We’ve been discussing strategies for using Twitter for event promotion. Now let’s shift things over to Facebook, the world’s most popular social media network and a potent channel to spread the word about your next event.

Like your other social media channels, leverage your Facebook page to share everything and anything related to your event. Yes, you can specifically go for the sale, encouraging your fans to attend and posting a link to your registration form. However, your page’s feed should not only be filled with these kind of sales type posts. Mix things up and include event related content that piques interest and is of value to potential and registered attendees.

Things such as…

Of course you should keep your Facebook page updated with registrant relevant information like early bird pricing, deadlines, special parties (such as networking minglers) and any other information that should encourage someone to either get registered or get excited to participate in your event to the fullest if they are already on board.

As with any social media strategy, your activity should not just revolve around you (or in this case your event). Ensure you are sharing general, useful information. You can still be strategic about it. Perhaps you can share some content from your partners’ pages or from speakers. Share educational resources, tips or stats that are related to the topic of your event.

You should also create an event page (which you do from your page – select “Event” in the create a post field). Include all the pertinent details as well as an engaging image. Another way to get some exposure.

You can also create a Facebook specific offer for your event, such as offering a discount on the registration fee for a limited time, for example. Note that posting your offer is free, but you can pay to have it promoted (see below). Click here for a great resource on creating Facebook offers.

Running a contest or giveaway is a great way to generate some buzz on Facebook. You could give away a pair of tickets or a free hotel stay for the duration of the event. If you have sponsors or partners, they might be willing to participate. Use your imagination and think about what would get potential attendees excited.

Once you’ve determined the giveaway, it’s now time to decide how you want to run it and how people can enter. With Facebook’s new rules around promotions, it can be as simple as getting people to like a post on your page to enter. Or you can make things more sophisticated (and measurable) by using a third party Facebook app for running a contest, which can include things such as liking your page to enter or joining your email list. For a further discussion on these options, check out this resource.

Running advertising with Facebook is another option for getting your event in front of more people. Targeting options with ads are robust, allowing you to drill down and only show your advertising to very specific segments. There are a few different options for Facebook ads:

There has been some mixed feedback on Facebook advertising. Some companies have seen great returns, others not so much. It really all comes down to doing some testing and monitoring things carefully to see what works for you and your event promotions.

If you’re newer to Facebook marketing, or just not really sure what the best practices for this channel are, stay tuned for our upcoming post on Facebook success tips to make sure that you’re on the right track. Until then, like us on Facebook for more event registration and planning resources.

Facebook Friendly Event Promotion

Facebook Friendly Event Promotion

Content to promote your event

The non-promotional stuff

Facebook Events

Facebook Offers

Run a Contest

Facebook Ads

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