Everyone knows how powerful social media can be, but how many have actually realized the full potential of social media to promote an event without paying for expensive ads? I have been thinking about how social media has gained so much attention and how it’s been a great marketing tool before paid social media ads came into the picture.
Then there came an epiphany. Leveraging on social media is not only about how tech-savvy you are. You can’t have successful social media campaigns without a deep understanding of the psychology of human behavior. Read on to learn 15 surefire ways to promote your event on social media and discover how you can employ the combination of technical knowledge, marketing expertise and the understanding of people to make your next event a social media star!
1. Create a Video that Conveys the Best Moments of Your Past Events
Admit it, we all feel guilty being hooked to YouTube for hours at times. That shows the power of videos. Get your prospective attendees excited and inspired by a well-edited video of your past events’ most exciting and memorable moments. Keep in mind that the value of your event should be perfectly clear in the video. Include testimonials if possible. As a matter of fact, testimonials in the video will build trust quickly as viewers can hear true experiences with their own ears and see the people with their own eyes. Learn some tips on Using Video in Your Event Marketing.
2. Use Photos of Attendees in Social Updates AND Tag Them!
Brains can process images much faster than texts, so the flattering and fun pictures of your past events’ attendees will be put to good use. Create status updates with the photos and tag them. These photos will reach the tagged attendees’ friend networks and effectively promote your event to them. The fact that humans are competitive means that we will always try to find out what other people around us are enjoying. The sweet result? You can expect high click-through rates through this method.
3. Share Speakers’ Pictures and Bios
The US Election 2016 has been getting more attention from audiences around the world because of a world-famous candidate, Donald Trump. It’s effortless marketing for your event to have the presence of reputable experts in the field, or celebrities! Famous speakers draw crowds like magnets. (Learn how to Use an Exclusive Speaker and Make Your Event More Exciting). Take a good headshot of every speaker and add that to a graphic containing one powerful quote from each of them. You can also list their credentials in their profiles. This gives your event more credibility.
4. Get Your Speakers to Promote Your Event
Ask keynote speakers to share about your event on their social networks. This provides them with an opportunity to get exposure and enhance their personal branding. Be sure to provide them with various sizes of images or banners for their convenience of promoting on multiple social media platforms.
The tricky part is that this tends to work in favor of grand events. Speakers, without you asking, will be eager to share about their part in big events. However, smaller events are less likely to be promoted. In this case, offer them an incentive for promotion. If a speaker is trying to sell his or her books, offer your attendees a discount of the books in exchange for the speaker’s social sharing. If the speaker is an entrepreneur, offer to advertise his or her company’s products or services during the event. The possibilities are endless when you understand their needs as well as their motivations for speaking at your event.
5. Share Behind-the-Scenes Images or Videos
6. Use a Double-Sided Customer Referral Program
If you never heard of the double-sided or two-sided referral program, take a look at an example of the different types of incentives provided by Rewardstream,
- No incentive – Please just share with friends!
- Single-sided – Refer a friend and receive $20
- Double-sided – Refer a friend and you both will receive $20
- Fixed rewards – Refer a friend and receive $20
- Variable rewards – Refer a friend and choose your reward – ($20/20% or 20 points)
7. Hold an Online Contest and Offer Winners Discounts or Free Tickets
8. Create One Hashtag for Use Across All Social Channels
- event attendees and yourself organize online conversations
- organize information about speakers, ideas and discussions
- to stay connected virtually long after the event has ended
As such, you want your hashtag to be unique. You don’t want your event information to be mixed with that of other events. A good hashtag should also be intelligible. Anyone who sees it – whether onsite or online – must understand what the hashtag is about.
Most importantly, effective hashtags must be remembered by event attendees. You should use this hashtag well before the event, during and after the event. Display it anywhere you can think of and share it.
9. Create A Linkedin Event to Promote to Professional Contacts
A lot of people use LinkedIn to reach out to acquaintances they may not be connected to on other social media sites like Facebook or Twitter. Promoting your event on LinkedIn is an opportunity to publicize your event and promote to professional contacts that may not be on your Facebook.
Not sure about Linkedin Event features? Check out this article to learn more: “Linkedin Events are now bigger, better, and more user-friendly.”
10. Share Your Story
