For New York event planners, marketing strategies include a host of channels, and when planning an event, social media marketing is at the top of the list. Since its start in 2010, Instagram has evolved from a picture-only sharing app to a useful tool used by businesses for all sorts of promotional reasons. Because Instagram is still a personal-use app and also used by businesses, it’s the perfect place for those two to intersect.
There are so many benefits to using this app for your next event because it can be used before, during, and after the event to engage guests. It can also be used for promoting any type of event you’re planning, like conferences, product launches, concerts, exhibitions, and so much more. No event is too big or too small to share on Instagram.
If you’re not fully embracing Instagram as an event marketing tool, you should be. And we’ve curated a list of key advantages and benefits Instagram provides for event professionals. See how to leverage the power of Insta with your event marketing and your next event!
1. Instagram is Inexpensive
When you first start with your event planning, the size of your event determines how you want to proceed on Instagram. If it’s a smaller event, you may want to consider using an already-established business account in order to promote your event. This will help in reaching existing followers. If this is the route you choose, there’s no additional cost to promote your event.
Also, you can establish a new and free professional account that will cost you nothing and give you access to a full suite of promotional tools to engage your target audience. These accounts will also make engagement with your attendees easier by having all the event information easily accessible within your business profile.
If you’re planning a large event and are expecting a lot of engagement, it’s worth considering Instagram Ads. The app will use its targeting data to pinpoint your prospective audience. Prices vary based on cost per link, cost per engagement, and cost per thousand impressions. This option can significantly increase your engagement numbers and help you reach an even broader audience of attendees.
2. Use Insta as a Promotional Tool
The success of any event starts with its promotion. Instagram is a fantastic tool to use when promoting and getting guests excited to attend your event. Authenticity and a clear event identity are important when showing your guests what they can expect. This is the best way to manage their expectations so they can have a great time.
A few ways to achieve this include spotlighting your venue with pictures and videos, creating a countdown to your event, and releasing lineups of special guests and highlights in the schedule. Show as much engaging content as you can so they can get the feel, look, and vibe of what types of experiences your event has to offer.
3. Engagement Has Never Been Easier
One of the best ways Instagram has evolved over the years is in its engagement practices. It has gone above and beyond just getting “likes” and offers businesses and the public alike ways to truly engage with one another like never before. This is going to be the most productive way to promote your event.
By using Instagram Live, you can offer a Q&A segment to answer questions about what’s happening at the event. Users ask questions in the comments, and they’re answered by whoever is hosting the Live.
Stories and Reels are fun ways to engage an audience as well. Stories offer options such as polls, countdowns, links, quizzes, and donations. Reels are edited videos that can show quick snaps leading up to the event to garner some excitement. Both are very effective and popular with Instagram users.
4. User-Generated Content
Instagram is a playground for user-generated content. Because engagement is so easy, you can anticipate free contributions from the public to promote your event. Anyone can be inspired by your posts, images, and videos to engage!
The use of hashtags has become one of the best ways to create user-generated content. There are many different types of hashtags, and using them in a strategic way is important in making them the most effective. From industry, niche, brand, community, event name, and many more hashtag options, it’s important to come up with a plan when using them. Create hashtags specific to your New York event and encourage attendees to use them whenever they post and share their experiences.
5. Share All Your Event Details
This one-stop-shop app is the perfect tool to disclose all your event information in one place. By using your professional account, you have access to ticket promotion and selling, event creation, and reminders, and you can also add an RSVP link directly to your profile.
Other important information about your event can be shared via photo posts or stories. Feature details like venue layout, arrival and parking information, dates and times, schedules, and so much more!
6. Host an Instagram Takeover
An innovative and fresh way event planners are promoting their events is by doing Instagram Takeovers. This is when someone, usually an influencer or celebrity, takes over the Instagram event page for a short period of time. They promote the event by sharing relevant content in their own creative way. This is all about generating engagement and buzz around the event and hopefully encouraging more to attend.
7. Highlight Your Event Team
Event planning is hard work, and the guests at your events don’t always know how much goes into it and who helps bring the event to life. This is the perfect opportunity to show the attendees who put on this amazing event they’re attending. Behind the scenes event planning can be fun and exciting!
You can highlight the team by doing individual posts or stories or even a fun reel. The team leader, event coordinator, venue coordinator, budget coordinator, marketing coordinator, and everyone in between all deserve their time to shine. Show off your event-planning dream team!
8. Create Content Every Step of the Way
Before your event starts, promotion is the key to success. By laying the groundwork, you’re not only making your current setting up your current event for success, but you’re also helping in future events as well. Get those posts, stories, and reels going to generate as much buzz as you can.
Creating content for today’s event is going to help with future events as well. People who attended can look back on the event, reflecting on the event experience. And those who didn’t attend can see what they missed. Instagram Live is a great tool for attracting guests today and inspiring potential future attendees.
After your event is over, it’s the perfect time to gather feedback on how the event was received by your guests. Encourage guests to add their own content with the use of your hashtags. Sending out a thank you post or story will always be appreciated. Reels will also be a great way for guests to share how much fun they had at the event. Add highlight stories to your Instagram event page so they won’t disappear after 24 hours. Promoting a future event is also a great strategy right after the current event when engagement is still high.
Discover Event Marketing Insights at The Expo
With over 1.5 billion active monthly users, Instagram is a great event marketing tool for all New York event planners. There’s so much you can do on this popular platform to promote your event and engage with your guests. If you’re not fully embracing it, you should be.
Learn more event marketing strategies and brilliant insights from the experts at The Event Planner Expo! It’s the one conference of the year where thousands of top event leaders and influencers gather to share their knowledge and form strategic partnerships. Explore your ticket options and secure your exhibitor booth today! Come back to our ongoing blog series for the latest marketing suggestions and proven methods!
