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Social Media and Event MarketingTips for making your event “go social”
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Making an event “social” isn’t more important than creating a great event, but it helps!
Making an event “social” helps throughout the lifecycle of an event
1. Pre-event
2. During the event
3. Post-event
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Before you get started…
Not every event is destined to go social…
Are your desired attendees engaging on social media?
Do your speakers and sponsors have a social presence?
Do you have the bandwidth to add another channel?
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Before the eventUse social media to help build buzz and drive attendance for your event
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1. What networks do you have at your disposal?
Everyone involved in an event wins by increasing attendance
Find out what your speakers and sponsors have for social networks and talk to them about whether or not they are willing to promote the event
2. Share the event details with your network
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Inform the people in your network with a custom message to encourage attendance and a link to register.
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2. Share the event details with your network (and grow your network)
3. Promote sharing
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Ask registrants to share the event information. Jump start the word of mouth buzz around your event.
Once registered, let attendees spread the word about the event by sharing on Facebook or Twitter.
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4. Use a hashtag from the beginning
If your attendees are likely to be on Twitter, set up a dedicated hashtag right from the beginning and include it in every promotional material
This gives you a way to track the conversation, see who is talking about the event, and whether or not there is any buzz around the event before it happens (and during and after)
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The Power of the Hashtag
#Words preceded by a # sign (i.e., #ctctsocial) can be used to tie various tweets
together and relate them to a topic, be it a conference, TV show, sporting event, or any happening or trend of your choosing.
Twitter automatically links all hashtags so users can search for other tweets using the same tag.
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5. Stagger your content
There are lots of great things about your event and you don’t want to say them all at once.
Like any topic, content is king so each post must be compelling
You want to create a steady stream of content that people will consume and share on and across social networks
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Promote each speaker
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Thank each sponsor
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Encourage word of mouth
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Show enthusiasm
Send reminders (and reach new people)
Reminder communications
Increase % that show
Show count down until event
Include a link to a pre-event survey or poll, then near event start date or at start of event review results
Provide hints to guess secret guest speaker/feature
Tweet event information and include event #hashtag in the tweet
Share event details on your Facebook wall
Make it easy to share with “Forward to friend” link and Social Share button
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6. Start the conversation
Use questions to see what people are interested in most… (and if on Twitter, don’t forget the hashtag)
7. Set up a check-in
FoursquareHow can you use it? Do you have a venue? Create a
location to check in. Co-marketing with local
business? Drive traffic to each other.
Leave a tip about your event Leave a To Do about your event Scavenger hunt around event-
– Hints in tips area
Understand interests of people checking in-profile info
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During the eventEngage attendees in person and online
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1. Make attendees’ feel social
Remind them of the #hashtag and put it on promotional materials and slide decks
Add twitter handles to name tags (as appropriate)
2. Encourage live-tweeting
Encourage attendees to tweet about what they are experiencing during the event under the event #hashtag.
People who are interested and could not make it can be part of event following a twitter feed.
Encourage attendees to post photos and videos from mobile devices to Twitter with tools like Twitpic
3. Encourage and reward check-ins
FoursquareHow can you use it? Watch how many and who
has checked in.– Know when the people you
want to connect with have arrived.
Watch the comments, tips and to do’s left by attendees. – Gain a clear understanding of
what popular/trending in your event.
– Run a contest
4. Consider using QR Codes to keep the interaction going
Get feedback via a poll or short survey that people can access via mobile device
Post video content that is complementary to the event objectives to view via a mobile device
What are your thoughts about Geek Girl Boot camp?
How do I build? -http://bit.ly/Add- .qr at end of shorten url
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5. Promote sponsors and giveaways
Use the live stream to mention booth contests, fun activities and share pictures
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Warning: Don’t make your event too “social”
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Warning: Don’t make your event too “social”
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After the eventUse social media to continue the conversation
1. Share images and videos
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2. Thank sponsors again
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3. Share speaker content
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4. Get feedback
Post and promote a short survey to engage fans and followers and drive engagement
Review the comments and conversations on your Facebook wall.
Review the comments via Twitter about your event by searching under the event #hashtag.
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5. Promote the next event
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6. Consider creating a LinkedIn group
Best Next Steps
Try Online Event Marketing For Free
http://www.constantcontact-event.com/
Check out a Live Product Tour
Register for the live “Event Marketing Product Demo”
http://www.constantcontact.com/learning-center/webinars/live/index.jsp
Questions? You have a consultant here to help at 1-855-816-6508
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