If you are looking to promote your small business with a special event, Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) events can be an easy, convenient and inexpensive way to connect to customers via social media.
The Facebook events page allows you to link in co-hosts to help you do that promoting, invite targeted guests or groups or share the event publicly and even create an ad to promote it.
The social media feature allows you to add photographs or videos to the posting and send online messages to invited guests to update them on evolving details.
he social media site claims more than 60 percent of people find special events through their Facebook news feed.
To create a private or public event on Facebook:
- Click Events in the left menu of your News Feed.
- Click Create in the top right.
- Click to choose between a private or public event. If you’re creating a public event, you can set the event’s host as yourself or a page you manage.
- Fill in the event name, details, location and time. If you’re creating a public event you can:
- Select a category for your event
- Add keywords about your event
- Add a link to a ticketing website for your event
- Click Create.
For more information on how to create a Facebook events page, click here.
Ideas for Facebook Events
Here is a sampling of some events you can post on Facebook to promote your small business:
Grand Openings
Opening a store? Take a photo of the outside of your location with that big “Coming Soon” sign draping over the door. Set the date and start inviting people. Encourage others to invite more people by incentivizing the Share on Facebook. A paid campaign might help you find a lot of local people, too. Post updates ahead of the opening to build even more anticipation.
Special Sale
Offering a big discount on a new product? Discontinuing an item from your shelves or on your ecommerce site? Having an online exclusive sale? All these things are events on their own.
Webinars
Whether you’re discussing the latest trend in marketing or an update to Windows or Mac, you’ll build anticipation by creating an event well ahead of time.
Unboxings
A highly anticipated product just arrived and you’re just about ready to offer it to your customers, their collective breath baited. Lure in some more sales by hosting an online unboxing. These somewhat bizarre, mostly hands on videos show your customers exactly what they’re getting from you from the time the postal worker drops it at their door.
Special Hours
The holidays bring about some shifts in your regular schedule. Make a day of it, literally. If you’re staying open late or closing early, make a big deal of it. A short day needn’t be a slow day. Post shorter hours and run a sale. Make an event out of it. That short open time creates a sense of urgency among your Facebook audience.
Pop-up Event
Taking your business on the road is a great way to meet new people who may not even know you exist. No one may know you’re going to be in this special location if you don’t promote it. Create an event listing if you’re going to set up a stand at a job fair or a county fair. Create a hook to your pop-up location — like a giveaway or a drawing — and encourage people to click if they’ll be attending.
Classes
A yoga class or an instructional hour from a local chef and restaurateur are great examples of events that people love to attend and a Facebook event will give them constant reminders when they log in to the network.
Ticket Sales
If you’ve got a limited number of spaces for your next big event, create a time period for sales. Again, that sense of urgency and limited availability gets customers to act. Creating an event out of it is like the virtual way of opening and closing the ticket window.
Discussion Groups
A bookstore that has the latest best seller can host a group event in the store — after hours, even — and it’s something that people will RSVP to on Facebook in a hurry.
Trade Shows, Conventions
Like a pop-up at a fair, your presence at an industry trade show or convention is also an event. In the run up to the big day, be sure to tag the official trade show or convention page (if it has one on Facebook) so organizers are aware of you too. They will likely help your outreach by promoting you, too.
Charity Auctions
A lot of the work for this comes after the listing is created. Take lots of photos and tease the event by spreading out what’s up for bids in posts leading up to the auction’s start.
Festivals
Art festivals attract tens of thousands of people. How does your booth stand out? Create a listing to let people know where you’ll be so they can find you despite the crowds.
Chamber of Commerce Meetings
If you’ll be rubbing elbows with your small business parallels at the next chamber meeting or mixer, put out an event listing. It’s a great way for businesses to connect through their Facebook pages, too.
Lectures
Hosting a special talk at your store? Put the word out early and do plenty of promotions. Limit seating to the event and allow invitees to RSVP.
Parties
A special party at your store or office is worthy of a Facebook event listing. It’s a simple way to invite a lot of your contacts and it helps keep your event top-of-mind for those coming or those thinking of coming.
Open Houses
A real estate agent hosting an open house or a store opening up for a special event should both get these events listed on Facebook to boost attendance.
Job Fairs
If your company is attending a job fair and looking to make a hire soon, get your presence to stand out from all the others at the fair.
Book Signings
Independent authors staging a book signing event at a local bookstore or even a tour of book signings should be utilizing Facebook events listings. It’s a simple way to reach local audiences and pick up followers along the way.
Golf Outings
The four-person scramble will fill up quickly when you limit spaces and get people to RSVP through your Facebook Events listing.
Ladies’ Nights
A special night just for the ladies is the perfect event for Facebook.
Image: Facebook
This article, “20 Ideas for Facebook Events to Promote Your Small Business” was first published on Small Business Trends