A friend recently postponed a social networking event aimed at getting young lawyers away from their desks and moving their bodies as part of a larger health and wellness initiative. The date was set, the family-friendly activities were planned (a hike up Heublein Tower followed by yoga and refreshments), the admission cost was low ($10 per person and free for those under the age of 16), and the weather and leaf peeping forecasts looked in his favor. But, in the days leading up to the event only 10 people out of potentially 100s of association members across the state were registered to attend.
As a novice planner, he was frustrated. What went wrong? Why didn’t more people sign up for an event that was outdoors, affordable, and open to all ages?
These days it’s not enough to plan a gathering and post it to your organization’s website. People are moving too fast to seek you out. To get their attention, you have to meet them where they already live, work and play.
You must promote your event through traditional and social media as well as your existing networks. Sometimes, this also involves some grassroots efforts, like distributing flyers in the neighborhood (or office in my friend’s case). Doing so will not only drive attendance for your event, but more importantly, will help to raise awareness for your organization and mission, thus boosting financial support for the cause.
Here are seven event promotion ideas to increase attendance:
- Promote good news related to the event in advance through traditional and social media. Stories could include participant profiles, award winner, event speaker and sponsor spotlights, programs funded by money raised through your event, new aspects of the event itself, and more.
- Be inclusive with your messaging and dissemination of information to increase reach, exposure and engagement. Share event information in the languages spoken by target audiences in places and media outlets where they already seek information.
- Develop engaging social media content worth liking to share across your organization’s platforms, and when appropriate, your professional LinkedIn page. Tease what attendees can expect at the event, share flashbacks from previous events, and drive fans and followers to the event registration page.
- Engage early registrants to become social media ambassadors for the event by encouraging them to share news of their participation on their social media channels. When people read about what their friends are doing on social media, they are likely to join in.
- Use your newsletters as a powerful PR tool. Include a calendar item directing folks to a working registration link in two to three of your newsletters leading up to event day.
- Leverage your existing listserv and ramp up your direct to consumer marketing efforts. Develop e-blasts to send to your internal and external stakeholders. Content can include exclusive behind-the-scenes stories and event previews as well as a pre-registration link or discount code to incentivize sign-ups.
- Give guests options. In this do-it-yourself era, folks want ways in which they can put their own spin on gatherings and fundraisers. A simple way to do so is by embracing the hybrid model, offering both in-person and virtual ways to participate.
- Tap relevant influencers who reach your desired audience to see if they will participate and/or promote your event through their own networks and social media channels. The rules of engagement are pretty straightforward. The key is to ensure they have an organic and authentic connection to your mission.
