How do you select the best channels for event marketing?

1 Define your event goals

Before you choose any channel, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your event. Do you want to attract new customers, retain existing ones, or upsell them? Do you want to educate, entertain, or inspire them? Do you want to launch a new product, celebrate a milestone, or showcase your expertise? Your event goals will guide your channel selection by determining the type, format, and content of your event, as well as the metrics you will use to measure its success.

2 Know your audience

The next step is to understand who your audience is, where they are, and what they want. You need to conduct some market research to identify their demographics, preferences, pain points, and behaviors. You also need to segment your audience based on their level of interest, engagement, and readiness to buy. This will help you tailor your event message, value proposition, and call to action to each segment. Moreover, you need to find out which channels your audience uses, trusts, and responds to. You can use surveys, interviews, analytics, or social listening tools to gather this information.

3 Choose your channel mix

Once you have defined your event goals and audience, you can choose the best channel mix for your event marketing. A channel mix is a combination of different channels used to reach, inform, persuade, and convert your audience. You could opt for online or offline channels, or a blend of both depending on your event type, format, and budget. Common channels for event marketing include email for direct communication with the audience before, during and after the event; social media to reach a large and diverse audience; website to showcase event details; blog to share relevant and valuable information; webinar for presenting or teaching something; podcast to share voice, personality and opinions; video to capture the event experience; and print for a tangible channel in the physical world. The best channel mix should align with your event strategy, resonate with your audience, and deliver the best results. You should also test, measure and optimize your channel performance to ensure you are getting the most out of your event marketing efforts.

4 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?