Organizing a conference, albeit a huge task on its own, would seem rather small when compared to the gargantuan responsibility of getting people to notice your conference and make an effort to attend it. Many conference organizers are usually left stumped when it comes to conceptualizing new ideas to attract a larger number of footfalls to their events. To help with such thought dead-ends, we’ve put together a list of ten fresh new ways for you to attract more people to your conference.
#1 Use Social Media
No one can dispute the power that social media has in dispersing information in recent years. Anything that gets on social media gets almost instant attention and gathers a crowd faster than you can say “I’m organizing a conference.” So, why not use that to your benefit? Be sure to post as frequently as possible updates regarding your conference as you can to keep your followers aware of your upcoming event. Aside from that, you can make it more interesting by enticing your potential attendees with giveaway events and free tickets to your conference, all under a specific hashtag.
#2 Create an Event Landing Page
It is always better to have a landing page that specifically tells visitors every detail that they need to know about your event. From the content to be presented, the speakers, the itinerary as well as people to contact for more information, all of that should be added to the site. Don’t forget to add a call-to-action button in the right places on the site to encourage more people to get on your guest list.
#3 Have Event Exhibitions
The best way to reach out to people is still through a face-to-face meet up. There is just something about the human connection factor when it comes to getting information dispersed that just cannot be discounted. Hold a small exhibition at your local hall or rent a booth as a part of a bigger exhibition that is already scheduled. Meet your possible attendees and explain to them what your event is all about and how their presence will benefit themselves or society. That’s a guaranteed sign-up, right there.
#4 Leverage the Power of Word of Mouth
Again, no power like human power. Word of mouth is still the reigning champion when it comes to getting messages across and making an impression. Also, with a recommendation from someone that they know and trust, people would be more likely to sign-up for your conference. And don’t forget to add a reward factor when you ask for recommendations that lead to a confirmed sign-up, which makes it all the more effective.
#5 Invest in Online Advertisement
Online ads may seem like they’re overused and stale by now, but they still do hold a significant unconscious effect on people who come across them. Be sure to add elements that excite your possible ad viewers like a few moving images and a catchy headline. Try to avoid salesy text in your ad. Take a more information sharing approach. People usually are more open to learning something rather than have a product shoved down their throats.
#6 Collab, Collab, Collab!
Get a bunch of sponsors to work with you on every event. Although getting local sponsors and collaborators would be great for attracting provincial attendees. It’s always a better move to score a global or national level sponsor. Try to collaborate with relevant brands that have the spotlight on them. That would give you enough leverage to elevate the number of footfalls to your event with almost minimal effort.
#7 Focus on the Younger Crowd
Many people do forget that the younger generation will be the next batch of event attendees just a few years down the road. And hence, there is huge neglect when it comes to understanding how this particular group in society interact with each other, how they perceive news and things like events and conferences. Do some research on how the young ones use social media and figure out where their information sources are. With these key directionals, you would be able to easily be able to attract more younger people to your event and get a bit of PR at the same time, thanks to their active social media habits.
#8 Get a Hold of Influencers
Influencers have been a go-to in recent days, especially if you’d like something shared with a large group in the fastest way possible. There are influencers for everything these days, from beauty to the environment, so you’ll have no issue getting someone who is somewhat an authority on the social media front for a particular niche. Working with influencers can not only help you reach more people, but it also adds more credibility to your social media presence.
#9 Keep Your Blog Updated
Blogs are another great way to make sure the word of your event gets to a lot more people. Write a fresh blog about your event, preferably at every stage. Show people who are behind the event as well as what’s happening. People tend to connect better when you give them such insights and will be more likely to be interested to attend the event. Additionally, try to get those who run huge blogs to give you backlinks to your blog about your event or even directly to your landing page. Trust us, all that SEO juice will work wonders.
#10 Tie In With Latest Affairs
Try your best to link your event to the latest big events that have been getting attention lately. Such things would be able to divert a bulk of the attention to your event and even provide quick landing page views. But, do ensure that the news topic is at least somewhat remotely related to your event. Be creative!
BONUS TIP : Design Your Conference for Everyone
This is also another thing that most conference organizers and planners overlook. Most conferences take such a shape that appeals to most academicians and professional adults. However, if you are willing to go the extra mile and make your conference something that everyone can relate to, you’re almost guaranteed to have more people at your event, even kids. The whole idea is to create a learning platform for people of all ages, through your event.
So, that’s all the tips that we have for you on how to get more people attending your conference. Some of these might be quite alien to you but they are not necessarily that difficult. Do give it a go and let us know what you think about them. And if you do have more tips to share with the community, don’t hesitate to leave them in the comment section below. Good luck!
