Event marketing ideas to make your event a success
Event marketing is promoting a brand through events, exhibitions, parties, and business gatherings. These events are usually free to attend, but the people who show interest in the brand become potential customers. To get there you need the right mix of channels. Here are the ideas that work in the UAE.
How to market your event
Where your event is held matters, and so does how you get the word out. Use a combination of these channels.
- Social media marketing: a Facebook events page, Instagram live coverage, location pins on Snapchat, and TikTok stories throughout the event with hashtags. Regular posts plus a few sponsored ones are the key to getting your event noticed.
- Radio advertising: people spend a lot of time in their cars in the UAE, so radio is an easy way to put your event in front of a large local audience. Do not skip this medium.
- Outdoor ads: if you have the budget, place ads in the busy, key areas of the city. Think about where your audience lives and travels. Add a QR code and highlight the dates, since your event will not run forever.
- Social media influencers: get them to tease the event before, during, and after to create noise with their loyal followers. If you are selling tickets, give each influencer a voucher code so you can see which one drove the most registrations.
- Tap Facebook group admins and local communities like Meetup and BNI to sponsor or share your event. People belong to communities, so reaching them is the key.
- Programmatic and display ads: place banner ads across the web (without spamming) to keep your event visible. We run these.
- PR agencies: get media coverage and visibility. We are in touch with media partners who can help.
- Email marketing and SMS marketing: we have a 4 million+ UAE database (we do not sell it) that can promote your event to the right audiences.
- Give attendees a unique experience and good giveaways so they remember you, then follow up well after the event.
Benefits of event marketing
Event marketing solves several problems at once:
- Brand awareness: the most common reason to use it. People become familiar with your name, logo, products, and services, and you can target the exact audience you want to reach.
- Increases foot traffic: it brings people out of their homes and into your store or stand, which creates new sales opportunities and builds rapport.
- Creates engagement: an event is an experience where people connect, network, and learn about your brand, so they become more invested in it.
- Generates leads: when people are physically at your event, it is easy to collect their contact details and follow up afterwards.
- Builds loyalty: once people know your brand and have had a good experience, they are more likely to buy from you again.
Ready to fill the seats? See our step-by-step guide to event promotion in Dubai, and our 9 tips for a successful event on Facebook.
Check our past event marketing examples and case studies for ideas, then talk to us about your event. We are an event marketing company in the UAE: call +971 50 304 7470.
