How to Use Facebook To Sell Out Your Next Event

Facebook can be an indispensable tool when it comes to increasing awareness and getting people interested in attending your event.

You can use Facebook to promote:

• A One Time Event
• Recurring Events
• Tours

SETUP:

• To start, you’ll need an eye catching graphic (1200 X 628 pixels) or a video between 30 seconds and 5 minutes to use as a cover for your Event Page.
• A concise event name that describes your event and is enticing and shareworthy
• Fill out the information section as much as possible.
• Ticketing Options
  • You can provide ticketing within Facebook which reduces friction and increases the conversion rate by 2X
  • The other option is to provide an external URL where people can purchase tickets
• Facebook also has integration with EventBrite which could increase discoverability of your event

PROMOTING YOUR EVENT:

There are primarily two ways to promote your event:

1) Free /Organically

Make your Events Tab one of the first options on the left side of your page  

Share the link to your Page’s Event page

• Your website
• Email newsletter
• Print ads
• QR codes
• Online Groups (Facebook, LinkedIn, MeetUp.com, etc)
• Other social platforms

If you have co-host(s), leverage THEIR network and have them share the event page url via their website, email newsletter, Facebook page, etc.

Post content to your event page

• Share pictures, stories updates, about the upcoming event
• Before the event
  • Post content to build buzz and get people excited
• During the event
  • Post updates
• After the event
  • Help attendees share highlights by posting photos or message thanking people for attending and letting them know about your NEXT event
• If you plan on running more events in the future, offer incentives for people to sign up to your email list or FB messenger subscribers list so they can notified about your upcoming events.

2) Using Paid ads

Facebook’s targeting capabilities makes this method one of the most powerful ways to increase awareness about your upcoming event.

With paid ads you are able to target people who are most likely to want to attend your event using Facebook’s Saved Audience and Custom Audience features.

This allows you to get your ad in front of people who:

1. Are your fans
2. Are friends of fans
3. Are interestested in a similar topic to your event
4. Have shown interest in one of your past events
5. Have subscribed to your email newsletter or Facebook messenger list
6. Are similar to people who have attended past events
7. Have responded Going or Interested on the Facebook Events page

To track the performance of your event promotion Facebook provides insights on your Facebook Event Page. You’ll see metrics such as:

1. How many people you have reached
2. How many viewed your event
3. How many people responded Interested versus Going
4. The number of Likes, Comments, Shares
5. The number of people that clicked on the link to buy a ticket
6. Demographic breakdown of people that saw your event

If you’re looking for someone to handle promoting your upcoming events, feel free to reach out to me.