Event planners wear ALL the hats brilliantly. You’re a party planner, a vendor wrangler, a client whisperer, and task juggler. And you pride yourself on being incredibly masterful at all of it. But how confident are you about marketing?
Don’t fret. You’re not alone. Lots of New York event planners struggle with marketing – both for their events and for their own businesses.
Sure, you have a few go-to marketing techniques that work right now. However, the marketing aspect of event planning is always changing, making it definitive that what you’re using today won’t necessarily be effective tomorrow.
Today, we’re shining light on some of the most common marketing challenges event planners face. And we’re sharing the real-world solutions you need to get great at wearing your marketing hat.
Keeping Up with Emerging Marketing Trends
You’re too busy running a business and planning events to always stay up to date with the latest marketing trends. And when you do get a moment to explore new ideas, you get overwhelmed with the vast oceans of advice out there. Google Ads are in – no, wait, Instagram reels are where you need to be. Hold up – email marketing just got hot again.
Instead of trying to chase after the latest trend in marketing, which is only going to drive you mad, pick the two or three channels you know that reach your target audience. Use the metrics to guide you in choosing the channels you’ve experienced the most success with in the past. Start with those few and tune out everything else.
From there, you can allocate all your resources, strategies, and ad dollars to dominating those few channels. Remember, though, zero in on your niche audience and be where they are the most. For example, if you’re targeting corporate events, LinkedIn is your hotspot. If you’re a wedding planner, Pinterest and Instagram make sense.
Finding Time to Create Great Content
You know what else you don’t EVER have time for? Blogs, newsletters, social media posts, and content. Even if you consider yourself a strong content strategist, writing takes time and consistent coordination. And as you fail to commit to your content, your marketing suffers, becoming inconsistent and sporadic. And despite the quick-reference use of AI for content, you still need the time to commit to using it.
In today’s gig economy, you need to find and hire a brilliant freelance writer, copywriter, or content strategist. Bring in someone who can take your direction and consistently whip up genius content for your event website, your email campaigns, your press releases, and your social media calendar.
Integrating Technology and Software Solutions
Are you still manually posting social media content one post at a time? Are you sending emails to client prospects one message at a time? More importantly, are you still sticking with the “old” way because you’re terrified or overwhelmed with the tech, automations, and software solutions available? It’s ok. You’re not wrong – there are hundreds of innovative ways to manage your marketing campaigns with one-click solutions. And it’s downright anxiety-inducing to think about choosing (and paying for) the right one.
Make 2024 the year you start free trialing everything. Pick one or two marketing bottlenecks to focus on and do your homework on the niche solutions available. Sign up for free trials and watch the tutorial videos. Call the helpdesk and roll up your sleeves. Set a goal to adopt at least one new method this year. And when you experience the time- and money-saving results and grow more confident in your ability to adopt new tech, you can branch out for more.
Find Marketing Solutions at The Event Planner Expo
In addition to these common marketing challenges, event planners struggle with other strategies. And no matter what you need help with, you’re guaranteed to find answers at The Event Planner Expo 2024. Immerse yourself among the brightest minds and most successful marketers in the events industry. Learn from world-renowned experts and fellow event professionals. Get tickets and get in the room at the one conference sure to improve your marketing skills and maybe even land a new client or two!
