Event attendees may view events as an opportunity to enjoy a cocktail with like-minded people, unwind in a new city, or just grow their network. As an event marketer, you see events in a different light. Every event is an opportunity to grow your business, expand your brand recognition, and generate leads but it comes with a range of challenges. These event marketing ideas for 2019 can help you grow your business.
Put Your Attendees to Work for You
As you sell tickets to your event, why not put attendees to work to reach a new audience with the same interests? Set up a campaign that gives ticket buyers the option to share a unique link through email or social media that gives new attendees a promo code. You can even offer ticket holders a percentage refund for every new person who buys a ticket through their promotional post or email.
Partner with Someone Else
Why do all the work yourself? An event partnership offers a lower cost and a way to make connections in the industry. By working with another event organizer, you can reduce costs, attract a new audience, and give your brand authority a boost. To identify the right partner, look for someone with a similar audience. This may be a digital publisher or other media company that may even bring on additional sponsors for your event.
Get Placed in an Events Directory
Getting placed on just a select digital events directories can give you a huge boost to your reach. Some directories allow you to self submit your event but others require a pitch email. Look for directories that specialize in your industry or event and include information about promotions, tiered pricing, and other important details.
Team Up With Community Influencers
When you’re working with a business or organization that has a big event on the horizon, it can help to bring local social media influencers into the mix. You can do this by sending them a message via private message or email that acknowledges their level of influence in the community or industry with an invite and a plus one (with free admission) to your event. Let them know you want them to have a great time at the event and you’d appreciate if they shared their experience. This can help boost attendance for your event and the business.
Use Your Blog to Market Your Event
Your company’s blog can be a great way to create buzz around your event. Feature partners and speakers in your blog and share exclusive content from guests before or after you open ticket sales. Your events partners should create content that relates to the event theme or their presentation that they can share on their social media. Depending on the content you produce, you may even want to promote it on Facebook using paid ads to reach a broader audience.
Give Your Event a Landing Page
As your event generates buzz, potential attendees will want to learn more. Don’t direct them to a corporate website to search through a calendar for information; create a landing page for your event to tell your target audience why they should be coming. Here’s why every event deserves its own landing page and the problems it can solve.
