Successful event organizers use data gathered from past events to design effective event marketing strategies. Their marketing strategy may include using event discovery websites, creating a strong social media presence, or targeted email marketing.
In this article, we’ll look at some of the best event marketing ideas that you can use to sell out your next event. We’ll also explain how you can implement these event marketing ideas and get started with a step in the right direction.
#1: Event Discovery Websites
Most event-goers find local events in their neighborhood guides and through event discovery websites and apps. Find a few high-traffic, online event directories in your area or niche and ask to be included in their listings.
Some event discovery websites let you self-submit your event while others might require you to send in a pitch. Sites like Eventful allow event-goers to search for specific types of events in their area.
Additionally, many local commerce organizations, such as the Chamber of Commerce which has a highly visible presence across many U.S. cities, will also have an online calendar of events. Get in touch with your local chamber and ask to be included in their online calendar.
#2: Create a YouTube Channel
The great thing about YouTube is that it’s the second largest search engine – right after Google! By creating a YouTube channel to promote your events, you can easily reach a wider audience and build a strong online presence for your brand.
Live-streaming content from your event is a great way to build your audience. As an event organizer, there’s no shortage of content to live-stream. For example, you can share behind the scenes footage from your events, ask your keynote speakers to share a special message with your audience, or share teasers of your events to build hype. You can also compile a bunch of event videos into playlists to keep people watching.
#3: Launch a Podcast
Podcasting is a lesser-known strategy for promoting events. Studies indicate that 73 million people in the United States listen to podcasts at least every month.
As an event organizer, you can host your own podcast or become a guest speaker on popular podcasts in your area or niche. The idea is to talk about topics that are somehow relevant to your event’s theme.
If you decide to go the route of hosting your own podcast, you can use it as a platform to introduce prospective attendees to your event’s speakers and give them a quick preview of what their presentation will be about. This is a great way to promote your event and generate buzz.
#4: Segment Your Email Lists
Sending out event announcements, special offers, and early bird discounts to your entire mailing list might not be as effective as you think. Instead, use a targeted approach to get the most out of your event marketing efforts.
Start by segmenting your email lists into different groups. For example, you might create a list of attendees who registered for your past events and a separate list for people who haven’t attended any of your events. You can also segment your email lists based on:
- Ticket types
- Demographics (such as age or location)
- Lead magnets
- Job title
- Survey respondents
- Business industry
By segmenting your email lists, you’re able to send out messages that connect with the prospective attendee on a more personal level. With Event Smart, you can send attendee information directly to a list in MailChimp after they register for your event.
#5: Professional Photography
A lot of the time, event-goers are inclined to head over to Google Images or social media to find photographs taken at previous events. This helps them visualize what your event is all about and get an idea of the event atmosphere.
Consider having a professional photographer take photos at your events. You can use these photos to:
- Create a gallery on your event website.
- Add them to blog posts.
- Post them on social media sites (such as Instagram).
- Send them to your mailing lists.
#6: Get in Touch With Social Media Influencers
Social media influencers are able to help businesses get the word out about upcoming events. From your list of event attendees, look for people who have large followings on social media platforms and ask them to share your event’s details with their followers.
You can use tools like BuzzSumo or TweetDeck to connect with social media influencers in your niche.
#7: Encourage Social Media Sharing
Harness the power of social media to draw in more people to your events. Encourage attendees to share your event’s details with their social media following. This will help you attract prospective attendees who might be difficult to reach otherwise.
Social apps like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat help people quickly click, edit and share photos and video chunks with their friends. For example, you can create a custom Snapchat geofilter or set up a tweet wall to display your event hashtag.
#8: Invitation-Only Sessions
It can be difficult to get VIPs in your industry to come to your events – especially when you’re just starting out. The solution is to create premium, invitation-only sessions at your events that would encourage VIPs to attend.
This is a great way to enhance your event experience for attendees and gives you more opportunities to promote your event online.
#9: Event Ambassadors
Another great event marketing strategy is creating ticket promotion campaigns. For example, you might give a discount to existing attendees for every new attendee who registers using their unique promo code.
To take things a step further, you might give existing attendees a special promo code that gives the new registrants they bring in a percentage discount on tickets.
#10: Limited-Time Offers
To encourage customers to purchase tickets sooner rather than later, offer discounts in the months leading up to your event. For example, you might offer early bird discounts or offer tickets for a special price to your email list. By doing this throughout the year, you will keep prospective attendees informed and engaged about your upcoming event.
You can also use strategies like limited time left, limited seats left, or limited number of tickets for your event. This, along with offering discounts and add-ons, motivates prospective attendees and past event-goers to take action and purchase your tickets.
With Event Smart’s ticket selector, you’re able to communicate ticket availability to attendees with a unique status per situation. You can do this by displaying the details of a single ticket type including its description, when the ticket sale starts and ends, and which datetimes are available.
#11: Offer Multiple Ticket Types
Creating different ticket types for your event is a great way to offer value-added options to prospective attendees. You might create a few different pricing tiers to accommodate your attendees’ needs.
For example, you might create a basic ticket type which grants attendees access to one day of your event. And you might have a multi-day pass that attendees can purchase if they’d like to attend the entire event. You could also offer add-ons with your tickets for an added cost such as event swag, access to the keynote speakers’ presentation slides, or coupons that attendees can use at the event.
Event Smart’s ticket selector lets you offer multiple ticket options at one time and limit the number of tickets an attendee can purchase per order, per event.
#12: Ask Speakers to Contribute to Your Blog
A effective way to sell event tickets through your website is to share exclusive content from guest speakers. This gives prospective attendees a clear idea of how they will benefit from attending your event.
People who attend your events want to achieve specific goals. A clear message from your speakers tells your target audience exactly what they will learn at your event. You might consider asking your keynote speakers to write a blog post that’s related to their presentation or to the event’s theme.
#13: Early Bird Contests
Holding contests or raffle giveaways is a great way to encourage attendees to purchase tickets. For example, you can hold a raffle for a limited time after putting event tickets on sale. Each attendee that purchases a ticket will automatically be entered into the contest and get a chance to win. You can offer different prizes to the lucky winners such as goody bags, free parking, two free tickets, or VIP upgrades.
#14: Email Prior Attendees
As an event organizer, you should always maintain a list of attendees who’ve attended previous events. Before upcoming events, send out an email message notifying those who’ve attended previous events about your upcoming event. People who’ve attended your events in the past are more likely to attend future events, as well.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now have a better idea about the event marketing ideas you can use to sell out your next event. It’s a good idea to try out a mix of different strategies, at various stages leading up to your event, to maximize ticket sales and reach a wider audience.
Which event marketing strategies do you use to promote your events? Share your experience by leaving a comment below!
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