Events are highly effective tools that—when done right—can produce significant results. According to a study, 85 percent of attendees are more likely to make a purchase after attending an event, and 91 percent said they have more positive feelings about a brand after interacting with it; there aren’t many other tools to have such positive ROI.
With this in mind, what is the one thing event marketers will do well to have more of at their events? Attendees. And we live in the perfect time to bring in more attendees year-over-year, and it can come at a fairly low cost for event professionals. Event marketers need not throw tons of money into marketing tactics to get attendees to show up—with Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat, attendees are already doing it.
The digital age in which we now live allows events to live not only with those that attended but lets it extend to everyone else—those who are on the fence, as well as those who have no interest at all. Here are some ways to create a ‘fear-of-missing-out’
Stream It
One way to reel in prospective attendees is with a live video of the event. Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube are platforms that allow users to stream live video that others can view on-the-spot. People love showing off the activities they’re engaging in, so what better way to promote your event than to encourage attendees to show off what’s going on.
As a way to encourage its users to use live streaming, these social platforms have made live posts reach larger audiences by giving them an edge in their algorithms, and sending push-notifications when users are LIVE. So for now, while these posts have an edge on other content, encouraging your attendees to share live content should be on your list.
Post It
You can’t forget about the tried and true option of simply posting photos. Instagram is one that is perfect for this, as photos if the platform’s purpose. Creating activities and activations—such as escape rooms, fancy backdrops, photo booths, and celebrity meet-ups—that make attendees want to not only take pictures but share them online, is an easy way to induce FOMO in those that didn’t attend. Not to mention that these activations are perfect opportunities for brands to show off their logo and get exposure.
Creating a hashtag is another way non-attendees can enjoy the event through images. Having an event hashtag lets those that opted out of the event to tune into the event from various peoples’ perspectives, seeing it from all sides, in a sense.
Using hashtags on Twitter can also serve as an effective tool for following live events. The immediacy of posts on Twitter makes it the perfect place for those that didn’t attend to receive updates on the happenings of the event if the photos just aren’t cutting it.
Influence It
Reaching out to social media influencers can give event marketers just that attention they’ve been looking for from potential suitors. Micro-influencers, who typically have followers that range from 10,000 to 100,000, and macro-influencers, who have followers ranging from 100,000 to as high as the millions, have dedicated followings that are sure to see the event if the influencers post it.
Social media influencers can share information to thousands, maybe even millions, of people that probably would not know about the event otherwise, raising awareness of the event through word-of-mouth. In fact, in a study by Influencer Intelligence, 61 percent of consumers age 18-34 said that they have been persuaded in their decision-making by a social media influencer, of which micro-influencers are leading the charge, as 61 percent of the surveyed find them to be the most trustworthy, likely because they aren’t as big as macro-influencers, as thus, aren’t found to be as aloof.
The emotion of ‘fear-of-missing-out’ or FOMO can be a powerful motivator for potential attendees to make the jump from passive bystanders to clicking that button on your ticketing page. By following ‘Stream, Post, Influence’, you can start adding an effective emotional to your event marketing mix to grow brand awareness and influence ticket sales.
