 became a cornerstone of its customer engagement strategy. Adelska developed the event's positioning, brand identity, content strategy, and attendee experience, creating a differentiated conference in an established industry.
In 2026, the partnership expanded to include event marketing, audience development, and registration campaigns. The second-year conference achieved a perfect NPS of 100, more than doubled attendee app adoption, and delivered strong marketing engagement.
The result was more than a successful annual conference. Forward became a scalable platform for customer education, relationship building, and brand loyalty.
The Table
Turning Industry Events into Business Opportunities
At CEO-MC 2026, Adelska developed an exclusive, invitation-only networking experience designed to create meaningful connections between FRONTSTEPS leadership, customers, and high-value prospects.
From strategic guest targeting and personalized invitations to onsite execution and post-event follow-up, every element was designed to support relationship development and business growth.
The experience helped identify new revenue opportunities, demonstrating how intentional event strategy can extend the value of a company's investment in industry conferences.
Leadership Launch
Elevating Executive Communication
Adelska's partnership expanded beyond customer-facing events to include FRONTSTEPS' leadership launch, a high-impact internal experience designed to align teams around company priorities and strategic direction.
Working alongside FRONTSTEPS leadership, Adelska supports content development, speaker selection, presentation preparation, and the complete attendee experience, ensuring the event delivers a cohesive message from the stage to the audience.
This expansion reflects Adelska's evolution from event producer to strategic partner, trusted to support not only how FRONTSTEPS brings people together, but how it communicates its vision.