How to Use Video to Engage Event Participants
Meeting tech expert, Corbin Ball, offered 37 ideas for using video to promote and extend the reach of events. Proving events are content generators for marketers, here are the ones we think are most important:
1. Create a promo video, post it, and promote it with a hashtag.
According to Ball, “This promo clip can give a quick overview of the coming highlights of the event, speakers, performers, networking opportunities, topics, giveaways, how to register, “save the date” information and much more. Include a specific call to action (i.e. register by a specific date at a specific web page).”
Make sure you are covering why the event can’t be missed and post it on your website and social media. A short, memorable hashtag will help potential attendees find your event information. Think about asking speakers to do something similar. They can create a video about the content they’ll be covering and distribute to their followers.
2. Livestream and record the key portions of the event.
Ball further advised, “Video brings an extra dimension that is more impactful than other media channels. A video production crew should be used for high-profile video production.” Not to mention, live streaming “to remote audiences in a hybrid meeting format or as a webcast [increases] the footprint of your event.”
The content you capture during the event can be used in numerous ways for future event promotion or content marketing. You can also “encourage attendees to upload their event experience videos to YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and other social media channels using the event hashtag in the title and description.” User-generated content is free and typically the most impactful. You’ll be creating micro-influencers of your event attendees with this tactic!
Not sure if live streaming is right for your event? Try out our step-by-step guide.
3. Record interviews.
Interview speakers, satisfied attendees, and exhibitors. Ball suggests to “ask them why they came, what they have learned, and what they liked. This will likely produce lots of great content for promotional videos. People love the attention and these videos will likely be shared with their friends and colleagues.”
Interviews can serve as great testimonials to send out to potential clients as well as on your website. Try renting a video booth. We know that people love photo booths, but video booths will give you more bang for your buck. Attendees can record testimonials on their own or in a group. You can even include a list of questions inside the booth to help guide their video.
4. Shoot a wrap-up video.
“A video wrap-up at a closing session is often a great way to remind your audience of the event highlights and key topics and themes covered, saying thanks to the attendees, sponsors, and those that made it possible,” said Ball.
You can also use this content for the promotional video of the next event.
Lastly, he added, “An edited video of conference highlights to showcase the event can be posted at the association, corporate or event websites and the social media channels, reminding attendees of what a good time they had and showing non-attendees what an excellent meeting they missed. Videos allow you to show rather than tell how spectacular the event was: the venue, the décor, the food displays, the impressive turnout, the exciting entertainment, and the amazing speakers. This content makes excellent material for a variety of marketing vehicles including blogs, other social media channels, mobile channels, email campaigns, and web content such as next year’s event website for promotion.”
There are plenty of ways to use video to enhance your events and engage participants in key content – what other ideas for using video do you have?
