Running an event in the 21st century

How Irish Pride and Snap can work together

21st Century Events

Promoting, & Running Events In A Digital Age

WHAT WILL WE COVER?

• Why Are We Here?

• What Do You Need? (Core Elements)

• Driving Engagement For Events In The 21st Century

– Before The Event

– During The Event

– After The Event

WHY ARE WE HERE?

Source: http://www.eightytwenty.ie/blog/social-media-statistics-ireland-infographic/ (Apr 2013)

• The traditional way of planning, promoting, running and follow-up for events is DEAD

• Social Media has changed the landscape

• It provides more opportunity, and reduces workload, but more competition too

Source: http://www.eightytwenty.ie/blog/social-media-statistics-ireland-infographic/ (Apr 2013)

WHY ARE WE HERE?

On average 30% of visits to Irish websites

are by users on mobile devices

WHY ARE WE HERE?

Forget Mobile Web at

your Peril!In 2011 smart phones out-sold

PC/Notebooks for the first time ever!

How Irish Pride and Snap can work together

No Mobile Website=

Bad Customer Service

30% of 61%=

18% Of All Visitors!

MOBILE VISITORS = HIGH EXPECTATIONS

Main Drivers For Mobile Usage

Email & Social Media...

Source: IDC March 2013

For Many, Digital

Strategies For Promoting

Events Is An Afterthought

Let’s Investigate

How We Might Change That

Change Your Mindset – From This

Change Your Mindset – To This

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THE ENGAGEMENT FUNNEL

CORE ELEMENTS

• Events Website

– Main site with account creation/sign up

– Sub sections with a “microsite" for each specific event

– Account creation captures contact information and allows you to promote future events to everyone

– Account provides visitors with access to private area and registration for individual events

– Ensure that it’s fully mobile compliant (Adaptive Design)

CORE ELEMENTS

• Strong Social Presence– Setup accounts on relevant platforms:

• LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, Slideshare, YouTube (public vids), Vimeo (private vids). Perhaps even Facebook

• Where there is concern around opening a new channel, then create it just to promote events

• Formalise your Social Policies (if not already done)• Content Policies• Nominated posters• Approval Processes• Management Platforms (Hootsuite, Sprout, Tweetdeck)

• Define tagging strategy• #snapevents• #webdesign• #snapdigital

• In some cases tags may have inappropriate traffic/be too busy, therefore use them but create your own (#snapwebdesign)

CORE ELEMENTS

• Webcast System

– Establish a system for delivering professional webcasts

– Ensure the webcast supports most advanced features

• Dual window for separate presentation and video feed

• Recording of event to downloadable and editable format

• IM during events

BEFORE THE EVENT

BEFORE THE EVENT

• Create theme for event and design for sub sites

• Define hash tag/s for event & promote them

• Create content plan on a calendar– Create events in LinkedIn, etc.– Major points in slides are

tweets– Major slides in presentations

are posts– Use Hootsuite/similar to

schedule tweets/posts– Send series of emails– Send webcast link

• Create promo video/s for event

• Send email to all invitee/registrants

• Track online discussions about event with Google Alerts and Mention

• Participate in discussions

• BE SURE THE FACILITY HAS EXCELLENT INTERNET ACCESS AND CAN COPE WITH HIGH TRAFFIC!!!

DURING THE EVENT

DURING THE EVENT

• Webcast the event for registered users through login portal

• Tweet in real-time• Promote your #tag & ask

people to engage– Put tags on all major

materials– Add relevant tags in footer of

every slide

• Post/Send preview of day’s events at the beginning of event/each day

• Use a Go-Pro to create Time-Lapse Video

• Post/Send highlights of day’s speakers at the end of the event/each day

• Assign a person as the Virtual Attendee Ambassador

• Virtual attendees can ask questions in real-time using IM, #tag or @profile

• Intertwine these virtual questions with the real ones

• Have a Twitter wall that shows all tweets on one or more #tags

• Have a Photo-Opp Wall with branding & #tag on it

AFTER THE EVENT

AFTER THE EVENT

• Respond to posts & tweets• Reply to @ messages• Follow those you feel are

influential in their fields• Create content packages

– Documents– Presentations– Video highlights– Full videos– Twitter transcripts

• Load content to relevant sites (Docstoc, Slideshare)

• Integrate feeds from 3rd party platforms into site

• Release content in stages with posts across all platforms to all registered users and links back to site/content

• Release it all over 2 to 4 weeks following event

• Then create CD and send to mailing list

AFTER THE EVENTDon’t Be A Broadcaster!If you want people to engage, you

have to engage with them• Be sure to respond quickly to

questions and comments• Respond to ALL questions and

comments

Remember that the event isn’t over at the end of the day.

FINALLY

• Don’t worry if you can’t do everything from every stage

• Choose the most important elements for your business based on your goals and capabilities

• But whatever you choose to do, do it completely

• Doing this will

– Create far larger engagement/attendance than you might have traditionally

– Create events that begin and end weeks before and after the event itself

– Reduce the need to chase/hound attendees

Franco De BonisDirector Of Digital Marketing

Services

Snap

[email protected]

01 905 2368

@sanitymarketing

www.linkedin.com/in/francodebonis