Easy advertising for charity events

Easy advertising for charity events

If you’re running a Christmas event, fund-raiser or charity event, finding ways to advertise are crucial. There are plenty of tried and tested methods and it can depend on the type of event as to how much advertising you’ll need to do. If it’s a one-off event there are some easy advertising tricks, while for groups and organisations who run regular events, there are some secrets to making the most of your advertising material.

The paparazzi

The local media will be important for promotion and can act as a free source of advertising for local events. Any good cause that benefits the local community will be of interest to local journalists and broadcasters. Even the smallest publication is likely to be hungry for content, so don’t think that you’ll be turned away! You can create a press release but it pays to make a call to the editor in question. Old fashioned phone calls tend to get attention better than emails, with which editors are often swamped; focus on the local angle and why the story needs telling.

Easy advertising options

Flyers and banners are two of the oldest known advertising tools. Despite the fact that most things seem to have gone online these days, local events (charity or otherwise) are still best advertised with real, solid advertising. Banner producers can be sourced nationally or locally and banners can be reused, if you avoid specific dates on the banner itself. The phrase, “see website for details” can be substituted, meaning you can reuse the banner for another similar event. You can use flyers to target busy places using volunteers – markets, malls and other shopping areas are good places to get maximum exposure in your community.

Talking of websites

Don’t forget the wonders of the world wide web. If your organisation has a website, set up a specific blog to advertise your event (or ask for volunteers), tweet about the event, add details to Facebook; it all helps to get the word out! You can even record a video and post it on YouTube.

Corporate sponsors

Offer advertising for local businesses at your event in return for sponsorship. Companies which are supporting you will be glad of the free advertising on your website (keep it off banners though if you want to reuse them!). As well as sponsorship, you can ask them to distribute flyers with their own promotional material in their offices or retail spaces.

Your Friends on Facebook Don’t Like You

A few of my younger or newer entrepreneur clients who are working on their social media, lament that they can’t turn their facebook contacts into real time connections. Or they can’t get their facebook friends to go over to their fan page and like the fanpage. There is one thing they overlook. Facebook is really good at naming parts and groups. They call the users of Facebook “friends” but the reality is, most of those people are not people who are a friend. They are an online-aquaintence.

Client A says, she lives in the same city as Person X and the person for the last 6 months has not agreed to meet for lunch or even a cup of coffee in person. However this same person had not problem making a phone call to try to sign up Client A for a workshop. Client A was a little put off. Clearly the person only had time for them when there was money to be made. Client A was interested in created a ‘REAL-Ationship” as The Career Enginner – Francina Harrison likes to say.

Sometime we have to face it. When you reach out to people who are never interested in creating an offline relationship you might have to face the fact that they are not a friend. They may not even LIKE you. In some cases they are people who “can’t stand you”. But if they can use you to make money off you, they’re in. Figure it out and walk away.

Client B says, he contacts person Z on Facebook and they never ever respond. Once again, it’s not a friend if the only way you have to reach them is Facebook. If people don’t respond to a message, then they probably have someone else posting for them. It’s not them or they have no interest in connecting with you. Take the hint. You won’t miss anything if you are no longer in their stream. They will never like or share your posts. Are there a few people on Facebook who don’t know they should answer messages? In theory yes, but if you are using Facebook for business, common sense would tell you it’s a 2-way street of communication. No one is looking for a billboard on Facebook. We have enough ads on there already.

Facebook should have online acquaintance segments. Just so people won’t get confused. Facebook is great for people to friend you and then watch you. If you read 5 articles on how to grow your business using social media, almost all of them will say, friend your competition and see what they are doing. Some of your Facebook “friends” are doing just that. All your plans are there. All your creative thoughts are being spelled out as you think them through and use Facebook as your personal diary. People are planning to knock off your products and events as soon as you post them. If you in business, the way you post is important. My friend Mark Mikelat says “Facebook is a conversation in a bar, people can overhear, join in, comment and get into the conversation. No expectation if privacy is implied or expected.” If you have something important and private to say, then say it in PRIVATE.

Can’t get your close Facebook family and friends to get to your business fan page? No problem, realize they are not a customer, so they don’t want to LIKE your business fan page. You want people on that page that WANT to be there. These same friends and family who won’t switch over have also never bought your product or service either. Get the pattern? Stop looking for support in the wrong places.

In conclusion, I just want remind entrepreneurs that you have to get out with real people and mingle. Everything can not be done online. You still have to connect. Instead of obsession with people you “met” online that would not give you a glass of water if you laying on a dessert road dried out and they were driving a full potable water bottles, take the hint, create real off line relationships that move your body closer!

I don’t rant often, but I had to get this one out!