In order to stay ahead of the curve, we believe it’s important to intensify the use of a digital marketing plan in event marketing. Web marketing is going to be essential for companies that would like to obtain the members and contacts that they had in their list that they are no longer able to reach. With the aim of capturing these contacts and converting them — whether they are members, participants, or sponsors — objectives need to be met, and as a business running an event, a digital marketing plan can help you attain those objectives.
Are you attempting into online marketing for the first time or have dabbled here and there??? A high impact digital marketing plan can have a positive impact on your bottom line ROI. Depending on your expected ROI, which can include attracting participants to the event, gaining more sponsors and exhibitors, increasing visibility and engaging with current and potential association members, your digital marketing plan must begin with the end goal and work its way up
1.Successful digital marketing Strategy for building content
Content is base for every great plan. But the words, “build it and they will come” does not apply here. In fact, creating content and just waiting for visitors to show up and engage with you will simply not happen… unless it’s a cup of coffee for you. A content strategy comes with planning and includes a social plan, engagement efforts, editorial calendar, optimization, measuring conversions and more. If you want to ensure that your content gets seen by your target audience, then a content strategy is your best deal. So before you sit in front of your computer and start clasping out article after article, you need to figure out who you’re addressing and what you plan to achieve. What are goals and KPIs? How will you measure success: Is it by gaining visibility? Increased registration at your events? Every marketing effort has to be measured. It is an essential element of any successful digital marketing plan.
2.Implement search engine optimization (SEO)
In accordance with content, a solid digital marketing plan includes SEO and ensures that your content is not only reader friendly, but search engine friendly as well. If Google can’t find your message, you can bet that no one else will, either.
What makes an SEO plan a great SEO plan?
Keyword research
Keyword research helps in finding terms of phrases that people would type into a search engine that are relevant to your event. You can use these search terms to create content or for paid advertising on search engines like Google and Bing. Where do you go for keyword research? Google Ad words, Bing Ads and Wordtracker, to name a few.
Link Building
Link building helps in getting other quality websites whose content relates to yours to link to a page on your website with specific keywords highlighted. For example, if your event centers on , paper trading then you would want a well-known paper trading website to link back to your event and the hyperlink would contain keywords like “2015 Paper Traders Association Event” and not “Click here.”
Social networking
Social networking helps in interacting with others by sharing and creating, create content through online communities like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and even forums that relate to your subject matter. It can be used to promote your brand or event, tell participants and audiences at large about your product or event, gauge what others think about your event, attract new participants, and build relationships with your existing participants. You have to make everything you do shareable. And if you want them to share it, you need to make sure they can find it with a simple search and that your content is valuable for your intended audience.
3.Get in touch with inbound marketing and not interruption marketing
Interruption marketing refers to paid ads that are found interrupting to users. Activities on the right-hand side of Facebook, the paid ads at the top and on the right-hand side of Google results and the sponsored hashtags (#) and accounts on the right-hand side and updates at Twitter are interrupted few examples. Ask most web users and the majority of them will tell you that they simply ignore these ads.
Inbound marketing refers to more about earning people’s interest rather than buying it. It’s much better to be the first organic result on Google rather than one of the paid results. The former is not always easy to attain, but with the right plan of action, it is certainly doable.
4.Craft solid landing pages
Optimization does not only refer to content but for your website as well. Landing pages need to be user-friendly and straight to the point. If you want to ensure the most signups or registrations for your event, you need to make sure that your landing page drives the right message home. This is where unique selling proposition, a video or slideshow of images, the benefits of attending your meeting, client testimonials, and a solid call to action comes into picture.
5.Emphasize on website architecture
The secret of a unique website is a great digital marketing plan. And what makes a unique website? It’s when a visitor spontaneously knows where everything can be found. I can’t tell you how often I end up on a website and have no idea where to find what I’m looking for. There needs to be a method to the madness and you always need to keep the end user in mind when putting together your website. This is the face that people see before they opt to sign up for your event or register for your services, so you need to make sure that what they see responds to their needs and interest (e.g., professional development) .
6.Develop a social media plan
It is a common belief that social media requires nothing more than only a few posts on the varying social networks and nothing else, but there is a lot more to being present on social networks as an organization or conference. If you are promoting a conference, for example, you can’t simply push the link on Twitter every day until conference time; you need to be ever-present, engaging, and answer any questions by attendees, as well as prospects. Did you know that 42% of customers who complain on social media expect 60-minutes response time??? Because users get a response in that time. You need to make sure you’re present and available to answer your participants’ inquiries
7.Use statistical data to know what’s working
Online efforts won’t seem useful if you didn’t measure them. You need to figure out what worked and what didn’t, and you need to leverage the numbers for your next event. Your event doesn’t end when it’s over; it’s a repetitive cycle that requires 365-day engagement. If you want to find out where your customers are coming from via social or any other web marketing effort you deploy, analytics will help you decipher what works best. By constantly measuring the results, you can figure out where your audience is and how to leverage your communication efforts.
