In today’s world, if it’s not on social media, it never happened. Brands today know that the value of making social media a part of their digital marketing strategy. Social Media is vast, and when it comes to events, it’s an easy way to get people talking about your event, your products or services, your company or your brand—whether they are at the event or not. Get enough tweets going around the event and you might end up trending in a local city or across the nation.
So how can you make the most of social media at your event(s)? We’ve put together six key tips for using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn while at events. Today we are giving you the first two in our two-part series. Stay tuned this week for more tips!
1. Plan Ahead—Your event shouldn’t be treated like another day at the company. Each day of the event should have at least an outline, developed for your social media. You should know the following:
a. Hashtag—Will you have a specific hashtag for the event? You should try to always have this as it will help when searching out posts to engage with, tracking data from social media and will help gather guests around one central topic of discussion. Try to include your brand name and the event name if possible.
b. Platforms—What social channels will you be using? Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pintrest. etc.
c. Frequency—How often will you post? Decide for each channel the most appropriate posting frequency. Typically Twitter should be constant throughout the event while Facebook and Instagram should be 2-3x depending on how much is going on. Remember on both Facebook and Instagram, you aren’t limited by a character count and you can add multiple pictures. #Collage Anyone?
d. Content—What types of content should go where? Make a list of the type of content you’d like to have on each channel. Pictures of guests arriving, pictures of speakers, a hyper lapse video of the entire day, etc. Brainstorm ideas and then decide what you want.
e. Purpose—Why will you use each channel? What’s the goal? Each channel may have micro-goals associated with each. Take the time to determine what goals you want to accomplish on each channel. Ex. Twitter is great for guest engagement while Facebook and Instagram are great to help promote the event to your wider following.
2. Analyze the Past—If you have a recurring event, annual or bi-annual, take time to analyze what worked and what didn’t work the last time, what mistakes were made, what opportunities were lost, and then use that to help you plan better for this event. If it’s a new event, consider researching similar events, especially those of your competitors, to get an idea from them what mistakes not to make, what opportunities you could take advantage of, and to get a general idea of how social could be used in a specific event setting.
3. Think Quality NOT Quantity—Social media is fast! Tweets live on the newsfeed for about 20 seconds before something else takes its place, even while they are permanently on your profile. Yet despite the quickness of social media, you want to always think of quality over quantity. If you post bad content too often, you’ll hurt your chances of engagement and brand awareness. A great way to help yourself is make sure to grab some great pictures of parts of the event while also grabbing great quotes! If you have your hands full consider working with a social media team or picking a couple of coworkers to grab quotes for you while you focus on pictures and posting.
Typically, if you’re in charge of social for your brand you’ll have greater access than most so be on the lookout for those candid and behind-the-scenes moments others might miss. A tip? Download Whatsapp and create event chats for each day of the event. Add whomever you need to help. This way you can grab quotes and pictures others take quickly without worrying about texting or emailing.
Check back later this week for our second part with three more tips for social media at events!