Apartment Trends Magazine September 2019 | Page 24

Six-Month Timeline for
Marketing Your Event on
Emily Klipp
Facebook
W
hen it’s time to start promoting your next event on Facebook it can often be diff icult to get timing and coordination down
for flawless execution. According to Wish Pond, on average, there are 4.75 billion items shared by Facebook users each
day, so it can be easy for your event to get lost in the shuff le. At McLernon & Co., we know each business owner and
marketing manager wants to maximize awareness, ticket sales and PR for their events. Here is our six-month timeline marketing
your event on Facebook.
3-6 Months
Let’s begin with the first question, how
early do you publish your event on Facebook?
While we agree event managers can create
a simple event as a placeholder as soon
as the date is set, our team’s general rule
is 3 to 6 months out. If you are having a
smaller event, for example, a happy hour,
we recommend creating the event 1 month
in advance. In contrast, if the event requires
travel, particularly flying, more than 6 months
out is helpful for your guest. These time
frames allow for optimal awareness without
promotion fatigue.
When an event is promoted too early on
Facebook both your organic and paid content
tends to hit flat with your ideal guest. Taking
time to strategize your target audiences
ideal purchase date will allow you to publish
content and paid ads when it’s most desirable
to the habits of your audience. For example, is
it a one-day event for local residents? Or is the
event a weekend-long retreat you need to fly
to attend? This will determine the diff erence
between buying tickets three months out
vs. one week which will ultimately build
your strategy.
During this time period, we recommend
social media managers post about the
event, on average, 2 times per month. These
posts should focus on event information and
enticing additions, for example, vendors or
special guests.
2 Months
During your six-month timeline for
marketing your event on Facebook, a paid
ads and advertising budget is paramount.
Two months prior to your event your paid ads
strategy should be solidified. With a previously
22 | TRENDS SEPTEMBER 2019
discussed budget, create a breakdown of
general awareness, website clicks, ticket
sales, and boosted posts. We recommend
allocating most of your budget to 3 weeks
before the event date, however, based on your
optimal ticket sales time that is subject to
change. Boosting your event on Facebook is
another great way to gain additional reach and
maximize attendance numbers.
During this time period, increase your event
posting to 1-3x per week. These event posts
should focus on detailed vendor descriptions
and sponsorship breakdowns. We recommend
creating the extra eff ort of promoting vendors
and sponsors to grow strong, supported
relationship. Two months before your event
is also an optimal time to start incorporating
“housekeeping” content.
1 Month
At this point, it’s time to have all hands
on deck. For most events, the majority of
ticket sales happen in the last month. With
one month until the event date, promotions,
housekeeping posts, and ticket sales should
be increasing when marketing your event on
Facebook. However, be prepared that focuses
can shift during this month to accommodate
any missing priorities or last minute changes.
We recommend using the majority of your
paid budget for the final three weeks to gain
the highest relevancy score and lowest cost
per click. This creates urgency for the guest
and your event to be permanently added to
their calendars.
During this time period, posting should
increase to 2-5x per week. Social media posts
should focus on ticket sales and driving last-
minute purchases. This is also a great time to
encourage people to change their RSVP from
“interested in” to “going.”
Week Of
Once you hit the week of, your complete
focus should be on education and
customer service when marketing your
event on Facebook. Educating your guest
is your most valuable asset to a successful
event. The last thing you want is a surprise
bag policy or parking confusion. Take this
time to continue promoting your event but
also to do any informational housekeeping
to keep things running smoothly. If you
are lucky enough to be dealing with a
sold-out event, make sure your audience is
aware, change your event cover photo to
say “sold out”, and help field the inbound
inquiries on how or where to buy last-
minute tickets. Alternatively, this is still a
prime opportunity for a last minute ticket
sales if availability remains. Take this
time to post fun and engaging content to
get your attendees excited. Think polls,
infographics, and videos of what’s to come.
When promoting your event on
Facebook it’s all about timing and not
getting lost in the shuff le of notifications.
Creating one-on-one relationships with
guests and treating every attendee like a
VIP will increase your likelihood of positive
reviews and decrease negative PR. Take
time to strategize priorities weekly and
execute week over week to create the best
guest experience possible.
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