Have you ever participated in Expos, Tradeshows and Live Events? Do you really know how much potential these live events have for your business growth? Are you capable of making well organized efforts to get more leads from these industry-based events? If your answer is “NO”, let us help you leverage the potential of live events through social media marketing. Learn what you actually need to do before, during and after the event.
Why Social Media Marketing is Important for Successful Leads
Just few years ago, it was easier to reach potential customers through traditional marketing material like brochures. However, the market competition has reached to its highest peak these days and the criteria to attract prospects have been completely changed. You can’t be sure that simply attending an event will bring you customers for the next few weeks or months.
So if you are planning to increase your sales by showcasing your business or brands at live events, you must adopt the latest marketing techniques on social media. You can’t just wait for the event day to come and introduce yourself face-to-face with potential customers. Instead, you will have to launch your marketing campaign through social media long before the actual event begins.
What You Actually Need to Do to Get Leads?
When you combine your marketing campaign with social media, you should use a three-step formula.
1. BEFORE: Preparation before the Live Event Begins
If an event is going to be held and you are going to participate in it, don’t take it as just an event, instead, take it as an opportunity to generate big sales. Make pre-arrangements and put in the effort to make the event productive:
- Prepare Your Team: Involve the best men and women from your team and delegate responsibilities to each one of them as per their expertise.
- Create Contacts: Connect with as many people as you can and try to approach event organizers, sponsors and attendees.
- Build an Email List: Build your email list and approach everyone you think would be attending the event. Get engaged with people through facebook, twitter, LinkedIn and other means of communication.
- Spread the Word: Distribute sales material i.e. Newsletter, brochures, event-related information, latest news and updates about the event.
- Find Participants: Explore who is going to attend the event. You can do this by using event-related hashtags.
2. DURING: Stand Out of the Crowd by Reaching Attendees
You can be one out of hundreds or thousands of vendors at an event and it won’t be easy to stand out of the crowd. However, there is still one thing that you can do before the event and that is to familiarize yourself with attendees.
- Let Participants Find You: If people know about your company or products before the event begins, they might come and look for you. So don’t forget to connect with them earlier.
- Let Them Recognize You: You can use email, facebook, twitter and LinkedIn messages so people recognize you.
- Personalize Your Messages: Give a personal touch to your message. Write in a way that will make people feel like it is written only for them.
- Build a follow up method: Once you leave a message, include something that can be followed up later. For example, a special offer for the receiver.
- Plan the best experience for your receiver: You wouldn’t like your potential client to receive an incomplete message from your side.
3. DURING: Define an Audience to Run Targeted Ads
To directly reach your prospects, you should achieve these smaller goals first:
- Remind People: Give reminders to people who will be at the event but don’t be spammy.
- Build Audience: Try to build a relevant and more positive audience for later marketing.
- Paid Advertisement: If you are covering the event through updates including photos, videos and information, you should also use targeted advertisements because this will enable you to reach more people.
4. AFTER: Develop Social Connections with Participants after the Event
You put so much effort into connecting with potential customers before and during the event. Your job, however, is not over because you still have to do a number of things even after the event is over. Through social media, you should be in constant touch with those who attended, or intended, to attend the event. Once the event is concluded, it is time to engage with your leads.
- Start a Conversation: This will give you one more chance to take advantage of your presence at the event and you will be able to start new conversation even with those who you have never met before.
- Direct Emails: If some of the participants have given you their email addresses or business cards, you can send them direct emails.
- Direct Messages: Those who are on social networks like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn can be send messages directly instead of by email.
Conclusion
Industry based events have always been very important for businesses due to their lead generation potential. Unfortunately, the process of lead generation has become tougher in the past few years especially with the emergence of digital marketing. So, if you really understand the true essence of social media marketing, nobody can stop you from acquiring potential customers. Plan your strategy to cover live events from three sides i.e. before, during and after the event, and you will be all set to go with lead generation.
