It’s no surprise that TikTok is making waves in the events industry on social media. Event professionals have understood that TikTok is a dynamic tool for promoting events and engaging with the audience. With its massive reach and youthful user base, TikTok has become a go-to tool for selling event tickets and attracting new clients.
This platform, adored by millennials and Gen Z, offers a unique blend of viral trends, influencer marketing, and video-sharing capabilities, making it a game-changer for event promotion. On TikTok, content thrives through viral phenomena and fosters a sense of community interaction, setting the stage for event marketers to attract their target audiences in innovative ways.
Why is TikTok so Popular?
TikTok has emerged as the platform of choice for sharing moments, trends, and creativity. Its algorithm curates users’ feeds with content from their preferred accounts and viral video trends. This algorithmic approach propels viral content to the forefront while nurturing genuine community engagement. TikTok has effectively tapped into the pulse of the digital age, driving its immense popularity and making it a prime destination for event marketing.
Why Should You Consider TikTok for Event Marketing?
The Power of TikTok’s User Base
TikTok boasts an impressive and diverse user base, making it an attractive platform for event marketing. With over 834 million active users, TikTok provides an extensive audience to tap into. This broad reach ensures that your event promotions have the potential to reach a large and varied demographic, increasing the chances of connecting with your target audience.
Engaging Visual Content
TikTok’s format is centered around short, visually engaging videos. This format allows event marketers to convey information and create excitement about their events in a concise yet attractive way. The visual nature of TikTok enables you to showcase event highlights, behind-the-scenes moments, and teaser videos, effectively capturing viewers’ attention.
Viral Potential
TikTok is renowned for its viral content culture. The platform’s algorithm is adept at identifying and promoting content with the potential to go viral. This means that even small-scale event promotions can gain significant traction if they resonate with users. The viral nature of TikTok can exponentially increase the visibility of your event, generating buzz and anticipation.
Targeting a Younger Audience
According to TikTok stats of 2023, 419.9 million, or 38.5%, of TikTok users worldwide are between the ages of 18 and 24. TikTok primarily attracts a younger demographic, particularly Gen Z and millennials. If your event caters to this age group, TikTok becomes an ideal marketing platform. Younger audiences are more likely to engage with content on TikTok, making it an effective way to reach your desired event attendees. It aligns with the preferences and habits of this tech-savvy generation.
Authenticity and Real-Time Engagement
TikTok’s emphasis on authenticity and real-time engagement sets it apart from other social media platforms. Users appreciate genuine, unfiltered content, making TikTok the perfect platform to convey the unique aspects of your event. You can provide real-time updates, interact with your audience directly, and create a sense of authenticity that resonates with potential attendees.
How to Promote Your Event on TikTok
1. Experiment with TikTok’s Paid Advertising
A successful event marketing strategy often blends organic and paid ads. Whether launching a fresh campaign or updating an existing one, TikTok provides various paid ad options for event businesses. To start advertising on TikTok, register as a TikTok Business account, a straightforward process that involves basic details like email and name verification. Once approved (usually within 24 hours), you can unleash your advertising powers.
TikTok provides a selection of 5 distinct ad types, each suited for specific event marketing objectives:
- TopView and Brand Takeover: Ideal for driving ticket sales.
- Branded Hashtag Challenge and Branded Effects: Effective for enhancing event engagement.
- In-Feed Ads: Suitable for post-event hype and presale announcements.
2. Dive into Current TikTok Trends
Participating in viral trends can significantly expand your event’s reach on TikTok. By aligning your event marketing content with popular trends, you tap into a broader audience base. Whether jumping on a challenge or embracing a trending theme, timely participation can boost your event promotion efforts.
It’s essential to research and identify relevant trends on TikTok and then tailor your content strategy accordingly. When your event content seamlessly integrates with ongoing trends, it becomes more discoverable and engaging for a wider audience. Incorporating trendy videos and popular sounds that are currently viral on TikTok can also enhance your video’s visibility and appeal, increasing the chances of viewers discovering your event page through searches.
However, it’s crucial to strike the right balance between promotion and entertainment. “The content should avoid sounding overly promotional and instead focus on innovation, entertainment, and creativity to gain attention and engagement,” shared Tom McMahon, CEO of digital marketing agency MCM while speaking with vFairs.
3. Create a Unique Event Hashtag
Hashtag contests are a tried-and-true social media marketing strategy that can be adapted to TikTok as well. By running a hashtag campaign, you encourage your audience to participate and express their creativity through unique content creation.
According to Tom McMahon, one clever approach is to offer incentives for participants, such as discounts on event tickets for the first 100 uploads or exclusive offers. This not only motivates your audience to generate hashtag posts but also rapidly increases ticket sales, a primary goal in your event marketing strategy. Moreover, a well-executed hashtag campaign has a ripple effect, extending your event’s reach to a broader audience. It inspires others to spontaneously create content using your event’s unique hashtag, further enhancing your event’s visibility and engagement.
Ensure that your selected hashtag aligns with your event’s theme and purpose. When creating a hashtag specific to your event, aim for something distinctive that reflects your brand’s identity. Incorporate this hashtag into your TikTok videos to create a sense of unity and recognition among your audience.
4. Run Contests
Running a contest can be an effective TikTok event marketing strategy to boost engagement and promote your event. Contests offer a unique opportunity to not only engage your audience but also generate excitement and anticipation for your event.
To get started, create a video announcement where you introduce the contest and outline the exciting prizes, such as free event tickets or VIP passes, that participants can win. Be sure to incorporate your unique hashtag specific to your contest. This hashtag will serve as a way to easily track and collect entries, making it convenient for both you and the participants.
For instance, if your event is a music festival, consider encouraging users to submit videos of themselves performing or lip-syncing to songs by the featured artists. Alternatively, for a consumer convention, prompt users to submit videos that showcase their interactions with your products or services.
5. Leverage Influencer Marketing
Much like on other social media platforms, influencer marketing holds significant sway on TikTok. Influencers act as trusted voices, endorsing your event and instilling confidence in your offerings among their followers.
The beauty of influencer marketing on TikTok lies in its speed and reach. By partnering with influencers who create content aligned with your event, you tap into their dedicated fan base. This can lead to a rapid influx of attention and interest in your event, potentially reaching millions of viewers within a short span. It’s not uncommon to find TikTok users with staggering follower counts, and forming partnerships with them can carry your event to the spotlight.
Moreover, influencer collaborations are not reserved solely for large-scale events. Even smaller events can benefit from local influencers who have a strong and loyal following within a specific geographic area. The followers of these influencers are more likely to trust their recommendations, making them valuable advocates for your event. In return, influencers often receive compensation, free event tickets, or VIP experiences, fostering a mutually beneficial relationship.
6. Be Authentic
According to Tom, “One of the distinctive features setting TikTok apart from other social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest is its emphasis on organic, user-generated content.”. TikTok users expect a raw, unpolished, and genuine feel in the videos they consume. The content that resonates most with the TikTok audience is not meticulously staged; rather, it simulates the perspective of someone experiencing an event firsthand.
Event marketers can use the natural enthusiasm of event attendees to promote their events on TikTok. Encouraging attendees to compile clips of their event experiences and add native text and graphics can yield impressive results. Such user-generated content often garners more impressions and engagement compared to professionally produced, overly polished videos.
Moreover, to boost audience participation, consider running giveaways, showcasing users on your other social media platforms, and launching engaging social media challenges. These strategies leverage the organic nature of TikTok to connect with your audience on a more personal and authentic level, ultimately enhancing your event promotion efforts.
7. Implement Content Marketing Strategies on TikTok
TikTok’s content is short, creative, and to the point. When you watch TikToks on the “For You” page, you’ll see that they use exciting editing and tell stories quickly. These are the signs of the most liked content on TikTok. Aim to make videos in a similar style, while being unique.
Tom McMahon shared one smart strategy which is to use a content marketing chain. For example, you can make TikToks that catch your audience’s interest and then, in the same video, promote another piece of content like a blog post, an Instagram post, or a YouTube video. This helps you use content marketing to lead your audience to your main promotion center, which might be a webpage where most of your event ticket sales happen.
Key Takeaway
As event marketers increasingly explore the possibilities of TikTok, it becomes clear that embracing this platform offers a fresh and exciting avenue to connect with audiences and enhance event attendance. It excels in engaging younger audiences, capitalizing on authenticity, visual content, and viral trends. By staying innovative, authentic, and in tune with emerging trends, event professionals can continue to leverage TikTok to drive successful event campaigns and capture the imaginations of their target audiences.
