A good idea is not enough to carry an event. You need to tell as many people as possible, as often as possible, until you’re mumbling in your sleep! People need to hear about your event, so instead of doing all the work yourself, why not get others to help. Here are 5 ways to entice your attendees to get the word out.
- Reach out to past attendees
You have a golden list of people who have already been to your awesome event, use it! Try opening early bird registration for anyone that signed up last year, or give an extra incentive by sending out discount invitations. Everyone loves a discount, and loyalty should definitely be rewarded! This could be social media sharing, blog posts, testimonials, videos, sending smoke signals, whatever it takes! Some people will jump at the chance to do this, but others might need a little more persuading. Try getting your potential attendees to vote on something – a new obstacle, mascot, location, swag item, t-shirt design. People love giving their opinion, and giving them a sneak peak at your event could turn them into new attendees. First time participants will love to know how other people experienced their first race, or that bug spray and snacks are an absolute must for that outdoor concert. - Use your network
Reach out to people who can help you, and offer your help in return. You met them once at a networking event and held onto their business card or connected on LinkedIn? Yes! Reach out! The important thing to remember is to keep it personal. Make sure you’re only reaching out to people you have consent to reach out to. The United States and Canada both are monitored by Anti-Spam legislation. This even goes for friends and family…so make sure you have mom’s consent before you send. For social media, leave no stone unturned. Find pages and groups that share a similar interest to your event and spread the news. Sweeten the deal by offering promo codes or group discounts. - Referrals are the name of the game
Nobody likes going to an event alone (but if you do, we don’t judge!) so make referring friends and family easy for your attendees. Adding this directly into registration gives your attendees a chance to refer while it’s fresh in their mind. Provide them with an incentive to give them that extra nudge to share your event. Post-registration is also a great time to reach out. They’ve already signed up so now is the time for them to reach out to others to join them. - Consistently update your social media accounts
Whether you’re updating your YouTube to share sneak peeks, posting photos of the setup process on Twitter, giving away deals through Instagram posts or reaching your event community through Facebook Live, consistently update your social media accounts. Your updated posts and engagement serves as a constant reminder to your event community of the importance of your event. - Promote the things you know people want
This may seem like an obvious one, but your promotional material can get bogged down with too much information. We know you put a lot of work into making your event the best it can be and you want to share every detail, but that’s not always the best route to take. Promote the things you know people want. Let them know if there’s going to be a big surprise (to create hype and FOMO) free t-shirts, WiFi, good food, or the opportunity to meet someone famous. If you’re a race, maybe you want to send your attendees preparation tips, i.e. how to train for OCR (Obstacle Course Racing). If you’re a festival or concert, maybe you want to send people information about your location, set list, or check-in details. Research what people want out of events like yours and promote it!
Start communicating with your event attendees one of the easiest ways possible by planning your event on Events.com. Easy communication with event goers will help entice them to get the word out about your event.
