When some companies think of hosting an event, all they see is dollar signs flying out the window. A word of caution: Don’t automatically assume that all impactful events have to be expensive.
There are a lot of inexpensive marketing events you can host that can significantly add to the bottom line by improving customer loyalty and increasing word-of-mouth.
Some examples:
1. Educational events
Chances are a lot of your customers struggle with some of the same things. Can you find an expert on those things and invite him or her to give a presentation on how to ease those headaches for your customers? 
Also, if you sell a complex product, there’s a good chance your customers may not be getting the most out of it. There may be certain features they’ve either forgotten about or neglected to use. So why not invite them to your facility for a refresher on how to use your product?
2. A just-for-fun event
You don’t have to be all business, all the time. Invite your customers to your facility, or a local park or community center for a party/cookout — and tell them to bring their families.
Make sure to have plenty of games and activities for both the adults and kids.
Parents are always looking for fun, inexpensive activities they can do with their families. If you can provide some memories, your business will be hard to forget.
Plus, these events provide great opportunities to mingle and get to know customers on a more personal level — improving customer relations.
3. Lunch events
You’ve got to eat. Your customers have to eat. Why not eat together?
Invite customers out to lunch periodically, just to check in.
Or, better yet, ask them to attend a lunch-and-learn in which you invite a speaker to discuss an industry topic of interest to your customers. Just make sure you’re not using these lunches to sell your product. 
This doesn’t have to be an expensive proposition. You can host the lunch and bring in a sandwich platter from a local deli — or prepare some dishes yourself. (Nothing says “We care about you” like making them a homemade meal.)
Warning: Deli sandwiches and homemade meals are crowd-pleasers, but only if customers are local. If they need to travel more than 20 minutes, they’ll be expecting restaurant-quality food.
And yes, if you invite them to a restaurant, you should pay.
