Proper promotion

You’ve got a great idea for an event. You’ve found the perfect venue. You’ve contracted for super food. Now make sure you have the attendance to make it a success.

Reaching people who will want to attend your event is critical, and a four-pronged approach is the best: use newspapers, radio, television and the Web to get the word out.

Make a list of all the newspapers and radio and TV stations that reach your target audience.

Spend some time calling around to find the people who handle event coverage at these news outlets. Provide them with a press release with information about your event. Try to provide that release at least a month in advance so it may be included in calendars and possibly the news columns. Stay on point. Name the event and its purpose. Don’t forget the details: event date, time, location, cost, directions and how to register.

Most of these news outlets also have websites at which you can upload event information.

Invest some time in creating a memorable event logo that you can provide to news outlets.

Get creative with your event title. Think of an exciting way to describe your event that will appeal to potential attendees. What’s in it for them? What will they gain from attending your event? Developing a creative title will help your event stand out in search results and also capture more attention as you share it online and attendees share it online within their networks.

Consider using an offsite registration page to capture attendee information.

When you enter your event, you will be asked to enter the URL where attendees can sign up. Consider using an offsite event registration tool such as Eventbrite or Go to Meeting. They will allow you to have greater control over your attendees’ information and enable you to communicate with them via email.

Mary Crogan, marketing manager for Constant Contact’s event-marketing product, suggests that using social media is a good way to promote your event.

An event, she says, “be it a networking gathering, open house, fundraiser or class — is by nature a social affair, so it makes perfect sense that social media would be a fantastic tool to help plan, promote and build excitement.”

Small businesses and organizations want to get as many people as possible interested in their events, and they’ve clearly realized that social media is a perfect complement for spreading the word to their core base of customers, members and beyond.

The combination of social media with other event marketing platforms can be powerful, and today’s tools make it easier than ever to integrate them, she said.

A survey conducted by Constant Contact of its event marketing customers, representing business-to-business, business-to-consumer and nonprofit organizations, revealed that 77 percent were using social media to market their events and another 14 percent are planning to do so in the next year.

Seventy-four percent of those using social media to promote their events think it’s effective

Facebook is the most popular form of social media; of those using it to market their events, 89 percent report using Facebook, followed by Twitter, 66 percent, and LinkedIn, 54 percent.

Crogan said reliance on Twitter and LinkedIn appears to be growing. Eight percent plan to start using Facebook to promote events within the next year, while 13 percent plan to use Twitter and 20 percent plan to use LinkedIn.

The end result: increased event attendance, deeper relationships with customers and members, and a greater return on investment from their events.

Social media is an excellent place for promoting events to right the audiences. Do your research to find out which tools your audience is most likely to use and create well-worded messages that encourage readers to spread the word.

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