Follow these 8 steps when using social media for event marketing

Social media is your new best friend when it comes to event marketing. It’s a simple and free way of getting your brand message and event successes out there to a wide range of potential new customers. Take a look at our best social media ideas for events here.

1. Video marketing of prior events   

Video marketing is a big trend and a key social media idea for events. We recommend creating video content surrounding your events that you can post and share across all your social channels.
For every event you host, create a fun highlights reel of the day. This can be a short 2 minute video showing all the stages of the event from the set-up and the reception to shots of the event in full swing.
GoPros are great for these types of shots as you can set them up on a time lapse in the corner of the event Space and let it run all night long. You can then cut in any other shots or images you took during the event to make a fun, quirky highlights reel.

2. Sharable graphics and visual testimonials

Creating engaging graphics and visual testimonials are key social media ideas for events. They are a great way to build both event and brand awareness.
Providing downloadable content – that’s tailored to social sharing – will mean that more people are reading, sharing and engaging with your events. In order to make the most of this free social sharing, do some research into what dimensions this content needs to be on each platform to make it as easy as possible for affiliates to share it.
Testimonials are also a great way to build trust with new attendees. If you have some great feedback from previous events then polished eye-catching visual testimonials with comments from top event professionals or credible speakers who attended are a fantastic touch. Share these all over your social channels.
Be sure to give credit to the person who gave you the quote. People will love to see that their comments have been used and they will often share your testimonial graphics on their own pages!

3. #Hashtags

When it comes to using social media ideas for events, your use of hashtags is the key to the visibility of your event-related content.
If you want to build event awareness then using social media correctly is an essential component. Hashtags, when used right, can help spark up conversations and engage with new potential customers who are interested in your industry. It can also attract new followers to your account which will give you overall more brand awareness.
Get your event in front of them and you could be onto a real winner! You also need to create your own event hashtag. This should include something that relates to the event itself which is on brand and catchy. Keep it simple and easy to spell so that it will get more traction with potential attendees.
For example, in an event that we organised at the Brewhouse we created #BrewhouseFest. We included this in all of our promotional materials and we encouraged Guests to use that hashtag when talking about the event on Twitter.


Once you’ve created your catchy event hashtag, use it everywhere and on everything you can. Include it on any images, graphics, videos or merchandise you might create for the event.
Event Manager Blog, in their Social Media for Events ebook describe hashtags as ‘universal tool to bring all your event content and conversations together’ and that they’re ‘the social vehicle to funnel and collect feedback’.

4. Spread the word 

When using social media to promote your event, the key is to get the message out there to as many people as possible.
Some quick and easy tips to get this done are changing your social channel bios and email signatures to include the event information and add a link to the ticket page. Add a link to your events page as well as an eye-catching graphic or photo.
This is a great way to subtly get the event out there to lots of people that you email on a daily basis.

5. Facebook

Utilise Facebook event pages and create a really engaging page with everything attendees would need to know.
You can then link this page to your official company page and vice versa.  Facebook ads are also a key social media idea for events. You should utilise the tool when trying to promote any upcoming events. Facebook custom audiences allow you to show ads to people who have already visited your website – which means they may have a more beneficial user intent than people you pick up organically.
You will be able to show event ads to all the Facebook users who left your event page before purchasing a ticket – or perhaps users who have shown an interest in your brand.
People rarely buy a ticket for an event the minute they hear about it, so this Facebook tool is great for reminding them of the event and hopefully swaying their decision to attend.

6. Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories have become the latest social media craze this year, and are a great way of experimenting with your event marketing by giving you the ability to create 24-hour content. As well as the ability to create live streamed videos.
Instagram is one of the most popular channels so incorporating this into your social media ideas for events is key. This is a fun way of increasing the engagement of your event and if you have your Instagram set up as a business account it also gives you great analytics to measure the results of this content.
Sharing behind the scene footage of the planning process or any exciting planning steps as well as footage of the event being set up will all help engage Guests and any potential new customers.

7. Votes and Polls 

You want your event to be as successful as possible, so you need to make it as appealing to your target audience as possible. A great way to do this is by allowing them to vote for certain key aspects of the event, one of the best social media ideas for events.
This will give you a feel for your attendees and what they want as well as letting them feel involved in the event buildup.
This will all help to boost the overall engagement of the event. Voting polls are such a simple way of allowing your Guests to have their voices heard. Instagram isn’t the only social channel that has this facility – you can create polls on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram very easily and at no cost!
 
There you have it our best 8 social media ideas for events. It’s important to remember to up your post frequency across all channels to really get the event out there.
Encourage as much interaction with prospective Guests as possible with fun and innovative ways of using your social media ideas for events.
Social Media is a great tool for attracting new attendees. Engaging your current ones as well as spreading a message about the event and your brand to lots of potential new leads.
So when it comes to organising your next event – make sure you include a strong and engaging social media campaign into the planning process!

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