You have an event to plan. You have everything sorted. Tickets, venue, entertainment, date, and logistics are all taken care of. You must now begin advertising your event to the people you want to attend. How you publicise your event depends on who will be attending, but one thing that they will all probably have in common is that they will all be using the Internet.
You can use websites, social media, email marketing, and paid media marketing to promote your event online. Also, the fact is event planners need to embrace the trend of influencer marketing, which is still growing and not going away. Influencers have grown in importance as a means of connecting with the appropriate internet audience in recent years. Making the right influencers marketing your events, can actually boost up your overall marketing game.
However, before you make expensive errors, this article is here with all the information you require regarding influencers in event marketing and. We will look at details on influencers, will help you understand how to invite influencers to your event and provide essential tips that you must utilise while adopting this marketing strategy in your event planning game.
What is Influencer Marketing?
Influencer marketing is the process by which well-known social media users work with brands to promote those brands’ goods and services. Influencer marketing is the process of getting dedicated fans in a specific area to support your goods, services, or in this example, your event. In the past, influencer marketing could have looked like celebrities telling their viewers about your event on television, for instance. Influencers these days don’t necessarily need to be well-known people; in fact, they are frequently unknown to everyone but their followers.
They had become widespread enough by 2009 for the US Federal Trade Commission to intervene and enact the so-called Mommy Blogger law to regulate them. Since then, the market has expanded very swiftly, more than doubling in size thanks to the popularity of platforms like WeChat in China and Instagram and YouTube in Western nations. The influencer marketing industry was valued to be worth $21.1 billion in 2023.
How effective is influencer marketing in event promotions?
Before you look at how to approach influencers to promote your brand or event, it is must that you understand why you basically need them. To learn that lets look at how useful influencers can be in event promoting phase.
Increased exposure
Bringing an influencer on board usually indicates that your event, brand, and/or products reach a new or enlarged audience, even though there may be some overlap between your audiences.
Feedback
An influencer’s power usually stems from their relationship with their audience and their sincerity. This interaction may open up new avenues for you to get feedback about your event or business.
UGC (user-generated content)
Using user-generated content (UGC) has no actual costs, and audiences are more receptive to content created by their peers. Promotional UGC content has a strong possibility of capturing consumers’ attention in the context of event marketing.
Good ROI
It all boils down to selecting the appropriate influencer and presenting your offer to them with precision. It’s essential to keep in mind that any “costs” you spend could lead to higher attendance at your event and, if you sell any products, better conversion rates.
If you are interested you can take a quick look at Event ROI: A Step-by-Step Guide for Event Success
New Relationships
Your business’s reach is increased when you engage influencers to promote events or brands. Not only does that imply a new audience, but it also presents a chance to establish fresh, presumably enduring connections.
What types of influencers are there?
Before you invest in an influencer, did you know there are different categories depending on the number of followers they have? Well, let’s look at each type-
1. Nano influencers
Number of followers: 1,000–10,000 people follow them.
Appropriate for: Joining a specialised market sector.
Ways to find them: keeping track of brand mentions.
Contact ways: straight through Direct Messages (DMs).
These are the people with whom you regularly interact on social media and who have a decent following. They are renowned for publishing sincere, reliable, and relatable information and for having a personal connection with their readers. Nano influencers, therefore, provide the highest rates of engagement. Even though they may only have a few thousand followers, Nano influencers are an excellent way to reach a very particular audience and are a great economical option for smaller, local, and very niche events.
2. Micro-influencers
Number of followers: 10,000 to 100,000
Appropriate for: building and fostering leads.
Ways to find them: Using social listening tools.
Contact ways: directly via direct message.
Micro-influencers try to interact with every follower they have despite having a sizable following. These influencers support brands and are able to maintain their authenticity. By now, they’ve also established a clear speciality for themselves, and they might only accept jobs that fit with their target markets. Micro-influencers are excellent at creating interesting material about their area of expertise and will typically have a favourite platform, such as YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok. Micro-influencers are better suited for more significant national events or event series and will charge a higher fee per post than nano-influencers.
3. Macro influencers
Number of followers: 100,000 to 1,000,000
Appropriate for: drawing in and interacting with prospects.
Ways to find them: conducting research with hashtags.
Contact ways: beyond the contact information listed in their profiles
Usually, content creators who got their start early in the influencer marketing industry, macro influencers, benefit from a first-mover advantage. They have a sizable fan base that they have built up over time. They are a desirable alternative for businesses trying to achieve momentum because of their widespread appeal and multi-platform presence. A media pack with predetermined costs for social media posts, reels, stories, visual content, and subtitles is typically offered by macro influencers. This kind of influencer’s material will be evaluated based on how long it takes to develop.
4. Mega influencers
Number of followers: > 1,000,000
Appropriate for: establishing a larger audience for the brand.
Ways to find them: Find a celebrity who’s relatable.
Contact ways: the means of talent management organisations.
Stars, business leaders, and well-known people with large fan bases are examples of mega influencers. They don’t need to be authorities in the relevant field or sector, but even one post from them can significantly boost your brand. But, in order to work with these kinds of influencers, you need to have a sizable marketing budget. Mega influencers and celebrities are most suited for high-profile events like stadium concerts, events with a global audience, and significant attendance turnover.
Ways to Leverage Influencer Marketing to Boost Your Event Promotion
Incorporating influencers into your event marketing strategy can be incredibly effective. However, to see actual results, you need to plan and execute with intention. Here are some detailed steps to help you maximise the effects of influencer marketing for your event.
Step 1: Plan Your Influencer Marketing Strategy
Before jumping into influencer collaborations, take time to outline a clear marketing strategy. This means identifying your event goals, target audience, and the type of influencers who will resonate with that audience.
Start by answering these questions:
- What is the purpose of your event?
- Who is your target demographic?
- What social media platforms are most popular with your audience?
Once you have these answers, you can start researching influencers whose followers align with your event’s goals. Think about whether you’re looking for mega influencers with numerous followers or micro-influencers with smaller but highly engaged audiences. Both have unique advantages, depending on your event’s scale and budget.
A well-thought-out strategy will provide direction, ensuring that your collaboration stays on course and achieves its objectives.
Step 2: Build Relationships with Influencers
Successful influencer marketing isn’t just about paying someone to post. It’s about building genuine relationships with influencers. Start by engaging with their content long before your event. Like, comment on, and share their posts to build rapport.
When you approach them with your collaboration proposal, make it personal. Mention why you think they’re a perfect fit for your event. Highlight specific things they’ve done in the past that align with your vision. This shows that you value their work and aren’t just treating them as another marketing tool.
Fostering long-term relationships can also be beneficial. Influencers are more likely to promote your event enthusiastically if they feel a genuine connection with your brand.
Step 3: Craft Engaging and Authentic Influencer Campaigns
Audiences respond better to authentic content. When collaborating with influencers, make sure the campaigns are engaging and feel true to the influencer’s voice. Instead of providing rigid scripts, offer guidelines and let the influencers create content that will resonate with their followers.
Consider hosting social media influencer events leading up to your main event. These could be virtual meetups, live Q&A sessions, or behind-the-scenes tours that give their audience a taste of what’s to come. These types of influencer event ideas create anticipation and allow influencers to involve their followers in a more personal and exciting way.
Authenticity is key here. The more organic and relatable the content feels, the more effective it will be in generating buzz for your event.
Step 4: Amplify Your Event Promotion
Once influencers start posting about your event, don’t just sit back. Amplify their efforts by sharing their posts on your own social media channels. Create a branded hashtag and convince your audience to use it. This helps spread the word and ensures that all event-related content is easy to find.
Additionally, paid social media campaigns should be considered to further boost the reach of influencer posts. Platforms like Instagram and Facebook let you boost posts, helping you get your message in front of more eyes. This can be especially helpful in increasing event registrations or ticket sales.
By working together with influencers and using the power of social sharing, you can amplify your event promotion far beyond what traditional marketing methods allow.
Step 5: Measure and Analyse Campaign Performance
It’s important to track the success of your influencer campaigns to understand what’s working and what needs improvement. Look at key metrics, including engagement rates, follower growth, reach, and ticket sales.
Set specific KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) before the campaign starts. For example, you could track the number of times your event hashtag is used, how many people clicked through to your event website, or the number of registrations generated through influencer posts.
Most social media platforms and influencer tools provide analytics to help you track this data. Analysing the overall performance of your influencer marketing campaign gives you insight into which influencers are driving the most results, helping you make better decisions for future events.
Step 6: Maintain Post-Event Engagement
Don’t let your relationship with influencers end when the event is over. Post-event engagement is crucial for building long-term partnerships and maintaining interest in your brand.
After the event, ask influencers to post about their experience, share event highlights, or even review the event for their followers. This keeps the conversation going and allows you to reach a new audience who might attend your future events.
You can also send thank-you notes or small tokens of appreciation to the influencers you worked with. This helps to keep the relationship strong, making them more likely to collaborate with you again in the future.
In short, by maintaining post-event engagement, you keep the momentum alive and build lasting partnerships that can benefit your brand for years to come.
Last words
Influencer marketing is unquestionably a helpful tactic. It has, however, primarily been utilised to advertise goods and services, while event promotion can also greatly benefit from it. Your events may be more successful if you have a close relationship with your influencer(s) and show them how much you appreciate them. So, in conclusion we can say that, to promote your event and give participants a memorable and successful experience, embrace influencer marketing and let your events shine.
