7 Steps to Building an Effective Event PR Strategy

There are many interesting and diverse tools for handling public relations. One of them is often underestimated, namely event marketing. But how to prepare for the event? We will show you the way to an effective event PR strategy.

Effective Event PR Strategy – table of contents:

1. What is PR?
2. What is an EVENT?
3. What should I prepare before the event? – Event PR Strategy
4. What role does an event play in PR and communication?
5. Types of events
6. Key Questions

What is PR?

There are many definitions of Public Relations and each of them brings a new version of the concept. In short, PR aims at shaping the social relations of an operating entity with its environment. It is a set of conscious, planned and long-term actions and activities to showcase the brand at its best by taking care of the good image of an organization or a person.

What is an EVENT?

In English, an event denotes an occasion. From the theoretical point of view, event marketing is dealt with by, among others, communication and media sciences, economics and management, tourism and psychological sciences concerning human behavior during mass events. In practice, event marketing functions as one of the tools for PR marketing strategies. It involves a constant organization of various types of events whose purpose is to have a direct impact on the implementation of the set objectives by enterprises.

What should I prepare before the event? – Event PR Strategy

When planning an event it is worth taking into account several important points that will support our work and enable us to control various situations during the meeting. These include:

1. Formulating an emergency list – checklist expanded to include procedures related to dealing with an emergency.
2. Preparing a holding statement – a model statement or press release, written in advance and presenting the most crucial information and response to a crisis.
3. Creating contact and media list – this list should include all information to contact media representatives (e.g. name, phone number, email address).
4. Appropriate designation of media representatives.
5. Provision of communication – in addition to the marking of rescue and fire-fighting equipment and a separate room for the services responsible for securing the event, etc.
6. Designation of a zone for the media – a different entry time and a separate zone from the other participants.
7. Prepare copies of any necessary documents.

REMEMBER!

To prepare and organize a successful event you require, first and foremost, common sense, a detailed agenda, security on all levels from cyberspace to insurance policies, a lot of patience andconstant effort daily.

What role does an event play in PR and communication?

Events can focus on various specific facets of strengthening a company like image, charity or sales. They may promote particular products, brands, services or even ideas. For an event manager, the “5W” rule will be helpful, which in the case of organizing an event may take the form of the following questions:

• What – what are we organizing?
• Who – who is the event for?
• Where – where do we organize it?
• When – what is the time and date of the event?
• Why – for what purpose do we organize an event?

By asking ourselves these 5 basic questions we significantly support the idea and realistic assumptions about the organized event.

When organizing an event don’t forget to determine what scope of marketing activities to take and how to channel the message:

• ATL (Above the line) – a strategy of marketing activities that are carried out in traditional media (radio, television, press, posters, outdoor advertising),
• BTL (Below the line) – marketing activities aimed at consumers, not being advertising in mass media.

Types of events

Events can also be divided into different types depending on the purpose and nature:

• Corporate and business events
• Trade fairs and exhibitions
• Recreational and entertainment events
• Civic and governmental events
• Marketing events
• Conferences and meetings
• Social events
• Sports events

An event is a perfect add-on to a multi-level PR or marketing campaign, e.g. aimed at online sales of a product. It is also a perfect opportunity for interaction and direct conversation with the customer and the media. Events are focused on communication and meeting a specific recipient. They build relations, as well as support partner and employee contacts, integrate and connect.

Check out The best PR campaigns of 2021.

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