For Successful Social Media Marketing, Think like a Party Planner

Successful marketing with social media and great party planning have a lot in common. In fact, what I am suggesting is that you use the same process for social media marketing that you would use for party planning to guarantee success.

I guess this is why so many event planners are successful in social media—this comes naturally to them. Let me explain by breaking down the process.

Create a Guest List

As a party planner you think about a carefully selected guest list, adding the right mix of fun folks, interesting folks, intellectual folks—and then of course there is the right balance of singles and married with children guests. A little matchmaking doesn’t hurt, so thinking about who would love to meet whom in your world is an important element when crafting your guest list.

A guest list that will guarantee a great party also includes a list of those who you might not want to include. Chronic complainers and troublemakers usually are on top of this column.

And don’t forget your list of the hopefuls, those influencers and famous folks that will put your party on Page 6, or at least elevate your status among your friends, family and acquaintances. Let’s face it, we all have a little of that in us.

Create a Theme

Every party has a theme. A theme might be celebrating a birthday or anniversary. A common party theme is getting together for the holidays such as Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and others. A great party theme is celebrating things like births, graduations and other life events. Then there are cause parties. You know, getting folks engaged in a greater social good to save the world, save the whales or make your neighborhood safe. You might even be trying to raise money to support a political initiative or even a candidate.

Marketing themes are actually similar. They could be campaigns around holidays, causes, lifestyles, even problems you solve.

Invitations

Now that you have a theme and your guest list, time to get out the invitations. These can be either formal or informal and your party may even allow for your guests to invite guests of their own. The more the merrier. Your invitation has to provide the details of the who, what, when, where, and why, but it should also send out signals as to your personality and your own sense of style, and communicate either visually or with words the goal for the event.

Social media marketing needs invitations too. This is not a build it and they will come option. Unlike inviting for a single event, social engagement is on going and so your invitations should be ongoing as well.

Refreshments

Next on the party-planning list is what to serve. Parties need great refreshments, cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and other wonders to please the palate. Internet marketing is no different—a cocktail to get you into that party mood and maybe help to let your defenses down, some bites of interesting information to keep you interested and milling around and maybe even a conversation starter. Then the piece de resistance: the main course or the evening’s big entree that will give your guests something to ooh and ah over and then talk about for days, weeks, even months to come.

You might be wondering how you are going to pass a cocktail along through Twitter or Facebook and here is where you might need some imagination: think refreshing and fulfilling. Feed their minds, hearts, souls, and intellect. Offer fun, information, tidbits or tips. You get the idea.

Party Favors

To keep the memory of the party alive long after the event has ended, party favors are a great way to help your guests feel that they had a wonderful time, were appreciated and got a great take-away that lives beyond the event. It could be something very useful or even something they can re-gift.

Again, you might be scratching your head and wondering how to connect the physical world to the digital. Well think in terms of white papers, tip sheets and the like that they can download. How about a coupon? Maybe even a contest where the winner gets something very real like a great meal at a fabulous restaurant or some other prize like a key fob, iPad, flat screen television, or something more relevant to your business, such as one of your own items if you sell goods.

Follow Up

A great host will follow up after the party is over. These follow ups might be returning things accidently left behind, sharing photos and videos from the party, thank you notes to those who brought something to share, and introductions or information that had been requested.

Now, take a look at your social media and other online marketing to see what in this recipe is missing and get going planning a better marketing strategy.