The best way to promote your event (and it's not what you think)

So you put everything aside and happily start creating multiple social media accounts and selecting the right images for your profile picture and cover photo. Then you become obsessed with promoting the event, you can't come up with the right hashtag, you worry about your low number of followers, you start to wonder why you ever became an event planner...

But wait a minute. Okay, your event's marketing strategy may consist of good ideas and feasible strategies, but that doesn't mean it will work. On the contrary: you run the risk of turning an event promotion into a real marketing nightmare.

So instead of wasting time and money on strictly following your marketing plan, it's better to focus on the Net Promoter Score. "What's that?" you may ask. The Net Promoter Score is used by companies and startups and is a measurement system that allows you to gauge customer loyalty. If you want to know your NPS, ask your customers one simple question: "How likely are you to recommend us to a friend?" In other words, word-of-mouth advertising is the key.

Feel free to replace the word "us" in the question with concepts such as a company, product, service, or event. That's right, as an event planner, you can always look for ways to increase the Net Promoter Score of your events. How? Start by answering the following question: "What do I need to do to get people talking about my upcoming event?"

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1. Quickly meet the potential needs of your visitors

Imagine you want to sell an online app and your potential customers ask you questions about the prices or the product's features. Of course, you want to provide answers and all the necessary information. The same applies to events. Even if people haven't decided yet whether they want to come, they may have questions, doubts, or even requests about the event.

Even when your head is full of to-do lists, don't ignore them and try to respond as quickly as possible. Ideally, appoint someone from your team to handle all questions and concerns from potential visitors. That way, you start building a positive communication channel and create a positive dynamic. Even if the person decides not to come, you never know if they will recommend you to a friend or two.

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2. Follow influencers on social media and reach out to them

You don't need thousands of followers on social media to recommend your event; you just need a few influencers. Use social media wisely. Try to connect with influencers so that they can help you spread the word about your event and promote it.

How? For example, you could first generate some event-related content and add some quotes, then tag the influencers who provided the quotes. In addition, if they have a blog or website, you could send them an email asking if you can post a guest post on a topic (related to your event) that would be of great benefit to their audience. Finally, you could try networking at events and talking in person with industry leaders or influencers. By connecting with them on social media, you increase the chance that they will promote your event and recommend it to their many active followers.

3. Share content

If you find content related to your event, you can share it on your social media or website. This way, you link yourself to authors who are relevant to your event anyway, and you increase the chance that they will want to come or talk to others about your event.

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4. Offer visitors a discount if they bring a friend

When designing your ticketing options, offer visitors who bring a friend a nice discount. This will increase the number of visitors and immediately raise awareness of your event.

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5. Send a T-shirt to the participants

You've undoubtedly already prepared a few gifts for your visitors. Are you going to hand them out at the entrance? Not a bad idea, but how about sending them the gifts before the event? It could be a T-shirt or a card, a notepad or a mug... The choice is yours. This small gift will get your visitors excited about the upcoming event and they will promote your event by using it, which may attract additional visitors.

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Conclusion

Want to promote your event? Make sure people talk about it and you won't need complicated marketing strategies. Think about building positive communication with your visitors, connect with influencers, share content that people publish on their sites or blogs, give discounts to people who bring others, or send small gifts to participants who have confirmed their attendance. Make sure people have a good and enthusiastic feeling about an event. That way, you encourage them to share their enthusiasm with others and increase your Net Promoter Score.