Once you’ve done the hard work of designing the agenda for your event, booking a venue that’s perfect and organising all the extras in between, it’s time to focus on ticket sales.
You need to make sure your marketing is on point if you are going to hit your sales targets. Online marketing has changed the landscape of ticket sales, making it possible to reach thousands of potential attendees all over the world.
We’ve pulled together the top 8 marketing tips for how to promote your event online so you can make the most out of everything available to you.
1. Run an online competition
Online competitions are a great way to drum up interest around your event on social media.
Set up a competition on Twitter using a specific hashtag that entrants have to include in tweets to be in with a chance of winning. This drums up interest and provides free and light-touch exposure for your event and your brand.
You can run the same competition on multiple social media sites for the most amount of coverage.
2. Step up your keyword game
Google estimates that there are 40,000 search queries every second. Getting your content to rank on the first few pages for key search terms is vital in promoting your event online.
So how can you use keywords to your advantage? Discover what keywords are most valuable to your event using free tools like Google Keyword Planner or MozBar by Moz.
Optimising your event content with these keywords will increase your chances of a high position when people search for your key terms. This means you’re more likely to attract the most relevant audiences.
3. Create a unique event page
This is the destination where potential attendees will go to learn all about your event. It’s where they will decide whether they attend or not.
You don’t need to design something groundbreaking. Make sure the page is eye-catching and contains all the information that delegates will need to make their decision. Your main goal with an event page is to make your event look as attractive as possible. It’s important to embed all the additional media on the page itself, including videos and professional photography.
Make sure you give visitors a clear instruction as to what they need to do, whether that’s to register their interest or to buy a ticket. Making it clear what the user needs to do is key in marketing your event effectively.
4. Create valuable extra content to promote your event
Rich and diverse promotional content is key to promoting your event. Creating social media posts, infographics, videos and how-to guides can boost your likes and engagements by thousands. These thought-leadership style pieces will position you as a thought leader, earning you points with search rankings too.
Creating a range of different content is beneficial in two ways:
- It means you don’t get audience fatigue when using the same piece of content over and over. Using completely new content every time you promote your event on social media or via email, for example, means you will be able to reach new audiences and promote it more regularly across your channels.
- Different types of content will engage different users. Whilst some people may be more engaged in a short video others may want to read a written interview snippet, a rich and varied range of content is ultimately the most effective way to market your event.
5. Use retargeting to encourage sales
Perhaps one of the cheapest options when it comes to promoting your event. Retargeting people with great content who left your event page without buying a ticket can be a highly effective method for marketing events.
This is an effective marketing tool that can be used over a period of weeks and is even more effective when you start to run out of tickets or are offering discounted tickets.
Top Tip: Retargeting works well with ticket sales when you create a sense of urgency.
6. Remember the power of email
Dropping content straight into someone’s inbox is so valuable when it comes to promoting your event. The 2019 Pulse Report found that email marketing is the third most powerful marketing tactic.
Creating a personalised event invitation to a targeted database will mean you are likely to increase traction and get more people to RSVP.
Top Tip: To create intrigue and increase sales, use a tailored drip campaign for your event so your database gets tailored content and messages leading up to the event rather than a one-off email.
7. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is a great way to get publicity for your event. The key to influencer marketing is making sure you approach the right influencers for your requests. Do your research before approaching influencers and do the hard work for them.
Make sure your event fits with the type of content they usually post for the most authenticity. You could even provide them with a unique angle they could use to write about your event. The more work you do the better. You’ll be much more likely to stand out from the hundreds of requests they get.
8. Social Proofing
Social proofing is the idea of normative social influence. People are more likely to do something if other people are doing it.
Testimonials are a great addition here. If you can get quotes from your most loyal customers and attendees, this will boost credibility and interest and it’s a great way to promote your event online for free.
So there you have it, 8 simple and easy to implement plans that will help you gain greater exposure for your event and hit your sales targets.
For more guidance on marketing events, make sure you check out our blog on ‘how to write a seamless event marketing plan‘ and our ‘Essential corporate event planning guide‘.
