Crystal Media

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How to Host an Awesome In-Store Event (and Get People There!)

Hosting an in-store event can (and should be) fun! Check out these three important tips on how to keep your customers coming back to your events again and again!

  1. Plan ahead and have a clear CTA. Respect that your customers have busy schedules. Give them enough time to plan to attend. Depending on the event, start inviting people 2-4 weeks ahead of time and tell them WHY they should come to your event. The name of the event and the first 1-2 sentences of the description should include all the information a person would need to know to decide if this event is for them.
  2. Offer extras that encourage people to stay awhile. Food and drink are always standard crowd-pleasers, but consider discounts, gifts with purchase, Instagrammable photo walls, swag, face-painting, games, drawings, projects, etc. exclusive to the event. 
  3. Collect info and be consistent. While you have people in your store, invite them to Like you on Facebook, Follow you on Instagram, join your email list, opt-in for your loyalty program, etc. Then (very important) make sure to follow up! Post a thank-you message on the Facebook Event Page. Send an email. Post a video to your FB and IG. Then do it all over again and have another great event. 😊

If you’ve been following us for any period of time, you already know what I’m going to suggest to get people to your event- send an invite email to your lists and advertise your event with a Facebook and Instagram ad. Psst… Facebook makes this pretty simple with an Event Response ad that you can find under Engagement in Ads Manager. 

Pro Tip: When setting up your Event on Facebook, use an image that represents the feelings or experience people will have at the event. If you have images of a packed store from a previous event, use that. Don’t use a “flyer” image that simply shows the event name, date, and time. It’s messy to look at and all that info is already listed below the image. 😊

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Make Your Event a Must-Attend Occasion!

Where there is a successful local retailer, there are always successful events. While customer service, competitive pricing, and great merchandise are important to boosting sales and growing your customer list, events and promotions are often what draws customers in to begin with.

Whether you’re planning an open house, anniversary celebration, or just an incredible sale, here are our top tips for event marketing.

  1. Create a hashtag for your pop-up sale and have a sign by your register. RT and share posts from customers excited about their purchases.
  2. Call or email specific customers on your VIP list and give them a 1-day offer or invite them to an upcoming event. Also consider setting up a Clienteling program, where you collect specific information from customers and reach out to them when these items are in. For ex: they love a specific line you carry, let them know when it’s in or on sale.
  3. Reach out to some local tweeters and let them know that you’ve got some great products in-store. If the tweep is an “influencer” (someone with a lot of followers) invite them in to pick up a special gift, like a product from your store.
  4. Consider hiring a professional photographer or asking a photography student to shoot the event for use in their portfolio. These photos will not only help you collect content to share on social media, but it will also give you photos of a packed house to share on your website.
  5. Have someone from your store “broadcasting” the event live. Have them on-hand to tweet out photos, answer questions, and give updates on products. Consider having an employee (or do it yourself) serve as the online “host” of every event.
  6. A picture is worth 100 Facebook posts. Create a branded photo opportunity in-store that customers will be excited to share. For instance, a pet store could do a “Game of Bones” event, a parody of the popular TV show “Game of thrones,” that included a throne that customers could take their pets photo on. 
  7. Look up a simple press release template and send a press release to your local media to drum up some buzz.
  8. Work with other local (non-competitive) businesses and have them send more traffic to your store.
  9. Take the time to do a post-event meeting with your employees to talk about what worked, what didn’t, and come up with creative ideas for next time. 
  10. Use a Facebook event page to get an idea of how many people will be in attendance so that you can properly prepare. 

If you’re looking for more ideas on how to promote your next event, look no further than our Slow Day Marketing Guide. Simply sign in to Social Edge to access creative suggestions and great resources for when your store is slow. If you’re not a Social Edge member, you can preview the outline for the Slow Day Marketing guide here, and can learn more about joining Social Edge at SocialEdge.co.