1. The Event Page (Or Website)
Description – The very first job is to create a destination page where all marketing activities point to, imagine it – every single click lands here, it has to be amazing, get this right and conversions to attendance will be stronger.
2. Title
3. Description
4. Speakers / Artists
5. Location, Dates & Times / Schedule
6. Register your interest / book
7. Provide ticketing link
Preparation Before You Go Live
The creation of the events’ content is the key to your event page being awesome, add event forms, outline the key information required which is essential to make your page successful socially and for search engine optimisation. It may not be as easy as it sounds but here are some tips and tricks to help you avoid those common mistakes.
8. Dynamic subject line and a compelling description
9. Speakers / Artist – pictures, bio’s connect and access their communities
10. Event-related videos, images
11. Register and sign up button
Top 3 Event Page & Website Builders
12. evvnt
13. Eventbrite
14. Cvent
_________________________________________________________
15. Event Listings and Ticketing
Description- Promoting your event through listing sites is one of the easiest ways to spread awareness. They hold a large community of followers and are already connected to several social media devices, making it easier to reach general audiences. (See #4. Social Media)
Event Listings
16. evvnt – 5000+ event listing site aggregator
17. Eventbrite – world’s largest self-service ticketing platform
18. Skiddle – UK’s largest What’s On Guide
19. Tickets are means of attracting audiences and for producing revenue to offset the event costs
20. Great benefit to your marketing strategy
21. One of the easiest ways to increase awareness of your event
_________________________________________________________
22. Email
Description- Send information about the event to attendees as it draws nearer, attach new announcements or features. Don’t let them forget about the event, keep reminding them but don’t spam them.
Pre-Event Email
Time is of the essence when it comes to the preparation of an event. Emails need to be sent in regular intervals to keep your contacts up-to-date.
23. Come up with an intriguing subject line
24. Create a contact list based on interest and target your emails to the specific groups
25. Step out of the norm, send emails outside of office hours
26. Provide video thumbnails of event-related speaker interviews
27. Include positive feedback from previous events as quotes
28. Add a ‘Share’ button to help attendees forward the email to people who they think might be interested in attending
29. Try to keep the text short and make it visually appealing and memorable
Post-Event Email
Follow-up emails are the perfect way to thank attendees and to announce future events. Attach links to surveys and post-event blog entries, try to keep the event fresh in their minds.
_________________________________________________________
30. Social Media
Description- Harness the power of social media as a way to generate buzz, it’s free and it can give you that extra bit of exposure you may be looking for. Create a #Hashtag and set up social media profiles specifically tailored to your event.
Pre-Event Social Media Activity
31. Twitter
32. Create a one-of-a-kind #Hashtag for your event
33. Tweet relevant people, make them interested in your event, send invites to them
34. Tweet early and often: schedule your tweets (Sproutsocial, Hootsuite, Buffer)
35. Use countdowns to keep up the interest:
36. Keep reminding your followers of the time and location
37. Thank your sponsors for sharing, this will make you stand out from your competitors
38. Make your speakers’ presence known, tweet out some of their quotes and link those to their social media profiles
39. Link your tweets to your pre-event blog
40. Follow people who might be interested in your event (journalists, bloggers, etc…)
41. Facebook
42. Create a Facebook landing page, use tab builders to help you make it more appealing (ShortStack, Pagemodo)
43. List the dates, times and any special attractions (i.e. speakers, notable guests) that concern your event
44. Make regular status updates to promote your event
45. Post videos and pictures of speakers or attendees to fuel your event’s interest even further
46. Create a Facebook ad for your event
47. Instagram
48. Use your Instagram account to promote your event, be active!
49. Post pictures and video sneak peeks of your events, maybe some behind the scenes material
50. Showcase the progress of your event and be creative in doing so
51. Create photo contests and hand out prizes to the winner (free tickets, VIP treatment…)
52. Make sure to use your event hashtag as often as possible
53. Join in on weekly hashtags (#mcm, #wcw, #tbt, #fbf)
54. Snapchat
55. Snapchat provides a direct line to a younger audience, so utilise it!
56. Set up automatic replies for messages
57. Snap glimpses of previews of the event
58. Create contests: deliver clues, questions or puzzles and prize them with event-related giveaways
59. Pinterest
60. Create a board specifically for your event and update it on a regular basis
61. Pin pictures of your notable attendees and highlight their testimonials
62. Host a pin chat by linking your Twitter with your Pinterest, do a Q&A with one of your event’s speakers
63. Run another contest, simply pick a topic and announce it on your blog
64. LinkedIn
65. Use LinkedIn Groups to promote your event
66. Build up your members and send out invites
67. Demonstrate your industry related knowledge and keep things professional
During Event Social Media Activity
Social media is the perfect outlet to promote your event while it’s happening. Live tweet the highlights, maybe even live stream it through Facebook and share pictures on Instagram, take advantage of the wide variety of possibilities social media has to offer.
Twitter
68. Live tweet your event
69. Use your hashtag to generate buzz and get the event trending
70. Post snaps to your story throughout the event
71. Create a live Snapchat Story for the event or encourage people to use the already available location specific story
Post-Event Social Media Activity
Staying connected once the event has come to an end is essential to its success, uploading photos or sending out thank you tweets are only some of the ways to achieve that.
_________________________________________________________
72. Blogging
Description- Starting a blog is an easy and inexpensive way to market your event. Keep the content updated with interesting news and invite speakers to write guest posts.
Pre-Event Blog Posts
Get your blog started early and work on it regularly, interact with your speakers through interviews or guest posts.
Post-Event Blog Posts
Your blog is the ideal place for event recaps, include a summery of the event, upload some pictures, link it to your social media accounts and create lists of the top tweets about the event.
_________________________________________________________
73. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Description- People might be looking for your event right this moment, which is why it’s crucial to make sure you get those keywords and meta descriptions right.
74. Getting the focus keyword right isn’t always easy, keep it to the point and fresh
75. Tag your site accordingly, use general keywords and nothing too elaborate
76. Make the meta descriptions interesting, don’t go into too much detail
77. Partnerships: being promoted on websites with good visibility and SEO will improve yours too
78. Advertisers like Google AdWords will boost your visibility
79. Google Analytics is a good way to get some feedback on your work
_________________________________________________________
80. Mobile Marketing
Description- Whether it be via SMS or ads, mobile marketing is sure to be an effective way to promote your event. Just make sure that your event pages look great on any device and are easily accessible.
81. SMS Campaigns: text-in and text-out campaigns
82. Mobile / Tablet friendly design
83. Mobile banner ads
84. Apps
_________________________________________________________
85. Press and Online Media Promotion
Description- Send out press releases, contact journalists / bloggers and submit to media outlets, leave no stone unturned when it comes to promoting your event. Additionally you can find more information here.
86. Press Releases to inform the media of your event
87. Case Studies to showcase the success your company has had in the past
88. Contact the media, bloggers or journalists you think might show an interest in your event and ask them to mention your event in their videos or articles
89. Sponsors usually bring their own audience with them as well, so look into getting some sponsors for your event
90. Newsletters, Flyers or Posters may seem old fashioned but they still represent a cheap and easy way to promote your event
_________________________________________________________
91. Marketing Through Others
Description- Give attendees or speakers a way to promote their presence at the event, work with partners or sponsors to increase awareness of your event.
92. Create badges for speakers / attendees to display on their social media profiles
93. Help speakers to promote their presence through social media, interview them or do a Q&A with them on your blog
_________________________________________________________
94. Unique Promotional Ideas
Description- Think outside the box, try to come up with innovative ways to get your event out there, to attract more people. Some of the following ideas might inspire you.
95. Create some Video content regarding your event, use YouTube, Snapchat or Vine
96. Have some popular radio channels mention your event or run radio ads
97. Live streaming your event through Periscope or Facebook can make people interested in attending your events in the future
98. Have QR Codes printed on your posters and tickets, which will lead people to the event’s blog
99. Gamification as means of rewarding people with badges for attending your event, or as a means of filling out surveys
100. Use Discovery Plugins to list your event on your site