You can spend countless hours meticulously planning each and every little detail associated with your event, but it’s not going to be a success unless people know it. Thankfully, social media networks offer an effective platform on which to promote events. Check out the following tips to maximize the visibility of your event on social media.
Upload Videos from Past Events
You can give guests a sneak peak at what to expect by uploading video reels of past events to your social media accounts. It doesn’t have to be a long and complex video, but rather cut highlights from past events and turn them into a reel. Be sure to include footage of catering, musical performances, decorations, keynote speakers, and the venue. Once created, upload this video reel to Facebook, Instagram (yes, it supports videos, too), YouTube, Twitter, and any other social media networks on which you have a presence.
Post Photos from Past Events
In addition to videos, you should also post photos of past events on social media. According to a study conducted by SocialBakers, photos make up 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook. In other words, photos receive more Facebook likes, shares and comments than any other type of content.
Create a Facebook Event
Facebook actually has a built-in feature for creating events. After logging into your account, select “Events” on the left sidebar, followed by “Create.” Follow the on-screen instructions by entering a name for your event, location, date/time, description and event photo. You’ll also have the option of making your event private or public, and assuming you choose private you can allow guests to invite their own friends, as well.
Check out this article to learn more about creating and managing Facebook events.
Create a LinkedIn Event
Being that LinkedIn is the world’s largest social media network for professionals, this is another promotional method that event planners shouldn’t overlook. To create an event on LinkedIn, simply choose the “More” under the main menu, followed by “Events” and “Create an Event.” Enter the name of your event, description, and other pertinent information and click “Create.”
Use a Universal #Hashtag
When promoting an upcoming event on social media, it’s recommended that you use the same #hashtag across all channels. Hopefully, you’ve already chosen a name for your event, in which case you can use it as the #hashtag. If the name is too common, however, you may want to add “event” or “2016” to it. Using a universal #hashtag for your social media promotional efforts will help guests access your content more easily.
Include Social Media URLs on Invitations
On the event invitations, add the URLs for your Facebook event, LinkedIn event, and any other social media pages that you’ve created for your event. You can also add the universal #hashtag somewhere on the invitations so guests know how to find, and tag, relevant content.