Firestarter! Social Media for Event Marketing & Building Community

Sheila Scarborough - Tourism Currents

What's In This For You?

Kill the fear

Government at all levels is using social media.

It matters to your market!

On howto.gov/training

One of the most popular on-demand training webinars on Digital Gov University

http://www.howto.gov/training

Social Media Can Build A Barn

What To Do First:

STOP!

3 Basic Questions
(yep, they still apply)

What are your overall event marketing goals?

Who is your market?

Where are they online?

Overall Event Goals

Before: awareness, registration, anticipation of value . Can't wait

During: sharing (onsite & off,) excitement . So glad I came

After: sharing, excitement for next year . I was there, so glad I went

HOLY COW, let me at 'em!

Is it social media time yet?

Patience, grasshopper....

Avoid Drowning

Do your homework

Know where to find your market

Get in front of them by listening first....

.and have a plan

OK, it's time now....Social Media!

Boo-Yah!

Marketing with Social Media

What are your goals before the event?

Raise awarenessWord-of-Mouth excitementEncourage sharingConnect attendeesSupport sponsors & Expo exhibitors

Social Media Before

LinkedIn Event pages

LinkedIn updates

On Company Pages

On personal profiles

LinkedIn Groups

Social Media Before

Facebook Event pages

Facebook status updates

On Facebook Pages

On personal profiles

Social Media Before

Social Media Before

Blog posts . sky's the limit

Speaker preview videos

Photos from last events

Podcasts to preview topics

Info about the conference venue

Info about the conference town

Marketing with Social Media

What are your goals during the event?

Share content value among attendeesShare with those not in the roomConnect attendeesSupport sponsors & Expo exhibitorsShare fun social moments

Social Media During

LinkedIn updates continue

Facebook updates continue

Live radio show on Blog Talk Radio

Ustream video of some/all sessions

Tweets with hashtag

Photos, photos, photos

Marketing with Social Media

What are your goals after the event?

Share among attendeesShare with those who missed itHelp your industry knowledge baseSupport sponsorsBuild more connections!

Social Media After

Share the afterglow!

Summary blog posts & link posts

LinkedIn status updates, Group discussions, in Answers

Facebook Pages & profiles

Tweets

SlideShare

Build on the event's value

Create year-round discussion

Build community

Let's talk about Hutchinson, KS

Takeaways

It's networking + human relationships

Takes time, but payoff can be significant

Social media = social communications

Meet your market where they are

Help attendees to share & grow

Be more than a one-off event

Photo Credits

Bull Moose delegates: Library of Congress on Flickr Commons

Super heroes: JD Hancock on Flickr

Build a barn BJMcCray on Flickr

Stop sign w/rabbits: Nationaal Archief on Flickr Commons

Rules: Gord McKenna on Flickr

Mr. Miyagi: ampedAsia

Don't drown SAR swimmer: DVIDSHUB on Flickr

Yell practice: TX A&M Cushing Library on Flickr

SoMeT tattoo: Anne Hornyak on her blog

Cat + beer: pinguino on Flickr

Hutchinson KS blogger fam tour: BJMcCray on Flickr

Thanks for your time!

Sheila Scarborough

TourismCurrents.com

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@SheilaS