Even though your in-person event might still be a couple of months down the road, it’s the perfect time to engage your audience and build excitement! Social media is your new best friend for this. In today’s digital world, social media has totally changed the game. It’s made the world more connected than ever, transforming how we communicate and interact, and has also transformed the events industry.
In this blog, we will explore how social media has transformed event marketing and the various ways it encourages people to attend in-person events.
Choose the right social platform
Selecting the appropriate social media platform is essential for event promotion. Platforms like Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram offer excellent opportunities to reach a wide audience, while YouTube can complement your efforts with compelling video content marketing. Utilize all social media channels and tag everyone involved in the event – speakers, sponsors, hosts, and even attendees – to create a sense of community. Engaging with relevant LinkedIn groups and connections can be particularly effective for business-oriented events.
Share teasers with important event details
Build excitement by sharing teasers with essential event information in the lead-up to the big day. Teasers not only generate anticipation but also provide valuable details to your audience. Additionally, use teasers to showcase your attendees, such as introducing guest speakers one-by-one in the weeks leading up to the event.
Harness the power of hashtags
Craft a unique event hashtag that captures the essence of your gathering and encourage attendees to use it in their posts. Hashtags unite participants and extend the event’s reach to a broader audience. Amplify your announcements with well-chosen hashtags, including your branded hashtag, industry-specific tags, and those related to the event’s core themes or solutions. This enhances brand awareness and improves content discoverability, attracting more potential attendees.
Run targeted ads
Boost event attendance with social media for greater exposure and reach. Invest a small amount in paid advertisements to promote your event and increase visibility. Paid strategies can significantly enhance event attendance, outweighing the costs. Facebook’s exceptional ad targeting capabilities attract users from both Facebook and Instagram. For B2B events like conferences, exhibitions, trade shows, and networking events, LinkedIn is ideal. Also, tap into companies offering corporate fun runs, yoga, dance classes, and art workshops for a diverse audience. Targeted ad campaigns are cost-effective and deliver impressive event attendance results.
Seamless online ticket sales and registrations
Integrate online ticketing and registration services seamlessly into your social media channels. This user-friendly approach enables potential attendees to purchase tickets directly from their social media feeds, leading to higher conversion rates and increased event attendance.
Leverage user-generated content
Encourage attendees to share their event experiences through photos, videos, and testimonials. Share user-generated content across your social channels, showcasing the most memorable moments. This authentic and dynamic narrative boosts engagement and serves as valuable social proof, enticing more people to attend future events.
Host social media contests and giveaways
Engage your audience with interactive contests and giveaways, encouraging them to share event details and engage with your posts. This creates a viral effect, boosting event visibility and driving increased traffic. Don’t stop promoting your event even after it’s over; share its success on social media with a report highlighting participant feedback and the number of attendees. Offer perks like discounts on event recordings to those who registered but couldn’t attend, and incentives for future attendees to register and share the event on their social profiles.
Reveal your speakers and featured guests
Leverage the presence of your event’s presenters to generate maximum exposure among their fans. Interviewing speakers and featuring them on your blog and social media platforms will not only promote the event but also give speakers valuable exposure and elevate their presence. To further boost event attendance, highlight the expertise of your event speakers. Attendees seek valuable insights from events, so acquainting them with the speakers is an effective approach. Mention the speakers and their expertise in your event announcement post, then create short video interviews with each speaker, even if done via video conferencing platform for online interviews. Share these videos on Instagram stories, Facebook, and YouTube to create excitement and anticipation.
Use a countdown timer
Create a sense of urgency with a countdown timer on your Instagram story. Announce that there’s only an hour left before the event starts, urging those who haven’t registered to do so immediately. Leverage the psychological power of the fear of missing out. The Instagram stories countdown sticker allows customization of the clock’s name and color, and you can set an end date and time. Viewers can subscribe for notifications or add the countdown to their own stories, creating a branded calendar notification. This feature is an effective tool for driving ticket sales and reminding people of contest or early bird pricing deadlines.
Display social media posts at the event
Make social media a collective experience without constant phone distractions! Use a social wall with your event hashtag to display real-time posts during the event. By integrating a social wall into Canapii, you can add a dedicated social media tab to your event site. Both you and your attendees will have access to a real-time display of social media posts throughout the event.
You have the option to link your social media accounts or use the direct posts feature, which allows attendees to post directly on the wall by scanning the QR code on top of the Social Wall. This accessible and interactive strategy fosters participation and engagement within the event space, without the need for Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or any other social network.
Conclusion
These powerful social media strategies will effectively attract potential leads and allow you to communicate with your audience, gain loyal customers, and foster meaningful connections among attendees. Remember, delivering real value is crucial for successful event promotion, so ensure the quality of your content matches your marketing efforts. With the right approach, your event will be a memorable and well-attended success.
Curious about how Canapii can help drive in-person event attendance? Click here to find out!
