Tipsheet

5 Best Ways to Promote Your Event on Instagram

Every month, 100 million new users join Instagram — making it one of the fastest growing social media sites worldwide. And with 80% of users following at least one business on the platform, it’s no wonder so many event creators have incorporated it as a pillar of their online presence.

So how can you turn your Instagram account into a vehicle for tangible ticket sales? It’s all about capturing people’s interest with useful content, turning that interest into engagement, and carrying the momentum over into conversion on your ticketing website.

To help, here are five great ways to promote your event on Instagram.

#1: Bring your event to life

A profile featuring beautiful photos of your event is a strong place to start on Instagram, but it’s not enough to post a series of gorgeous images without a strategy to guide you. Yes, consistent publishing is important, but Instagram is really a platform made for storytelling.

“Your account should be of value to your users, not just a platform to push ticket sales. You have to earn the right to make that sale.”

– Christy Huggins, Director of Digital Marketing at Eventbrite

So first thing, switch your perspective on your posts. See them not just as a means of showing off your event through pictures or asking people to buy tickets, but as a method of building ongoing engagement — audience interest that can then lead to ticket sales.

Top posting tips to help you bring your event to life:

  • Use geolocation tags and custom hashtags. Why? Because posts with geolocation tags earn 79% more engagement.
  • Post photo albums on a theme. By sharing up to 10 photos at once to tell a visual story.
  • Share videos. Since video views are up over 80% since last year on Instagram.
  • Tag influencers associated with your event. Including artists, sponsors, or vendors.
Pro Tip

7 out of 10 hashtags on Instagram were made by a brand. If your brand team engages users in the months leading up to your on-sale date, followers will be primed to buy.

#2: Drive instant engagement with Instagram Stories

While posts showcase the best of your event, Instagram Stories record what’s happening right now. Stringing together a series of snapshots and 10-second videos creates an ephemeral story that lasts for only 24 hours, but one that can drive big impact that translates to sales.

In fact, the Stories feature is a darling of Instagram, with the platform putting more and more emphasis on it, including the addition of an inline story promotion in user feeds and the ability for creators to feature story highlights on profile pages. So using this feature is worth your time.

Top stories tips to drive engagement:

  • Add links to your ticketing page. Once you have 10,000 followers, your team can add clickable links (like your ticketing page) to your Stories.
  • Convert your most successful stories into sponsored ads. Make your account a business account to use Stories ads to connect viewers directly to your ticketing page.
Pro Tip

Updating to a business profile status is free and lets you get a “Contact” button in your bio, track additional metrics that general users don’t get to, and makes it easier to tag merch.

#3: Double down on ticket sales

Instagram’s advertising M.O. is to keep the experience inline and authentic. From sponsored posts in user feeds to immersive, full-screen ads within stories, the user’s viewing experience is consistent and fluid.

“Any event that has great visual content/narratives to share should be advertising on Instagram, especially if their core audience is present on Facebook and Instagram.”

– Linda Chen, Performance Marketing Manager at Eventbrite

With the power of Facebook’s advanced targeting algorithms behind Instagram advertising, your team can hone in on specific micro-audiences and prospect for followers who’ve displayed specific behaviors — like following other events.

Top tips for ads to boost ticket sales:

  • Use third-party tools to get the most from your ad spend. Tools like ToneDen can help you optimize your budget with automation and optimization guidance.
  • Use A/B testing to find what resonates with your audience. Don’t just use one ad and forget about it after it’s live, test two versions and tweak till you get it right.
Pro Tip

If you’re an Eventbrite customer, you can manage this entire process right from your Eventbrite dashboard for quicker onboarding and a more integrated experience.

#4: Enlist brand ambassadors and local tastemakers

Instagram is a marketing ecosystem and influencers are at the top of the food chain. They range from paid brand ambassadors with enormous social clout to micro-influencers — your everyday fans who just happen to have a dedicated base of followers. 

And either of those bases could soon be following your event as well. Your team should work with influencers whose followers match your target market in terms of subject matter, demographics, and geographical location.

Top tips for influencers to boost your reach:

  • Use third-party tools to help plan and manage campaigns. Like Scrunch for finding influencers, SocialRank for identifying influencer accounts, and SocialLadder for building a team of ambassadors from within your event’s fan base.
  • Use A/B testing to find what resonates with your audience. Don’t just use one ad and forget about it after it’s live, test two versions and tweak till you get it right.
Pro Tip

Always make sure your team has made the terms of your relationship with an ambassador or influencer clear before the promotion begins — learn more in this post.

#5: Energize your fanbase with giveaways

Instagram algorithms dictate where and when posts show up in feeds. Those that get the most engagement (likes, comments, video views, direct message shares, saved story views, and live video views) rise higher.

That’s why you’ll often see creators use language like “Tag a friend for a chance to win tickets to our event.” These kinds of social media giveaways work because they’re engaging. And with every new user tagged, you get an extra set of eyeballs on your post!

Top tips for motivating peer-to-peer engagement:

  • Enchant followers with a chance to win experiences. Free is irresistible when it comes wrapped in a contest, so give people the chance to win tickets, VIP upgrades, and sponsored products in your giveaways.

  • Empower user-generated content that converts. Studies show people trust user-generated content 50% more than content straight from brands.
Pro Tip

Make sure all your hard work pays off with a mobile-optimized website that provides an easy ticket purchase experience for your audience.

Go beyond followers to sell more tickets

Whether you’re on Instagram already or just looking to get started, this social media platform is the social network to build up your event’s presence online. Discover how to turn your account into a powerful sales conversion platform in The 2020 Guide to Instagram for Event Marketing.

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