Appealing to your prospective attendees’ self-interest will attract them to your event and keep them engaged from start to finish.
When you deeply engage attendees from the very start—strategically based on what’s in it for them—you set the stage for more engagement and buy-in for the entire event experience and build stout attendance from the first email to the last standing ovation.
Let’s explore some ways to drive both engagement and attendance.
Take a cue from Club Med. How many ways can you position your event as a one-of-a-kind group conclave? At registration, promote attendee-only Facebook pages or learning groups. Intimate receptions with your headlining speaker. The chance to win a one-on-one coaching session.
Invite suspense writer John le Carré. Ok, not literally. But in your marketing messages, set the stage for mystery, prestige and exclusivity by hinting at a new product reveal or the chance to be among the first to learn a new idea.
Flip it. Have your main presenter(s) build the entire program upon what attendees say they want to learn. This will drive more interest and attendance, as people feel more included.
Maximize investments in headlining speakers in new ways. Host a VIP reception of those who generated the most bring-a-friend registrations or social media posts. The first 50 enrollees get an autographed book or are entered into a drawing for the opportunity to dine with the headliner.
Gamify registration. Most event promotions are rooted in email marketing. So nailing your subject line to entice high click-through rates to event websites—and thus attendance—is crucial. Optimization Summit attendees were presented with a compelling contest: Write a subject line to promote the event. The top six entries were chosen for the test, and the author with the most clicks received a free event ticket and online course.
Tweak Twitter. Seattle, Washington-based event architect Katharine P. Asgari attended a conference where attendees were told that a regionally well-known musician would be composing and singing an original song, the lyrics of which would be composed entirely of their tweets. The organizing principle? "When I was young, I ___." The overall affect was subtle—it was real and authentic.
Deliver networking at an entirely new level. Sally Hogshead, author of Fascinate, offers a tool for building event buzz and buy-in days and weeks before participants arrive at events. As a benefit to registration, attendees have access to her assessment that reveals how they’re individually fascinating. When guests arrive, their name badges are adorned with ribbons that reflect unique abilities to fascinate. BAM: immediate networking and learning.
Is your meeting attendance mandatory? Attendance at meeting planner Kathryn Butterfield’s events is often required. So how does she ensure pre-event messaging gets people excited? By knowing her audience, not taking things too seriously and ensuring communications are a mix of humor, insight, information and purpose. She adds, "Consistency and timing of event communications are also critical. Schedule communications 90, 60 and 30 days out, with one last message a week before. These blasts should rev up the audience about attending your not-to-be-missed event." One+
