Event organizers have only one goal – enough people attending their event.
However, common marketing ways have become somehow boring and ineffective in bringing people to an event.
Event organizers are coming up with new strategies to make their promotions more effective and attract a greater number of people.
Unfortunately, with all the internet and social networks happening, this has become very challenging. People are used to everything and they are exposed to a lot of information online.
However, the internet and social media can be powerful tools in marketing, if you know how to use them right.
That’s why we compiled 3 marketing hacks event organizers should learn in order to grow their business.
Basic tips of marketing for event organizers
Before we go to the three main marketing hacks event organizers should learn, there are some basic things every event organizer should know.
For successful events, be sure to:
a. Interact with your audience
Use Instagram/Facebook stories to communicate with your audience, introduce Q&A sessions, organize polls, etc. Also, always answer their questions and like their comments.
b. Engage with old customers
Offer special discounts to your old customers, if they come back with more people – their friends or family.
Also, you can offer an extra ticket or discount for the people who promote the event. You can also organize a giveaway on social media – a couple of tickets in exchange for shares/comments.
c. high-quality content is valued a lot
Traditional ways of publishing content are still very effective. Emails, brochures or newsletters should be creative and captivating, with a clear message and interesting details.
take a look at similar events – similar events attract a similar target audience, so be sure to take a look at them and communicate with this event organizer, for tips and comparing marketing strategies.
Top three marketing hacks event organizers should learn
1. Brand communities can help you out (a lot)
Nowadays, people become attached to brands and their products easily. They can use their social networks to show off their collection and interests in the brand.
Event organizers can use this as an opportunity to connect individuals based on their mutual interests toward a brand or a culture.
There are different examples of brands building their business with the help of their customers and followers, like Starbucks, Apple, Star Wars, etc.
Therefore, event organizers should focus on building loyal event community and encouraging people to join that group.
Make a brand out of your events – using a branding community is one of the great marketing hacks event organizers should learn.
Why brand communities are beneficial to event marketing?
- clients are dedicated and loyal – the visits and purchases
- there’s no need for too many ads and promotions – a strong brand/online community makes purchases again and again, and encourages others to join them
- improves communication with the customers – brand/online communities allow companies to interact with their customers and get feedback about their products or services.
2. Word-of-mouth spread the news the best
Recommendations are probably the most effective way to advertise a product or event.
Therefore, event organizers should do their best to promote the thing they want by talking about it and encouraging the clients/event attendees to talk about it.
Organizing an event, like a conference, for example, is the perfect way to turn some attendees into your promoters.
Because when you have a certain number of satisfied attendees, they will happily spread the word and share their satisfaction.
Get your young employees to help you out. Attendees are often not included in the most important marketing ‘tools’, and they can be very powerful in spreading the word about certain things.
The way to do it is providing high-quality event – where all attendees can leave satisfied, talking about it.
Another way to spread the word about the event is doing it by yourself, especially at the beginning of your career.
You can be your best promotion if you have the right moves – write about the event on your social media, run your own blog, talk about it to the people you know.
3. Use social media networks for promotion
Social media networks have become a powerful way of spreading the word, promotion, and even work. The easiest way to promote an event or product is by using appropriate hashtags.
Do some research and see what are the most relevant and the most used hashtags related to your promotion.
By adding them to your posts, you can reach a much bigger audience than simply your followers. Make posts before and during the event about a unique hashtag dedicated to the event.
Encourage people to use it on various social networks to comment on the event and ask questions.
This way you can create a certain trend and encourage attendees to communicate with each other – even though they don’t know each other.
Social media networks are a powerful marketing tool which event organizers need to use.
Another way to use social media in marketing is by reaching out to the local influencers. Popular social media figures have the power to attract a huge number of people, which can be very useful for event managers.
Apart from influencers, check if any celebrities are connected to your event, so they can say a word or two about it online.
Creating a trend on social networks is not that easy, but when it does happen – it is a powerful tool in attracting more people to your events.
Common event organizer problems and how to solve them
To be a good event organizer, it is important to be aware of common problems that can happen along the way. Even more important is to know how to solve problems and deal with common event organizing issues.
Here are the most common event organizing problems with great solutions:
1. Finances
Money is generally a very common issue everywhere. It happens very often that event budgets are not so generous so even organizers spend more than it’s allowed or doesn’t do amazing things because they are financially limited.
The way to solve this issue is being aware of the budget you actually have. Create a plan and think about all the things you need.
If you can’t manage to get everything for the money, try doing it in alternative ways. See how you can get a cheaper option, or get something for free.
Try doing certain tasks by yourself, or ask somebody to help you, rather than paying a professional to do it.
3. Not planning in advance
Event organizers often fail to plan their events to details and schedule all the tasks wisely. When you organize an event, be sure to plan everything in advance, including all the small details you maybe consider irrelevant.
Don’t leave those ‘unimportant’ for the last minute, because if they pile up, you can have a lot to do with so little time before the event. Be sure to have a checklist and make a schedule of plans you need to do months, weeks and days before the event.
A good event is planned to details – use a schedule to complete the tasks on time.
3. Bad weather
Extreme weather conditions like a snowstorm, high temperatures, rain or winds are really something you can’t fight against when organizing an event.
However, if you take a look at the weather forecast a couple of days in advance, you can for sure be prepared for the rain or slightly warmer weather.
You can equip your event with cold beverages, umbrellas – anything that is necessary to keep the attendees happy and satisfied with your services.
4. Not enough space
If you used our marketing hacks event organizers should learn, you can expect more people than you are used to.
Well, too many people at an event can be an issue you can deal with at that very moment. However, there are some things you can do beforehand.
Try tracking the number of attendees – review all those Facebook (and Messenger) polls, Instagram stories, online event posts and see how many people you can expect.
A rough number is better than no number so you can be prepared and ready to welcome your clients. This way you can prepare necessary seats, promo materials, drinks, etc.
Moving your business?
Office relocation can be a bit complicated and a challenging ‘event’ to organize. However, you should apply your organizing skills to relocation, too.
Plan everything in detail and follow your plan by doing the tasks one by one according to the schedule. But relocation is not an easy task to do, especially by yourself.
That’s why hiring professionals is essential to a fast and smooth relocation. Reliable moving experts like Big Apple Movers NYC will handle the move of both residential and commercial areas.
This can be the safest and most affordable option, considering the fact that the risk of damage and loss is reduced to a minimum.
Conclusion
Event professionals need to come up with alternative ways to attract attendees and raise the quality level of their events.
With the right strategy and creative ideas, you can definitely beat your competitors and create very successful events.
With our three marketing hacks, event organizers should learn and other useful tips, you can build a loyal community of customers and expand it even more by using the right marketing strategy.
