A simple communications plan for your events
An event communications plan. Here are some ideas on how to engage attendees with clear, strategic messaging before, during, and after the event.
Ok, so we’ll start with the bad news! Without clear and consistent communication, you risk low attendance, confused attendees, and missed opportunities to build engagement before, during, and after the event.
The good news is that creating a communications plan, even if it’s just a simple one, can make a big impact by making sure attendees are well-informed, engaged, and prepared.
To illustrate this, let’s take the example of a corporate networking event where guests are invited to register in advance. Below is a basic yet effective example communications plan that could easily be implemented. This is purely email-based, but it could use a multi-channel (print, email, and SMS/WhatsApp) approach depending on the event and the budget!
Example Event Communications Plan: Corporate Networking Event
Pre-Event: Invitations & Registration Reminders
Initial Invitation Email (4 weeks before the event)
Subject: Join Us for an Exclusive Networking Event!
Content: Highlight event details (date, time, location, key speakers, and benefits of attending). Include a clear call-to-action (CTA) with a registration link.
First Reminder Email (2 weeks before the event)
Subject: Time is Running Out – Register for Our Networking Event!
Content: Reinforce the event’s value, mention any new updates (such as confirmed speakers or special guests), and encourage those who haven’t registered to sign up.
Final Reminder Email (3 days before the event)
Subject: Last Chance to Secure Your Spot!
Content: Urge last-minute registrations, provide logistical details (venue, parking, dress code), and remind registrants to bring business cards.
Post-Registration: Keeping Attendees Informed
Confirmation Email (Immediately after registration)
Subject: You’re Registered! Here’s What You Need to Know
Content: Thank the participant for registering, include event details, and provide a calendar invite. Mention any resources they should review before attending.
Event Reminder Email (1 day before the event)
Subject: We Can’t Wait to See You Tomorrow!
Content: Include final logistical details, event agenda, and a point of contact in case of questions.
Morning-of Email (Day of the event)
Subject: Today’s the Day! See You at [Event Name]
Content: A brief motivational message, venue access instructions, and a reminder to network and engage on social media using the event hashtag.
Post-Event: Feedback & Follow-Up
Thank You & Feedback Request Email (1 day after the event)
Subject: Thank You for Attending – Share Your Thoughts!
Content: Express gratitude, share event highlights or photos, and request feedback via a short survey. Offer an incentive (e.g., entry into a giveaway) for completing the survey.
An additional option - A Giveaway communications plan
To increase engagement, a giveaway could be part of the event registration and engagement process. Here’s an example of how it could be communicated:
Announcement Email (2 weeks before the event)
Subject: It’s a WIN WIN at our Relaunch event!
Content: Explain the giveaway, how attendees can enter (e.g., registering, attending, engaging on social media), and reveal the prize.
Reminder Email (3 days before the event)
Subject: In it to win it
Content: Reinforce the giveaway details, include instructions, and generate a bit of buzz and excitement.
Live Event Announcement (During the event)
Method: Social media posts, event host announcements, notifications via an app
Content: Encourage participation, showcase entries (if applicable), and keep their eyes on the prize.
Winner Announcement (Post-event, 1 day after event)
Subject: We have a winner!
Content: Say a big congratulations to the winner, thank all participants and encourage them to stay connected for future events and giveaways.
Why bother?
A well-structured communications plan gets rid of uncertainty and keeps your audience engaged throughout the event journey. Proactive communications create a smoother and more positive experience for attendees. Even with a simple plan, clear and regular communication builds better participation, strengthens attendee buy-in, and increases the overall success of your event.
Post-event communications, yes or no?
Is your event communications schedule all about before and during the event? What about after the event? Post-event communications - are they a yes or a no?
Let’s face it, the tendency is to focus on good communications before the event and during it. There's a valid argument for this, before the event we need to get people excited and keep them informed to make sure they show up. On the day itself, communications are a great way of keeping attendees updated.
Post-event comms are a bit like the poor relation that can be either completely ignored or done as a bit of an afterthought.
Just because the excitement of the build-up and the actual event has passed, it doesn't mean the opportunity to keep the conversation going should be missed. Sending surveys, thank you emails, highlight reels, popular slide decks are all decent examples of post-event comms.
Surveys
An effective way of getting honest feedback (especially if you let the respondent answer anonymously). Make them short and snappy - people like quick response options like check boxes, radio buttons and dropdowns. Try and keep free text fields to a minimum, perhaps just a comments box at the end of the survey.
Send them out 24-48 hours after the event whilst it's still fresh in their minds.
If you've got the budget something like a prize draw is a good way to encourage attendees to respond.
If you're sending out surveys, the key thing is to have an easy mechanism to view and download responses. Don't ignore the results, act on them and share the key points.
Thank you email
A simple "thanks for attending" email is an easy way to acknowledge and thank people for coming to the event. Make it more relevant to the individual if you can, a bit more than just their name if you can.
It could be used as a standalone email, include a link to take the post-event survey (see above), or an attachment/link to the highlights reel.
Highlight reels
Most of us haven't got time to watch a 60-minute film of an event we attended, no matter how good it was. Most of us can find the time to watch a condensed summary of the event if it's about 5 minutes or so. It's also something that can easily be shared and used to promote the next event.
Promoting future events
A good time to get early bookings for upcoming events is straight after the last one. We're taking it as read that this applies to attendees who got something positive out of the last event.
Neglecting post-event comms, might mean you’re missing out on an opportunity to differentiate your events from the rest.
Email... still cool or is it old school?
Has email had its day as an effective tool for event communications? We think there’s plenty of life in the old dog yet. Here’s our reasons along with some tips on how to get the most out of it.
You have plenty of options when it comes to choosing which channels you use to create buzz for your event and communicate with your attendees, one of them being email.
Is email too old school?
No! Email is still the preferred and most effective channel for sending and receiving direct event communications. Here's a few reasons why:
1. You collect one with each registration;
2. They are delivered directly to the inbox;
3. They can be dynamic, showing personalised content that makes them more likely to be read.
It's important to make sure you've got an email comms plan in place that includes who you'll be sending to and when.
What sort of event communications can we use email for?
In a nutshell, there are quite a few!
1. Save the date or to take pre-registrations;
2. Invitations with a direct response mechanism built-in (accept, decline);
3. Registration confirmation with a response mechanism built-in (Edit details or cancel);
4. Updates and reminders - don’t overdo it by sending every couple of days;
5. Joining instructions;
6. Survey requests;
7. Post-event follow-ups.
How about personalisation?
According to a recent study by Salesloft, the increase in response rate for a personalised email vs a non-personalised one can be up to 250%!
It's worth pointing out that personalisation done badly can have an adverse effect on response rates, so make sure you invest some time into getting it right.
When we talk personalisation, it’s much more than “Hi {{ first name }}”. We'll take it as read that it should include the basics, but where it comes into its own is where the content is dynamic I.e. tailored to the receiver based on what you know about them.
Confirmation emails could show some of their selections made during registration. For example, their dietary requirements, accommodation preferences, and session times. It's also an opportunity for you to go the extra mile so you could include things like links showing how to get there and local places to eat.
The point is to make sure it gets read. Relevant and interesting content makes that more likely.
Do event platforms have built-in email functionality?
Most event platforms have at least a basic capability to send emails with some having more advanced functionality like scheduling and template options (Mitingu falls into the latter category, but you knew we’d say that!).
My platform only has basic email functionality, what are my options?
Check with your provider to see if they have an API. An API makes it possible to automatically pass attendee data to your email marketing platform enabling you to send from there. That's not a five-minute job and you'll need the services of a web developer too.
If your platform has an export attendee data function, you could download it and then manually upload to your email marketing platform. It’s a bit long-winded but it’s a decent option if you don’t have the time or money to get an automated integration built using an API.
To sum it up
Email is still the most effective communications tool for your event if it's planned properly and the content is tailored to the attendee. Yes, it’s been around for a while but there’s a reason for that, it works.