How to Promote an Event on Social Media

Getting people genuinely excited for your event on social media is the first step to a packed house, a buzzing virtual room, and a memorable experience. It requires a smart strategy that builds momentum from the first announcement and carries it through long after the event ends. This guide is a complete playbook for promoting your event, covering the specific actions to take before, during, and after to maximize attendance and impact.

Phase 1: The Pre-Event Buzz Machine

The work you do before your event sets the stage for everything. The goal here isn't just to sell tickets, it's to build a community of people who are genuinely eager to participate. Think of this phase as building a crescendo of excitement.

Nail Down Your Event Identity First

Before you create a single social media post, get your foundation right. A strong identity makes your event instantly recognizable and easy for others to talk about.

• Create a Unique Hashtag: Your event hashtag is your digital filing cabinet. Make it short, memorable, and unique to your event (e.g., #BrandSummit24, not #MarketingConference). Check if it's already in use to avoid confusion. Announce it early and use it on every single post.
• Develop Simple Branding: You don't need a massive branding project, but consistent visuals are important. Create a few templates for your posts using the event logo, colors, and fonts. This visual consistency makes your content immediately recognizable as someone scrolls through their feed.
• Know Your Value Proposition: Why should someone spend their time and money on your event? Is it for networking, learning a specific skill, or hearing from industry leaders? Boil this down to a single, compelling sentence and use it repeatedly in your marketing.

Choose Your Platforms Wisely

You don't need to be everywhere. You need to be where your target audience actually spends their time. Spreading yourself too thin results in mediocre content across many platforms instead of great content on a few.

• For B2B Events: LinkedIn is your powerhouse. Use it for speaker announcements, sharing industry insights related to your topics, and engaging with professional groups. X (formerly Twitter) is also valuable for real-time conversation and connecting with industry influencers.
• For B2C & Creative Events: Instagram and TikTok are your go-to channels. Use Reels and Stories for dynamic, visual content like behind-the-scenes peeks, speaker introductions, and countdowns. Facebook is still extremely effective, especially for creating a dedicated Event Page to centralize information and track RSVPs.

Map Out Your Content Calendar

A planned approach to your content prevents last-minute scrambling and builds anticipation systematically. Here’s a sample timeline you can adapt:

• 6-8 Weeks Out: Official announcement. Reveal the event name, date, and venue. Announce a few key speakers to generate initial buzz. Create your Facebook/LinkedIn Event pages and launch the registration page with an early-bird discount.
• 4-6 Weeks Out: Deep Dives. Start your speaker spotlights - short Q&As or video interviews. Share testimonials from past attendees. Regularly push the early-bird special, emphasizing the deadline.
• 2-4 Weeks Out: The Nitty-Gritty. Share the detailed agenda, talk titles, and what attendees will learn. Show behind-the-scenes content of your team planning the event. This makes the experience feel more real and human.
• The Week Before: Urgency & Logistics. Begin daily countdown posts. Answer Frequently Asked Questions (parking, dress code, virtual login info). Share a final "last chance to register" message with a clear call-to-action.
• The Day Before: The Final Hype. Post a "See you tomorrow!" message. Encourage attendees to follow your event hashtag and introduce themselves in the comments.

Turn Your Network into Promoters

Your speakers, sponsors, and partners have their own audiences - leverage them! Don't just ask them to share, make it incredibly easy for them to do so. Prepare a simple digital "promotional kit" that includes:

• Pre-written captions they can copy, paste, and customize.
• A variety of properly sized graphics for different platforms (feeds, stories, etc.).
• A clear reminder of the event hashtag and link to the registration page.
• A custom discount code they can offer to their followers, which can be a powerful incentive.

Phase 2: During the Event - Capture the Energy in Real-Time

On event day, your social media account transforms from a promotional tool into a live reporting channel. Your goal is to capture the atmosphere for those who are there and create powerful FOMO (fear of missing out) for those who aren’t, encouraging them to sign up next time.

Become the Official Event Reporter

Have someone on your team dedicated to social media during the event. Their job is to be the eyes and ears for your online audience.

• Live Posts & Quotes: Share powerful quotes from speakers as they happen. Post candid photos of attendees networking or engaging in a workshop. These in-the-moment updates make your feed feel alive.
• Go Live: Use Instagram Live or Facebook Live to broadcast a few minutes of a keynote session or a quick interview with a speaker during a break. It's an excellent way to give your online audience a preview of the value you're providing.
• Embrace Ephemeral Content: Instagram and Facebook Stories are perfect for raw, unpolished updates. Run quick polls, create "ask me anything" sessions with speakers, and share quick video clips from the floor.

Celebrate User-Generated Content (UGC)

Your attendees are your best content creators. Encouraging and repurposing their posts creates social proof and builds a stronger sense of community.

• Monitor Your Hashtag: Keep a constant eye on your event hashtag. When you see a great post from an attendee, ask for their permission to reshare it on your own channels.
• Create Photo Opportunities: Set up a branded backdrop or a photo booth. It’s a simple way to nudge people into creating content that prominently features your event’s branding.
• Run a Contest: Offer a simple prize (like a merch item or a discount on next year's ticket) for the "best post" of the day using your hashtag. This gamifies the experience and floods your hashtag with great content.

Phase 3: The Afterglow - Keep the Conversation Going

The event isn’t over when the last person leaves. The post-event phase is your chance to solidify the positive experience, extend the reach of your content, and lay the groundwork for your next success.

Publish a Big 'Thank You' and Recap

Within 24 hours of the event's conclusion, post a sincere thank you message. Tag your speakers, sponsors, and vendors. Create a carousel post or short video showing the highlights - the bustling crowd, smiling faces, and energetic moments. This gesture of appreciation goes a long way and serves as a great final summary of the event.

Turn Your Event into a Content Goldmine

Your event generated hours of valuable content. Now it’s time to repurpose it to provide long-term value.

• Session Recordings: Post full recordings of your talks on YouTube or your website. You can also break them into smaller, digestible clips for social media.
• Quote Graphics: Pull the most powerful one-liners from your speakers and turn them into shareable graphics. They make for fantastic, bite-sized pieces of content.
• Blog Posts: Write summary articles based on the key themes and discussions from the event. This is great for SEO and provides a resource for attendees who want to revisit the information.
• Create a Highlight Reel: Edit together the best video clips into a 60-90 second sizzle reel. This is your number one marketing asset for promoting next year's event.

Gather Social Proof and Build for the Future

While the experience is fresh, leverage the positive sentiment to build for the future.

• Ask for Testimonials: Send a follow-up email to attendees asking for feedback and permission to use their positive comments in future marketing materials.
• Nurture the Community: Don't let the connections fade. Consider creating a private Facebook or LinkedIn Group for attendees to continue networking and discussing the event topics.
• Tease What's Next: End the campaign on a high note. Ask your audience what they'd like to see next year or, if you're ready, announce a "super early bird" registration for your next event to capture interest while it's at its peak.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, a successful event promotion on social media relies on a consistent plan that builds excitement beforehand, sustains it during the event, and capitalizes on it afterward. By treating it as a multi-stage campaign, you create an experience that starts long before the doors open and continues long after they close.

We built Postbase to solve the practical challenges of pulling this off. Planning your entire event content calendar, from speaker announcements on LinkedIn to behind-the-scenes videos on TikTok, becomes simple in a single visual calendar. Instead of jumping between apps on event day, you can manage all comments and replies from one inbox, letting you engage with your live audience without missing a beat. With reliable scheduling and analytics that show you what truly resonated, Postbase gives you the clear, organized platform you need to focus on creating a memorable event.