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The Universe of Events

Chapter 006

← Ch. 5 : Building the Event Page
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Ch. 7 : On-Site Best Practices →
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Chapter 006

Promoting Your Event

Get the word out.

At this point, you’ve spent a lot of time planning your event, and put in a lot of blood, sweat, and tears (too real?).


Now’s the time to really get your event out there and start driving RSVPs. In this chapter, we go into:

1. Nailing Your Event Promotion Timing

2. How to Craft the Perfect Email

3. External Promotion Tactics

• Why are you throwing an event?
• Who is your audience?
• What do you need to meet your goals?
• How will you measure your success?

We’ll be answering all of these questions later on, but let’s start with your event goal.

event promotion timeline

Nailing Your Event Promotion Timing

To help you think about the promotions you’ll need for your own event, we created a mock promotions timeline — emphasis on the “mock”: feel free to add to it or take certain elements away (we won’t be offended, we promise).


Note: in this version, email is the main source of promotion, but we dig into more event promotion tactics below.

A Mock Event Communications Timeline

On average, events have a promotion cycle of about about 8 weeks, but every event is different. If it’s a larger or paid event with thousands of attendees, you’ll likely need a longer promotion cycle with more emails.


If it’s a smaller or more intimate event, the promotion timeline may look shorter than this (i.e. 4 weeks or even 2 weeks). Make sure to keep that in mind when putting your own timeline together.

The Save-the-Date Tactic

Also consider sending a Save-the-Date or a teaser email to really drum up buzz. Positive side effect: this can help you test any issues with email deliverability before the big send.

6-8 Weeks Out: Launch Promotions

•

First email invite: this email is an important one. When you’re crafting your first invite, think about what you want your audience’s first impression of your event to be. Make sure to include all of the key details, and a clear CTA for them to RSVP.

•

Launch social promotions: start with an “announcement” post on all of your social channels, and then continue with consistent posts throughout the promotional cycle.

•

Enlist partners: if you’re working with partners for your event, make sure they have everything they need to help promote it (images and copy for social sharing, correct event page links, etc.).

•

Begin outreach from Sales: your Sales or Customer team can add a P.S. about the event to their email signatures, and reach out to their top prospects and customers with a personal invite (tip: incentivize them with prizes for whoever drives the most RSVPs).

Change up your messaging.

No one likes seeing the same tweet over and over again – make sure you’re diversifying your social posts and highlighting different parts of your event (i.e. the speakers, entertainment, food, venue, etc.).

4-6 Weeks Out: Drive More RSVPs

•

Second invite email: this email can go to the same list as your first invite, or you can segment your audience and send a few different versions that are tailored to each specific group. If you do decide to send to that same initial list, make sure the email looks and feels different (design-wise and copy-wise).

•

Announcement: we like to think of this email as a reminder disguised as an announcement. In this one, reveal a new piece of information about your event – for example a new performer, speaker, or a venue change. You might actually have new updates since your last email, but it’s also good practice to save a detail or two for these emails ahead of time.

Don’t be afraid to test out different "From" fields in your emails.

Maybe sending from an actual name (e.g. Clare at Splash) will perform better than a company's name (e.g. Splash Events). Or, if you’re inviting customers, it might be more effective to email them from their account managers’ names rather than sending everyone a generic invite.

2-4 Weeks Out: Add a Sense of Urgency

•

Reminder email: send an email to anyone who didn’t open your previous emails – maybe try using a different angle to try and spark their interest.

•

Second announcement: you may want to send another reminder in the form of an announcement to help create some buzz and get people excited as the event gets closer.

•

Enlist more help from sales: are they putting in their part?

Week Of: Ensure Your RSVPs Show Up

•

Personal reminder: the week of your event, send a more personal reminder (plain text, rather than something designed) from your CEO or founder – your guests will appreciate the personalization and already feel connected with your brand.

•

Day-of email: the last thing you want is someone not showing up to your event because they didn’t know where to go or how to get there. The day of your event (or the day before, or both) send guests all the details they’ll need: how to get to the venue, parking, entrances, what to bring, etc.

Community-Building:

From professional networks to new friendships, events naturally connect people. Every guest is a potential Twitter fan, newsletter subscriber, product user, website visitor, or customer. Use your events to bring people together around a cause, a brand, a new product, or just a time to meet and mingle with new faces.

Common event types: community meetups, user groups, happy hour/cocktail party

Brand Awareness:

Events are a great way to get your brand’s name out there (and associate it with a memorable experience). If you’re looking for the press’ attention, make sure you invite the media (and/or influencers in your industry) to ensure you’ll be seen, heard, and noticed within the community.

Common event types: community meetups, user groups, happy hour/cocktail party

Sales:

Events give you the opportunity to connect with prospects in-person, and also let you to create the ideal environment (whether it be a lively and interactive experience, or a more professional setting). Whether you have a 90-day sales cycle or are looking to drive more in-store sales from a retail event, in-person events can benefit every stage of the sales process.

Common event types: community meetups, user groups, happy hour/cocktail party

Customer Engagement:

Your customers are your number one priority, but how often do you get to actually spend time with them in-person? For some businesses, the post-sale is often more of a focus than getting new customers. Your event goal might simply be to drive engagement with the people who are already using your product, receiving your services, or following your brand (for example, an exclusive event for a retailer’s loyalist members).

Common event types: VIP dinner, user conference, roadshow/field event

Education:

Many people turn to events to expand their knowledge and connect with other professionals in the industry. If your company focuses on a certain profession or has a deep understanding of a particular topic, you can establish yourself as a thought leader and bring people together through panels, workshops, and other educational events.

Common event types: hosted conference, product training, satellite event at industry conference

Recruiting:

Bringing people together to meet and mingle is a tried and true way to connect companies with potential employees. Job fairs and networking events are the classic recruiting styles, but even industry conferences have become a breeding ground for talent looking for their next role, and brands have found success throwing VIP events specifically targeted to top talent.

Common event types: happy hour/cocktail party, educational seminar, sponsored event

Growing Professional Networks:

Some businesses throw events to attract business or channel partners, advertisers, or press.

Common event types: hosted conference, product training, satellite event at industry conference

Rallying Around a Cause:

Events and fundraising have gone hand in hand for centuries. Many companies can find a charity that meshes well with their mission, making it possible to have an impact on both a worthy cause and a business objective.

Common event types: happy hour/cocktail party, partner event, community meetup

Lead Generation / Net-New Names:

While this isn’t the most common or effective way to use events, you may be looking to drive net-new leads from your events. These are people who are brand new to your database. Sponsoring large industry events or partnering up with another brand are two great ways to expand your audience network.

Common event types: hosted conference, satellite event at industry conference, partner event, sponsored event, tradeshow booth

⌛ Timing can be everything

Did you know: people purchase the most tickets between the hours of 12PM and 1PM. So, aim to send out your email promotions during this time of the day.

Even when you start promotions two months out, a lot of your RSVPs will end up coming in the last two weeks. So, don’t stress if your guest list feels light in the beginning of your promotional cycle – and also, don’t skimp on the reminder emails.

 

Need quick tips on event promotion? Our CEO shares 20 of his best event promotion tactics in under 2 minutes in the following video:

Worried about your emails making it into your guests' inboxes? Here's some email deliverability tips to help avoid the dreaded spam folder:

Want more tips? We share more email deliverability tactics.


Need to figure out the sweet spot for how many comp tickets you should give out for your event? Input your numbers into this downloadable template and find out.

Email Deliverability: How to Avoid Spam Filters

 

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

Want to learn more about sending beautifully branded emails in Splash that will take your event promotions to the next level? Check out this interactive course of our Email Sender feature.

Don't forget to track everything

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

Set up tracking links so that you can see where your RSVPs are coming from – you can create a separate tracking link for each promotion channel, and even give each sales rep a unique tracking link so you can track their progress and award top performers.

✉️ Become an Email Master

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

Want to learn more about sending beautifully branded emails in Splash that will take your event promotions to the next level? Check out this interactive course of our Email Sender feature.

⌛ Timing can be everything

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

Did you know: people purchase the most tickets between the hours of 12PM and 1PM. So, aim to send out your email promotions during this time of the day.

Change up your messaging.

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

No one likes seeing the same tweet over and over again – make sure you’re diversifying your social posts and highlighting different parts of your event (i.e. the speakers, entertainment, food, venue, etc.).

Don’t be afraid to test out different "From" fields in your emails.

Salesforce is a great example of this with their Trailblazer community — made up of approximately three million of its users. They have organized themselves into more than 840 groups in 80+ countries, and Salesforce organizes and supports in-person events for them to share ideas, network, discuss real-world examples, talk through shared interests, and more.

Maybe sending from an actual name (e.g. Clare at Splash) will perform better than a company's name (e.g. Splash Events). Or, if you’re inviting customers, it might be more effective to email them from their account managers’ names rather than sending everyone a generic invite.

how to create event email

How to Craft the Perfect Event Email

Crafting the perfect event email is both an art and a science. Here’s our best tips for writing emails that help drive attendance:

•

Create a compelling subject line

•

Capture attention with the headline

•

Include all of the key details

•

Tailor the language to your audience and your event

•

Highlight the benefits of attending

•

Use a strong call-to-action

•

Create a sense of urgency

• Create a compelling subject line
• Capture attention with the headline
• Include all of the key details

• Tailor the language to your audience and your event

• Highlight the benefits of attending

• Use a strong call-to-action

• Create a sense of urgency

• Create a compelling subject line
• Capture attention with the headline
• Include all of the key details

• Tailor the language to your audience and your event

• Highlight the benefits of attending

• Use a strong call-to-action

• Create a sense of urgency

Above all, the number one thing to remember is that your promotions should convey your event’s value, and what a guest is going to get out of attending.

Here's one of our favorite email examples:

event invite example

✉️ Become an Email Master

Want to learn more about sending beautifully branded emails in Splash that will take your event promotions to the next level? Check out this interactive course of our Email Sender feature.

Email Deliverability

Worried about your emails making it into your guests' inboxes? Here's some email deliverability tips to help avoid the dreaded spam folder:

•

Use conversational language and avoid sounding spammy

•

Avoid excessive use of images

•

Avoid hyperlinks

•

Avoid ALL CAPS

Still having trouble? We've got a ton more email deliverability tactics.

event promotion tactics

Our Favorite Event Promotion Tactics

Email may be your go-to promotion channel, but there are a lot of other ways to get the word out there about your event (to supplement your email strategy). Some great promotion tactics that we live by include:


1. Price your tickets in a smart way

If you decide to throw a ticketed event, pricing and timing can be the difference between no sales and a sold-out event.

 

Here are some of our favorite ticketing strategies:

•

The 7:1 Rule: for every $7 you increase ticket prices, expect a 1% drop in conversion.

•

The Power of Nines: we’ve found that pricing tickets in nine-dollar increments (i.e. $29 rather than $30) helps drive sales.

•

The Early Bird Effect: use discount pricing to create a sense of urgency, and offer a limited number of discounted tickets if guests buy early (aka “buy now, while tickets last”).

RSVPs are flying in, but how do you make sure guests actually show up? Use our GIVE checklist to get people there on the big day.

They're an elite group of event marketers who are continually iterating, experimenting, and testing their events to maximize the most event ROI. See what six attributes they share.

Want more ticket pricing best practices? Our CEO Ben talks building an effective ticket pricing and promotion strategy here.

2. Comp tickets (yes, seriously)

If you're throwing a huge conference, giving away tickets for free can actually be a more profitable tactic. Comp tickets can help you fill the room with higher-quality guests and generate more sales opportunities from your events.


But remember: every company is different, and things like your opportunity-to-close ratio, average opportunity value, and sales cycle will affect your results. 

 

Want to get the details? See our tried-and-true comp ticket strategy.

Need to figure out the sweet spot for how many comp tickets you should give out for your event? Input your numbers into this downloadable template and find out.

They're an elite group of event marketers who are continually iterating, experimenting, and testing their events to maximize the most event ROI. See what six attributes they share.

3. Promote your event internally

Your mind might be on your guests, but don’t forget to evangelize your event to the rest of your company, too. You’ll want to over communicate (and start early!) about your event, including: why you’re throwing it, what your goals are, and how everyone in your company can help.


Then, make sure you give them everything they’ll need: sharing materials, action items, a detailed schedule of all the activations, etc.

4. Leverage external promotion channels

One of the most obvious external promotion channels is paid and organic social (see how the CEO of Cannonball Productions leverages Facebook paid ads), but there are a lot of opportunities to think outside the box. Consider:

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Placement in external event calendars

•

Posting in any relevant LinkedIn groups

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Creating content around your event’s topics or themes

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Display ads 

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Blog swaps with brands that have a similar target audience

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Placement in industry newsletters

Don't forget to track everything

Set up tracking links so that you can see where your RSVPs are coming from – you can create a separate tracking link for each promotion channel, and even give each sales rep a unique tracking link so you can track their progress and award top performers.

Remember to monitor your promotion performance and iterate as you go. Avoid using the exact same promotion tactics for every event, unless you know it really works.

Real World Example:

Need to figure out how many comp tickets you should give out for your event? Input your numbers into this downloadable template and find out.

Real World Example:

RSVPs are flying in, but how do you make sure guests actually show up? Use our GIVE checklist to get people there on the big day.

Real World Example:

Real World Example:


Real World Example:

The Save-the-Date Tactic

Also consider sending a Save-the-Date or a teaser email to really drum up buzz. Positive side effect: this can help you test any issues with email deliverability before the big send.

Now that you've got them to your event, how do you make the on-site experience as seamless as possible? Lucky you - we share best practices in the next chapter.

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01 : Your Event Strategy
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02 : The Guest List
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03 : Managing Your Team
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04 : Event Production
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05 : Building the Event Page
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06 : Promotions and Email
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07 : On-Site Best Practices
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08 : The Post-Event Strategy
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10 : Measurement and ROI
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