Yesterday, I wrote about how to plan using social media during your event. Today I want to give some insight into the benefits I saw from using social media at the event that I covered.
People who can't attend can still follow along. While I was posting to social media during the event, I noticed several people comment on Facebook that they loved how they could still see what was going on even though they couldn't be there. Depending on what type of event you are putting on, social media could help you reach the attendees and let them know about important topics being discussed during your meetings. You could even ask your guest speaker to give you the outline to their discussion and post that to Facebook or link it on twitter.
Family members can see their loved ones. One of the sessions I covered during the event was where candidates got ordained or licensed. Using social media for this session was fantastic. I had several families' comment that they wished they could have been there, but through the pictures that were taken, they felt like they were. I know this works great for kids and youth when they go to camp. A thing to remember though is when you start planning your event make sure you include in your waivers a photo release.
Lots of posts show others how fun your event is. When people see a lot of activity and photos come across their social media feeds, they may be interested in joining in on the fun. Many are starting to join in on the social media adverting band wagon. Why not, it is a free resource and who couldn't use a little extra promotion these days. I noticed during the event I covered that a lot people wished they would have come just by looking at all of the pictures. No matter what type of event you are having, you could benefit by using some kind of social media.
Tomorrow, I will discuss some other ways to use social media during your event. With the media world ever changing, you have to keep up on what your target audience is using and what they like. Otherwise, you may end up not reaching a good portion of your target group.
What ways has your ministry benefited from using social media?