The world has changed a lot over the past few years, especially for businesses. They have had to adapt to unusual circumstances and transition to the digital marketplace. Along with day-to-day operations moving online, traditional in-person conferences that businesses rely on to connect with their customers have also gone virtual. After the COVID-19 pandemic, online events and conferences have become indispensable tools for businesses, educators, and organizations of all types. They offer a unique opportunity to reach global audiences, share valuable knowledge, and foster meaningful connections without the constraints of location or geographical boundaries.
Whether introducing new product lines or creating networking opportunities, these events have provided businesses with a unique space to bring awareness to their brands and promote their messaging. However, with the surge in the number of virtual events, standing out and attracting a significant number of attendees has become increasingly challenging. This is where digital marketing comes into play.
Are you hosting a webinar or online conference soon and worried about your attendance rate? With the right digital marketing strategies, you can create a larger segment of your target audience, no matter what your webinar topic is.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a comprehensive term for a variety of critical marketing strategies that use the Internet and electronic devices to reach customers. From raising awareness to engaging potential attendees, digital marketing leverages various online channels to boost visibility and drive registration numbers. Some of the strategies involved in digital marketing include:
How to Effectively Promote Your Online Event
Digital marketing may be part of your general product and service marketing strategy, but did you know it can also be effectively used for webinar promotion? By understanding the needs and preferences of your target audience, crafting compelling content, and utilizing a mix of marketing tactics, you can transform your event from a simple online gathering into a must-attend experience.
Step 1: Build a Strong Event Landing Page
The first step in creating an effective digital marketing strategy for your online event is to build a strong online presence. Your online presence is the first point of contact potential attendees have with your event, and it needs to make a lasting impression. Here’s how to establish and maintain a compelling online presence that attracts and engages your audience.
The event landing page is your virtual front door. It’s where potential attendees will land first, and it should immediately capture their interest and provide all the necessary information about the event. First and foremost, ensure that your landing page clearly communicates the event’s purpose, date, time, and key speakers or sessions. Use bullet points and headers to make the information easy to digest. Incorporating high-quality images, videos, and graphics that reflect the event’s theme and tone can also help convey excitement and professionalism. Finally, include a prominent and compelling call-to-action such as “Register Now,” “Save Your Spot,” or “Learn More.” These should be strategically placed to guide visitors toward registration.
Step 2: Run an Email Marketing Campaign
Email marketing remains one of the most effective channels for promoting online events and conferences. It allows you to reach your audience directly with personalized and engaging content, driving higher registration rates and keeping potential attendees informed and excited about your event.
Leveraging email marketing starts with building and segmenting your email list. Start by gathering email addresses from various sources, such as website sign-ups, previous event attendees, and social media followers. Then divide your email list into segments based on factors such as demographics, past behavior, and interests. Segmentation allows you to tailor your messages to specific groups, increasing relevance and engagement.
Next, it’s time to craft compelling email invitations and reminders. Create subject lines that are concise, engaging, and relevant to your event. You can use action-oriented language and personalize your emails with the recipient’s name to encourage higher open and click-through rates. It’s also essential to write clear and persuasive email copy that highlights the benefits of attending the event. Use visually appealing designs that align with your event branding and be sure to include a strong and prominent CTA.
Step 3: Invest in Paid Advertising
Paid advertising is a powerful tool for promoting online events, allowing you to reach a larger and more targeted audience quickly and effectively. By investing in strategic paid advertising campaigns, you can significantly boost event visibility, drive registrations, and maximize attendance.
Pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns provide immediate visibility in search engine results and social media feeds, helping you capture the attention of potential attendees right away. You can create text-based search ads to appear when users search for relevant keywords, use visually appealing display ads to reach potential attendees across the Google Display Network, or leverage YouTube to run video ads that promote your event.
Website retargeting can also be an effective strategy, showing ads to users who have visited your event landing page but did not complete the registration. These ads should remind them of the benefits of your event and create a sense of urgency with limited time offers. Retargeting ads can be used on your website, in email marketing campaigns, and on social media.
Step 4: Leverage Social Media
Social media marketing is also a crucial component of promoting your online event or conference. It provides an excellent platform to reach a broad audience, engage with potential attendees, and create a buzz around your event. By leveraging unique features of various social media platforms, you can significantly boost event visibility and drive registrations.
First, identify your audience to understand where they spend their time online. Different demographics and industries tend to favor specific social media platforms. Each of these platforms has its own unique strengths. For example, LinkedIn is ideal for professional and B2B audiences, while Instagram and Facebook are great for visual and consumer-focused content. Focus your efforts and resources on the platforms that offer the best return on investment (ROI) for your specific event and audience.
Once you have chosen your platforms, generate excitement by sharing teasers about the event. This can include sneak peeks of the agenda, highlights of key speakers, or previews of exclusive content. Be sure to keep your audience informed with regular, timely updates about the event, sharing news about new speakers, sessions, or any changes to the schedule. You can also use interactive content such as polls, Q&A sessions, and live streams to engage your audience and build a sense of community around your event.
Cap Off Your Event with Post-Event Follow-Up
Once your online event has concluded, the marketing efforts don’t just end. The conclusion is just the beginning of the post-event engagement phase. Effective follow-up ensures that you capitalize on the momentum generated during the event, maintain attendee engagement, and gather valuable feedback for future improvements. Here are 4 ways you can execute a successful post-even follow-up strategy.
- Thank You Emails and Surveys: Immediately after the event, send personalized thank-you emails to all attendees. Express your gratitude for their participation and highlight the event’s key takeaways. You can also include surveys to gather feedback on the event experience. This helps you understand what worked well and areas that need improvement.
- Share Event Highlights and Recordings Online: Create and share a summary of the event’s highlights. This can include key moments, memorable quotes from speakers, and major announcements. You should also make event recordings available to those who couldn’t attend on your website. This extends the value of the event content and engages a wider audience.
- Gather Feedback for Future Improvements: Carefully review the feedback collected from surveys, identifying common themes, areas of satisfaction, and areas needing improvement. You can then conduct a debrief with your team to discuss the event’s successes and challenges, using the attendee feedback to guide the discussion.
- Maintain Engagement with Attendees: Keep attendees engaged by sharing relevant content and updates related to the event topics, including follow-up articles, related blog posts, and upcoming webinars. You can also leverage your existing attendee list to promote future events and create dedicated online groups or forums to continue the discussion.
Have An Online Event Coming Up? Contact The Experts
SteadyRain has adapted to lead generation in a largely online world. We successfully help B2B brands in multiple industries increase attendance at trade shows - both in person and online.
Have a virtual event coming up? Not sure where how to match your in-person numbers? Let our digital marketing experts help.
Contact SteadyRain today to get started!
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