How to promote events using social media

There has been an increase in the use of social media for brand growth. Companies that have embraced the use of media platforms to connect and engage with their communities have seen tremendous benefits.

According to the Digital 2022: Global Overview Report

• 4.95 Billion Internet users
• 4.62 Billion Active social media users
• 92.1% Users accessing the internet via mobile phones
• 6H 58M Average daily time spent using the internet

Over the past years, I have been privileged to design and lead social media campaigns for networking events allowing organizations to connect both virtually and physically with over 15M via social media. As we launch our new website focused on empowering our community, I would like to share practical insights that will help you run a successful social media event.

Before Event Activities

Months leading to the event, it’s important to spread the event news as wide as possible to promote the event and generate momentum for core actions such as registration, sponsorship, sign up and exhibitions. It is Important that official announcements are delivered through your official social media channels to ensure authenticity and authority of your content.

It is significant to reach out to a group of dedicated supporters online to post about the event and act as champions driving the initial traffic. As you plan, please identify and prioritize which social media channel you will use as well as the official hashtag for tracking and reporting purposes. Ensure the event goals are clear and measurable. Be specific on what success will look like for the event (numbers, engagement, comments etc).

During Event Activities

The pre-event social media marketing focuses on awareness for the event and builds excitement for what’s to come. On the day of your event, however, the objectives should focus to: engaging attendees on site; sharing posts on your channels for those who couldn’t make it; collecting content for future engagement and promotions. Since live event coverage is a big job, I recommend that a dedicated team is established to ensure smooth running of the event and capture all those unique little moments as well.

It is important to involve the event attendees and make them feel like they own a part of the event. Therefore, during the event coverage, look out for the following opportunities:    testimonials about their experience at the event; exciting group or individual photos; timely sponsor and partner shout outs; gripping stories about what the event means to attendees and some powerful quotes from the speakers and key persons. It is significant to pay attention to what others are posting about your event. Like, share, and respond to positive posts to elevate the good vibes even further. If you come across any complaints or negative posts, don’t ignore them instead address them and seek use this opportunity to showcase your customer care and public relations skills.

After Event Activities

The final phase of your social media event marketing is about follow-up, re-engagement, impact transparency, and key learnings. As soon as the event is concluded, thank all of the people who helped make your event possible on your channels. You might want to do a few separate specific posts for sponsors, partners, volunteers, and attendees. Post a recap or wrap-up post that highlights key moments from the event. Pair this with a few high-resolution photos of each moment and post it to your channels. As you share highlights from the event, do include some statistics from the social media engagement such as a few captions from the most engaging content.

Now that we are done with the event, it’s time to consolidate all of the content collected for future marketing initiatives. Review everything as a team and decide what can be used and how you will use it in promotions. For example, if you have a few great impact stories they might be suited for blog posts or email newsletters while photos can make for engaging Instagram posts.

About the Author: Joan has created and lead the Africa Higher Education Week campaigns since 2014 training over 350 young professionals in the use of social media for networking and collaboration. The recent #AfricaHEWeek2021 saw us reach over 15Million people online during the Covid-19 pandemic. Insights shared in this article are based on experience and lots of learning. Looking for a social media strategy guide? Click here and let’s work with you.