Top 5 Ways to Market an Event on a Shoestring Budget

Marketing is not an expensive venture if you have the right strategies in place and engage with the right outlets. With the help of social media, email marketing, and networking websites, you can grow an event's awareness on a shoestring budget. In addition, it can reach millions of people if the marketing is done right. 

How to effectively market your events on a shoestring budget?

 

1. Network

Networking is vital. One should even organise networking events to grow their network. So that in times of need, these connections can promote your event for you with their connections. It is the best way to get the word out about your event. Nothing spreads faster than word of mouth. You can research relevant groups that share your interest and connect with them to grow your network. Many social media channels are great for building connections with strangers and establishing trust. 

Interacting with them will require a little bit of time, but in the end, it will be worth the effort as even with a limited budget, you can have more turnover rate than expected with full-blown promotions.

 

 

2. Submit your event news

Do you not know how else to get the word spread about? Not to worry, you can find several websites online wherein you can post information requests or submit input about the potential story. 

You can help out reporters who would otherwise have to scour the internet for relevant news about your event. Generously volunteer information about your event, create a hype (but no lies), talk about the speakers and topics being discussed, and other preliminary information such as event name, date, time, venue, etc. 

Without hiring a Public Relations firm that can be a huge expenditure in itself, you can gather a reporter's interest who will attend your event and write about it in their column. Offer them an incentive such as free accommodation, tickets, food etc., to make it worth their trip.

 

 

3. Guest posts

Guest posts are the best way to establish relationships with bloggers and reach a larger audience about your event. Pitch guest posts to websites and exercise your digital network to build relationships. These posts get you the much-needed exposure traffic on the website and even help you generate revenue. Plus, it guides many influencers your way, so you can hash out a deal with them to promote your event. In return, they receive compensation (Can be monetary, related to free event passes and accommodation discounts etc.).

With guests posts, you can:

1. Establish dominion of your upcoming event 

2. Build backlinks to your event page

3. Entice new guests into attending events

To strategically pitch a guest post, your content must align with their message, and it gives you a chance to advertise your event. Blatant advertisement of your event will not be considered, and bloggers will reject it immediately. 

You can choose a unique perspective about your event and use it to match up with the blogger's content. 

Do not forget to read through other guest posts on the website. Just because several bloggers are writing about events does not imply that each of them will be an ideal place for you to write and advertise your event. You will need to choose bloggers that are interested in your content.

 

4. Email Lists

You can use Optimiser's robust Event Management suite that will allow you to create personalised and customised templates for your audience. You can even set up drip campaigns for your new guests to ensure they are all caught up with the ongoing affairs.

 

 

With Optimiser's Marketing Suite, you can segment your audience into smaller segments for effective nurturing and turning them into paying customers. In addition, you can schedule posts, send newsletters, gather customer insights to make event content relevant and engaging for improved attendee satisfaction. 

Given that email marketing does not put a dent into your budget, you can reach out to your networks as well as registered guests to generate interest. 

 

5. Giveaways

Everyone loves free stuff. To gather more people to attend your event, you can hold contests. This extremely inexpensive way of generating attendees can ensure as many people register for your event as possible. 

With an exclusive offer, people will be more likely to reward you with their attendance. You can conduct the event and announce the winners' names on the day of the event to keep the attendees engaged. These offers can include giving out free T-shirts, event passes, monetary rewards, gift hampers, vouchers etc. These contents are a part of viral marketing strategies that encourage people to share them with friends and tag them into the posts. 

 

Summary

These are the most effective ways to organise and market your event with a shoestring budget. Sometimes, budget spirals out of control while making purchases, or an emergency takes over that requires an immediate fix. These things are out of the event planner's control. Therefore, you can rest assured that your marketing will not take a hit when performing with a measly budget. However, suppose this is a recurring theme for all of your events. In that case, it may be time to consider a new event management software such as Optimiser for consciously resource allocation and tracking.