Dragon Fire

PRSSA's National Conference in Washington, D.C. is comprised of both chapter and professional development sessions. Chapter development sessions are organized by PRSSA chapters from around the country that have demonstrated expertise in a certain area or have orchestrated a successful event, campaign, etc.

A fellow Philadelphia chapter at Drexel University presented "Dragon Fire", a session on using social media to promote your chapter and events. Even though I love social media, I was reminded that I could be doing a lot more to promote individual events and our chapter as a whole. Are you using all of these tactics? Check out Drexel's tactics and tips below to find out.

Utilize traditional marketing tactics. Post fliers for fundraising, recruitment and promotional events around campus and the surrounding areas. Make sure the events are listed or covered in your college newspaper or other local media outlets. You can even send letters to professors to make sure the professor and his or her students are aware of the event. These tactics will spread both awareness and gain attendance at your events.

In addition to utilizing these traditional promotion methods, use various social media sites to promote an event. These are the tips Drexel University had for using social media sites when raising awareness of an event.

1. Facebook

- Create a separate event that links to your fan page. This is an easy way to send out the event without sending people to your organization's site.

- Follow up with messages about the event. Be careful about sending too many messages, though. Only send a message to those who have been invited if you have additional information to provide them.

2. LinkedIn

- You can create an event page on LinkedIn. By creating this page you can invite your contacts and even companies to attend the event.

- Ask your connections to share your event information with their own network. It will spread the event out among more people.

3. Twitter

- Create a hashtag for each event. Use this hashtag whenever tweeting about the event. It allows you to track who is talking about the event and join the conversation about the event you are promoting.

- Don't be afraid to ask for a retweet. By asking for a retweet, you can send the information to more followers.

- Encourage tweeting during the actual events. You don't just want people to know about the event beforehand. You want to make sure others are aware of the event while it is going on, especially if they cannot be present.

These are just some of the tips Drexel University provided to PRSSA chapters from around the nation. What are social media tips do you have for promoting events?