Promote local events without spending a penny

Whether you’re trying to promote your band, a local fundraiser, or a taco truck, promoting on social media can feel like a digital game of “Whac A Mole.” Without a game plan and a lot of patience, you can find yourself wanting to tilt the machine. Don’t do it. Here are 3 simple ways to improve your local event social media marketing strategy --

1. Connect With Journalists On Twitter

If I had a penny for every time I’ve heard someone say they don’t tweet because their audience isn’t there, I’d have enough to build a wall with them. On a local level and beyond, the people who use Twitter the most are journalists. 

What do journalists do? Write the news. ​​

Example — When I first started DJing at Howlers bar in Pittsburgh, I created a Facebook event for it tweeted the link to my followers on Twitter with targeted hashtags. Pittsburgh City Paper music journalist Jordan Snowden noticed and reached out to me about being included in their New Year’s Eve guide. My picture was prominently displayed both digitally and in print.

Did anyone come in on the night of my first DJ gig at Howlers and say they saw the event on Twitter? Not to my knowledge, but many people made a point to tell me they saw my picture in the City Paper! Twitter is worth it. 

2. Keep Your Facebook Events Clean  

That means double checking the dates and times and tags. Have a second pair of eyes scope it out for typos, if possible. If the event is a mess, people will not be interested and they will be less likely to attend. ​

Make sure to remind any co-managers to invite their friends. Also, continually share the event. Encourage people to click “interested” even if they are not sure they will be attending. The goal is to have as many people see the event as possible. ​

3. Tag Who, What and Where

Not only will this make it easier for everyone to coordinate and provide more information, it will make everyone and every place feel included! We’re all hoping for maximum attendance, but even if we don’t get it, promoting a local event is a catalyst for fostering long term connections with the community. 

For example, while writing this section, I clicked over to the link to the City Paper guide, and realized it was co-written by Maggie Weaver. So now I have mentioned them. ​

What’s the best part of all these tactics? They’re all FREE. They do involve a bit of time and savvy, but they don’t involve spending even a penny on  advertising.​

Need some advice on how to promote a local event on social media? Contact me! ​