Planners consider it essential to use social media to promote an event—before, during, and after a gathering. Consistently posting engaging and informative content—plus breaking news from your event—is crucial. Doing things to get attendees, keynoters, and influencers posting about your event will build buzz, create excitement, and keep participants thinking fondly about your gathering long after it concludes.
Focus on the Hashtag
Hashtags tie both your content and content by others to your event and enable you to promote it further by making use of what people say. The most effective hashtags highlight your industry, event, and target audience in a fun and simple way. Once you come up with a hashtag, tell everyone about it. It needs to be in all social media posts, marketing materials, email signature lines, the event homepage, the gathering’s app, and prominently on display at the event. A jumbo hashtag at the venue can become a selfie station, such as those made by FrontSigns in Burbank, California.
Form Relationships With Influencers
With almost any event topic, there are social media influencers discussing your meeting focus. Social media users are more likely to act on messages through personal recommendations rather than through a brand’s messaging, and a trusted influencer is an extension of the personal. (Keep in mind your keynoters might well be influencers.) A micro-influencer with a small but engaged, passionate following might be best. Research influencers on social media and reach out early, establish a relationship built on trust, and influence them to want to promote your event using your hashtag.
Use Social Walls
At the event, it is often challenging for planners to inspire people to post about your event with your hashtag. This is critical—as attendees posting positive things about your event turns them into micro-influencers—and one way to make it fun to post is to have a live social wall at the event that gathers and instantly displays posts with the event’s hashtag to a large video wall. Some programs can turn the aggregated posts into a collaged image about your event. Companies such as CrowdApps create memorable, interactive social walls that excite participants to post.