Events present marketers and agencies with an endless pool of content opportunities.
Marketing an event, whether it is a music show, a sports match or an educational webinar, can be a strong addition to any marketing strategy. Moreover, the means and platforms to help you achieve this have never been more accessible, thanks to the rise of social media marketing. In this blog post, we will outline the ultimate step-by-step guide to marketing an event, with the help of social media.
buzz creation: marketing an event and building up excitement
Once the green light has been given and you have the official confirmation of your event, there is no better time to start promoting than now. It is a well-known fact that when following the consumer journey, consideration often comes only after multiple exposures. Similarly, any potential attendees may need to be reminded and exposed to information about your event a few times before they consider booking. Hence why, it is beneficial to start marketing the event as early as possible.
The time frame and the frequency in content release may vary depending on the event.
large annual events
When marketing large-scale annual events, such as conferences, summits and award ceremonies, the build-up and excitement can start early on. However, it is usually best practice to do this gradually so the content can be spread out evenly to keep up a continuous buzz during the months leading up to the event.
When marketing an event with plenty of time to work with, the main objective should be raising awareness and engagement. Aim to familiarise your target audience with your event and generate interactions. Also, depending on your budget, a dedicated ad spend could prove useful. Having a paid ads strategy can complement your organic socials strategy well. It can also show your content to a much larger but still relevant audience.
short-notice events
If you only have a short period of time to build up buzz and generate interest and excitement, you should speed up the frequency of posting. Once again, adding a dedicated ad spend can prove very succesful. Boosted posts, or the many types of conversion ad formats on Meta and LinkedIn, can generate great results.
the final countdown
Once the mark hits on that final month, final week or final few days before the event, it is time to fully embrace the promotional activities. Highlighting the little time remaining until the event will help add urgency to the mix. Countdown CTAs, along with the above content ideas, can help you achieve that last-minute rush! Using other CTAs such as “Almost sold out!” and “Last few tickets remaining!” is a great idea too.
Remind people of the best things coming up or anything big they may have missed. Mention the biggest guests and attractions at your event and any exclusive information. Reshare the schedules, any on-going contests or promotions. Ensure your presence online is regular and your event is at the forefront of your target audience’s mind.
marketing an event in real time
When marketing an event, the promotional activities continue in full force on the day of the event! Ensuring that you capture as much of it as possible is crucial for the real-time performance and engagement on social media. It is also key for your future content strategy. Encouraging people to post content is an added benefit to stimulate UGC creation. This can be achieved by using subtle CTAs like "Tag us online" or "Use the hashtag to share your favourite moments". Feature them on screens, banners, posters at the venue or on-screen during livestreams.
Meanwhile, planning ahead for your content strategy is just as important! Event videography and photography can help capture different kinds of high-quality footage. Recording video/audio interviews with guests and attendees would also serve as great future content.
post-event engagement
This is where all the planning at the previous step comes in handy. Your content creation and collection strategy was executed well. Now you should be sitting on a content library worth to last you at least a few months. Make sure to utilise everything you collected and filmed to keep the engagement high in the post-event stage.
Ensuring you include your audience in the conversaion is key. Encourage attendees to share their favourite moments from the event and post photos. Also, ask them for feedback you can use for the next event through surveys, polls or Q&As.
final thoughts
Marketing an event can be a challenging but rewarding process. Utilising all the opportunities provided by social media channels to market and promote your event can generate amazing results for your business. What is more, ensuring you make the most of all the content you will inevitably collect, will help keep engagement high for months ahead.
