Promoting an online event isn’t so different from promoting a live event. The ultimate goal is the same: to deliver your message to your target audience in the right place, at the right time. The main difference is that your potential audience is now global. While this may sound intimidating, it’s a fantastic opportunity to gain new fans and followers in cities, states, and even countries that you wouldn’t have reached with an in-person event.
Here are our top tips for promoting online events.
Create a Brown Paper Tickets Event Page
The most important thing you can do to begin promoting your online event is to create your event page. On Brown Paper Tickets, your event page acts as a hub for your event. It conveys the who, what, when, and where to your audience and allows them to purchase tickets or register. It also ensures that your event will show up in Google searches. Event pages can be customized to include video, images, links to social media, and more.
Pro Tip
Create a custom URL for your event page for easy marketing.
Find Your Communities Online
Your audience is no longer limited to your immediate area. Find out where they congregate online so you can spread the word about your event to the people who are most likely to be interested. Depending on your audience demographics, they'll use different platforms and websites to connect. Try searching for keywords related to your event on the following platforms:
- Facebook groups
- YouTube
Once you've found your community, engage with them. Like, comment, and use the appropriate hashtags. Interacting with potential fans before you even begin promoting your event will increase trust, so that when you do post your event link they'll be ready to click "Attend" right away.
Submit Your Event to Online Calendar Feeds
Take advantage of the free ways to include your event in virtual content calendars. See our Help Center article Leveraging Online Event Calendar Feeds for instructions.
Share Your Lists and Cross-Promote
If you have industry friends in different locations, now is the time to collaborate on promotion. Their fans could be your next followers and vice versa. Ask them to promote your event in return for promoting theirs.
In addition, make sure that everyone involved in your event—artists, performers, video technicians, etc—are using their channels to promote the event too.
Ask Attendees to Register for Free Events
Even if your event is free, ask people to register in order to attend. The act of registering will make attendees feel more committed, and therefore more likely to join in on the day of the event. You can create a registration page for your free event on Brown Paper Tickets and neither you nor your attendees will pay any fees. In addition, taking registrations will provide you with valuable attendee emails that you can use to send event reminders and promote your future events.
Focus on the Positive Value
It can be easy to downplay an online event, especially when your audience is used to attending in person. However, don't let any doubtful language creep into your marketing. Instead, focus on the positive value your event will bring to attendees' lives.
Don't Forget About Classic Promotion
Social media, email, and traditional media are still great ways to get the word out about your event. View our social media promotion tips here:
- Social Media Tips for Event Promotion
- 3 Instagram Tips for Event Promotion
- Twitter Tips for Event Promotion
Sell More Tickets Through Digital Marketing
Events.com Promote helps you easily promote your events to event-goers through automated digital marketing, like free local calendar listings and social media campaigns. Save time and money and reach a wider target audience. Begin Promoting Your Event now.