Use Content Marketing to Promote Special Events
Content marketing is a practical, inexpensive way for you to let people know about your company’s special event, whether you’re having a small gathering for employees, a sale, a conference or convention, or a gala for a nonprofit. It lets you increase brand awareness and attract new and existing customers. Include relevant keywords, use a variety of social media platforms, and create a hashtag to make finding information and following conversations easy. Here are some more ways to promote special events with content marketing.
Create a Facebook Event Page
Image via Flickr by nhanusek
With a Facebook event page, people can easily share your event with their friends and family by inviting them to the page. Your event page should have a list of people who plan to attend, along with essential information like the location, the starting and ending times, and the itinerary. You should encourage people to attend your event page for detailed information about your event.
Answer any questions in the comments to make sure all visitors to your Facebook page have access to the information they need, and be sure to provide good customer service. If your event has a logo, include it on your page. Add photos from past years and testimonials from attendees for anything that happens annually. With Facebook’s FBX Ad Targeting, you can show ads about your event to the people who visited your page. That way, people who don’t buy a ticket or sign up immediately will get a reminder to check out your event.
Talk About the Speakers Coming to Your Event
Inviting professionals to your event will make it more entertaining and educational. Also, telling people about your speakers is an excellent way to attract more attendees. You should invite as many experts in your field and celebrities to speak as possible. Many people attend events just to meet the experts, and they’re easy ways for speakers to get more exposure. Create custom graphics advertising your event that your presenters can share on their pages and blogs.
On your website and social media, post a list of all the speakers who plan to attend, along with pictures and short biographies. You can create more anticipation for your event by interviewing those individuals and posting the interviews on a blog or podcast. Near the end of the content, mention that people can see more of the expert at your event. Speakers can also attract people with guest posts on your blog, and you can spread information about your brand by posting articles on your speakers’ blogs in return and asking them to mention you on their social media pages.
Share Videos
If you had a similar event last year, share as many videos of it as you can to give people who are thinking about attending a clear picture of what will happen this year. You can also share clips of your speakers talking about topics related to your event. Focus most of your videos on what people can gain by attending your event, like continuing education, networking opportunities, and a few different ways to relax.
If you’re holding an event for the first time, create a trailer to describe the speakers, exhibits, and attractions available. Use animation for an easy, attractive preview. You can also share some videos of people getting ready for your event. Follow decorators, speakers, and others as they prepare for the big day. You can post videos on your website, on social media sites like Facebook, and on video hosting sites like YouTube and Vimeo. When it makes your content more understandable and entertaining, include videos or links to videos in your blog posts.
Send Emails
When people visit your website, invite them to sign up for your emails. Those on the list can get updates about your events, reminders to attend, useful information, and more. You should also ask business partners, speakers, and friends to mention your event in their emails. Add a short email signature promoting your event to all your communications. For a large event, start letting people know about it a few months in advance. That way, more of your customers will be able to change their schedules and attend.
You can also use email to announce your speakers and their credentials, share positive reviews of past events, and offer discounts for early registration. After people register, send a confirmation email with a link to your Facebook event page. You can also invite them to follow you on Twitter, Instagram, and other social media sites. Make sure your emails have interesting subject lines that encourage people to open them. Send as many as possible on weekends when more individuals will have time to read them. After your event, send an email asking for feedback.
Hold a Contest or Drawing
To create excitement about your event, hold a contest or drawing. You can give everyone who registers or attends a chance to win something small like a book, a gift card, a free ticket to your event, or a private meeting with one of your speakers. Just make sure the prize is something your audience would want. To expand your email list, ask people to enter by giving their email address.
You can also have a skill-based contest like a video game tournament or a paintball match. Try to choose something that’s entertaining for observers and participants. Offer a large prize to make competing worth the effort and recruit well-known judges who will attract more attendees. After your event, share a picture of the winner and his or her prize on social media to attract people to next year’s event. If you have a podcast, you can create a special episode explaining the contest.
Content marketing is an excellent way for you to gain customers and attendees for your event. Your friends, family, and current customers can share news about your event with people you know and help build excitement about it. You can make your brand well-known without having to pay for billboards, TV ads, or other advertising.
I'm a professional writer who has created thousands of fascinating, informative articles and blogs for a variety of clients. I can cover many different subjects, and I always do thorough research.
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