Gaining Social Media traction within your conference can be hard. And so it should be: it’s too useful and too good to be easy. How to use social media at events is all about best practice. Let’s see exactly how we can learn from others to improve the social media at your next conference or exhibition.
Using social media really is the best practice
It is obvious what’s in it for you as the organiser. And the benefits for your sponsors / exhibitors are clear but what’s in it for the delegates? Why should they share, tweet, like, pin, comment and promote their involvement? Before you complain that your attendees aren’t engaging and before you give up on Social Media ask yourself a simple question: What messaging have you used to encourage and to educate delegates to increase their use of Social Media?
Social media what’s it in for them?
Here’s ten tips on how best to use social media at events to increase Social Media engagement at your next conference or exhibiton:
1. Set up a Social Media hub at your event. Have terminals available for everyone to use
2. Include a simple Social Media guide in your joining instructions
3. Have twitter projected on to a wall but also print off great tweets and post them on a different wall or around the venue. Colour coordinating topics with colour paper is a neat trick
4. Have people roaming the floor signing people up to Twitter and LinkedIn
5. Offer SM tutorials to attendees before and during your event
6. Message through traditional as well as social media channels about the benefits of a social media engagement for your attendees
7. Incentivise delegates to engage with a social media by offering a social media only treat
8. Release some conference content exclusively through Social Media before, during and after the conference
9. Include Social Media tips in your content feed in the weeks leading up to the conference
10. Encourage your speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and staff to engage as much as possible before, during and after your event.
All of the above has to be done before our events can really prosper from Social Media. How to use social media at events best practice is there if you look for it. Hopefully the above will help!
