The marketing strategy for events has changed drastically in the past ten years. Social networking platforms and content marketing have become all the rage, and yet many Austin event planners still struggle to find the most effective way to use these new tools to promote their events or even their own business. Here are some key things to keep in mind as you turn invisible followers into enthusiastic participants.
Content Marketing is Key
Before you develop your social networking plan, you need to make sure your content marketing strategy is organized. What can content marketing do for you and your business? As Lance Cummins explains in 59 Benefits of Content Marketing for the marketing team at Nectafy, there are many great reasons to explore content marketing. It’s a cost-effective approach to build your business, engage your audience, and develop relationships with your customers, event attendees, and other followers It is also a fantastic way to bring in new faces and leads. Straight advertising, such as print advertisements, radio ads, TV spots and billboards only goes so far- you might be paying to get your name out there, but people tend to tune out the noise of old-fashioned advertising methods. Content marketing brings you unique opportunities to interact and energize the groups of the people you want to target.
Don’t Go In Blind
One of the most common mistakes Austin event planners make is ramping up a social media campaign without doing the analysis to ensure it’s being done properly. Before you get going, figure out where your audience is and how they want to be engaged. As this piece for Event Planning Blueprint demonstrates, you probably don’t have to have a presence on every social networking platform out there- and you don’t want to post religiously to Instagram when your audience is waiting for you on Facebook. Take the time to familiarize yourself with where you can find your target audience depending on the scope and character of each project, and tailor your plan to their preferences.
Keep Your Content Working For You
The events industry is by definition content heavy- with every event comes a wealth of some form of content- print materials, presentations, photos, videos, et cetera. All of this brings further opportunity to bolster the interest in your event as well as your reputation. Joe Pulizzi explains in Content Marketing for Events; 6 Critical Steps that using this content wisely, whether to promote a recurrent event in years to come or to support your own event planning business is hugely beneficial. Additionally, you can learn a lot about how to market current events from analyzing these materials, and add that personal touch that will help bring success to your future events. You should use this information to shape your content marketing strategy as time goes on.
Now that we’ve made it easy for Austin event planners to compare local venues and vendors, take the time you’ve saved and boost your business through content marketing and social media management. It’s time to take your business to the next level.