Beginner's SEO Guide to Event Marketing
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) continues to play an important role in your overall marketing strategy even with AI search results becoming more common. AI bases its results on information available online and what pages search engines include in their results.
SEO is how you craft digital content and an online presence that gives your website credibility and makes it appear at the top of search results in Google, Bing, etc.
As you build your event, invest in the long-game with an SEO strategy. As you’re just beginning your SEO strategy, implement the seven tactics below to jumpstart your SEO:
- Calendar Listings
- Marketing Pages
- Free Websites
- Social Media
- Press Releases
- Local News Features
- Attendee Reviews
1. Calendar Listings
Get your event listed on public event calendars. People look at calendars to find things to do with friends and family. With Stride Events, you can list your event for free on our calendar and the others we’ve integrated to show our events.
Beyond free calendar listings, connect with local tourism organizations to get your event included on their websites.
These listings on third-party websites give your event credibility and signal trust to search engines, which helps you in your rankings.
2. Marketing Page
Stride Events offers a free marketing page to all of its events – customize this webpage with photos, video, logo, brand colors, and written content to highlight your event. These pages also include your sponsor logos, event location, and the weather forecast. They also include links to your ticketing page.
These marketing pages rank well in search results, so it’s a great way to quickly boost your SEO efforts and make it easy for people to find where to buy tickets.
3. Free Websites
A website is the foundation for your online presence. It’s the primary source for information about your event. Start with a well-designed homepage that links to your ticketing sales page.
As you grow your event, you can add more pages to deepen your online presence and make your website more credible. You can add various pages to offer more details about your event, like:
- FAQ page
- About us page
- Volunteer page
- Fundraising page
- Contact page
With Stride Events, you can create a free website for your event. Learn more about How to Create an Event Website for Free.
4. Social Media
Another key source of social proof or credibility for search engines is social media. Pick your platforms based on who your target audience is.
- Facebook – Millennials and older generations. Written content, images, and reels.
- Instagram – Millennials and Gen Z. Photos and reels.
- TikTok – Young and middle-age adults. Short-form video.
- YouTube – Young and middle-age adults, slightly more men than women. Long-form videos, short-form videos, and podcasts.
- LinkedIn – Professionals in their early 20s and older. Written content, images, and videos.
Include links to your social media profiles on your website. Link to your website or marketing page from your social media profiles to offer an easy path for people who want to buy tickets to your event.
5. Press Releases
Write press releases for key developments of your event. Send them to local journalists so they are aware of what’s going on with your event. Consider creating press releases to:
- announce your event with dates and other key details.
- highlight an important guest performance or attraction at your event.
- share success on how many people came to your event.
Whenever you put together a press release, be sure the focus is something noteworthy about your event. You’ll also want to include some basic information about your event and how people can learn more.
6. Local News Features
Work with local news outlets to get your event featured. Getting coverage can be challenging for a first-year event. However, it’s worth starting these conversations as you plan to grow your event year after year.
These features can help you build awareness and credibility with TV spots, interviews, and article mentions. News websites are some of the most credible sources for search engines. Getting included in an article and even getting a link to your website from a news article really makes a difference for your event’s visibility and online presence.
7. Attendee Reviews
Once you’ve pulled off your first event year, gather feedback and reviews from your attendees. You can even publish reviews on your marketing page. Google prioritizes user-generated content, which is exactly what reviews are.
Reviews do more than help you rank in search results. People also take reviews as personal recommendations. Each of your positive reviews is a testimonial that you can use to advertise your next event.
