This is truly the social media age. Facebook has well over three billion members, 2.7 billion of whom use the platform every single day. That’s more than one in three of the global population. Facebook members range from tweenies to nonagenarians, from billionaires to the homeless. But there is more to social media than sharing cat videos and memes. If you want to promote your business events, no other platform has anything approaching social media’s audience or reach.
As well as Facebook, there are platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn and even Instagram that should form part of your social media strategy. Over the past couple of years, each has settled into its own role. We will save an in-depth discussion on that for another day, but in brief, Instagram is favored for visual and artistic media, LinkedIn is more focused on B2B and so on.
Facebook remains the great leveler, however, and reaches businesses and consumers in every market. While other platforms should not be ignored, Facebook needs to be the primary consideration when you promote your business event on social media. Here are the steps you need to follow.
Create a snappy hashtag to help promote your business events
A hashtag generates a buzz around your business event. It helps to promote it and can even boost the overall attendance. However, like any marketing slogan, it can attract attention for all the wrong reasons. Examples of great hashtags include #DoUsAFlavor from Lays potato chips, #WorthSaying by L’Oréal Paris and Disney’s #ShareYourEars.
At the other end of the scale, singer Susan Boyle’s idea for an “album party” to promote her latest release descended into farce when her publicists failed to spot the alternative reading of #susanalbumparty. Likewise, when McDonalds launched #McDStories, it was a PR disaster, as people seemed only interested in using the hashtag to share their worst experiences.
Allow plenty of time
Anticipation is as important as the event itself, potentially even more so. If you start promoting two weeks in advance, there is no time for any sort of momentum to build. You need to get your campaign underway six to eight weeks in advance. As well as ramping up anticipation, it gives the best opportunity for potential attendees to get your event inked into their schedules.
Create an event page on Facebook
Discussing your event with regular Facebook updates is great. But to get the most from the platform, you need to create a dedicated event page. It provides easy access to everything your attendees need to know, but even better, it boosts the promotion. Whenever someone RSVPs the event, Facebook will tell all their friends about it without you having to do a thing. For physical events, there are even integrations with platforms like Eventbrite, making it simple for attendees to buy their tickets.
Update your home page banner to promote your business events
Even with the event page set up, you can still promote your business events from your main Facebook page. Updating the banner at the top of your homepage is a powerful way of doing so, and takes a matter of seconds. Replace your usual banner with one specific to the event, and visitors can immediately see that something special and unusual is in the wind.
Run a contest
This is where your hashtag can really start working for you. Think about that Lays example from earlier. It was a great way to get people talking about the brand, and didn’t have the potential downside of the McDonalds campaign. Even if people suggested completely ridiculous or surreal flavors, it just ramped up the shares and discussion all the more.
Take it live
2020 has seen many events go completely online for obvious reasons. But even when the world returns to normal, there will still be a place for live streaming. If your event is an annual one, research by Eventbrite has shown that live video converts 30 percent of viewers into physical attendees the following year.
Maximum gain for minimum pain
Businesses are often prepared to spend a small fortune promoting a business event. Yet when you do so on social media, the costs are minimal, but the reach can be profound. If you need some support with your social media marketing, contact us, we’d be delighted to help.
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