How to Create an Effective Conference Marketing Plan

If you’ve spent time and resources planning a conference, you need to have a solid marketing plan in place to promote it. This will serve as your secret weapon for reaching your target audience, drumming up interest and excitement for your event, and converting that interest into actual results: attendance and engagement.

While there are a lot of things to take into consideration, the ideal conference marketing plan should focus on how, when, and where you’ll connect with prospective attendees. Below are five steps to follow to create an effective conference marketing plan.

How to Create a Conference Marketing Plan: 5 Simple Steps to Success

1. Solidify Your Messaging

Your content will be what drives interest, so refine and adjust your messaging to fit your target audience. Be authentic and transparent, and let potential attendees know what your event stands for and aims to achieve. In doing so, you’ll build trust, which is incredibly important – in fact, 88% of people say authenticity is essential when deciding which brands to support. 

2. Consider Goals & Timeline

Since the goal is to build momentum as the conference approaches (and thus compel your audience to attend and engage), creating a timeline will ensure you make the right moves at the right time. 

For instance, a social media campaign may be ideal weeks before the conference, but a newsletter blast with conference reminders may be more appropriate in the days leading up to the event.

3. Choose Strategic Marketing Channels & Tactics

Decide on the platforms and strategies you’ll use to market your conference, and think about your target audience and goals. Consider which channels to use to reach the right people, with the ultimate goal being to drive awareness and event registrations. Some channels may be more effective than others, and it will be up to you to determine which ones make the most sense for your brand and audience. 

Examples include targeted social media campaigns, blog posts, industry publications or newsletters, podcasts, and enlisting the help of industry influencers to spread the word.

4. Measure Your Success

Before the event, decide how you will measure your marketing plan’s success. Is it impressions made? Social media shares? Registration or attendance numbers? Having laser-specific metrics beforehand will allow you to track the progress of your tactics and fine-tune them for future events.

5. Plan to Follow Up After the Conference

Promoting your conference before the event is only one piece of the marketing puzzle – following up after the conference is what can seal the deal and leave a positive and lasting impression. Think post-event emails, surveys, and sharing recaps of the event to keep the momentum moving forward and the connections alive. 

Key Takeaways

Creating a conference marketing plan that boosts attendance and engagement involves strategic moves such as:

• Clearly identifying your goals, target audience, and messaging.
• Selecting the best marketing channels and tactics for your target audience and creating a multi-faceted approach.
• Investing in your marketing strategy before, during, and after the conference.

By following these tips, you can craft an ideal plan that makes promoting your conference simple yet effective.

For over 20 years, ATN has delivered passionate and dedicated staff for conferences, corporate events, and more! Contact us to learn how our event staffing solutions can help make your conference successful.