Event Email Marketing Ideas That Won’t Make People Unsubscribe

Email has become an essential part of our daily lives. More than 333 billion emails are sent every day, and that figure is expected to grow to 376 billion by 2025. There’s no denying that email is a critical part of every marketer’s toolkit, but how do you create email content that stands out from the noise showing up in users’ inboxes? Post-pandemic, as live events resume and virtual events remain a key component of many strategic programs, it’s time to get creative with event email marketing ideas that won’t make people hit delete, ignore you, or worst – unsubscribe.

Why Is Email Marketing So Important for Events?

Plain and simple, email marketing is indispensable because it’s still the communication channel that nearly three-quarters of consumers prefer. Despite U.S. adults spending an average of more than 2.5 hours per day on social media, emails remain the gold standard for sharing information.

Event email marketing enables you to stay in touch with your attendees, start building excitement for your event, send out invitations, boost registrations, share updates, promote sponsors and exhibitors, provide registration confirmation, communicate logistical details, and distribute post-event follow-ups, and more.

Because the average professional office worker receives upward of 120 emails each day, it’s not enough to simply arrive in someone’s inbox. Event marketers must be strategic and smart in crafting emails that stand out, and, ultimately, build trust among their audiences through effective event email marketing.

Tips and Tricks to Improve Your Event Email Marketing

Feel overwhelmed, competing against the latest TikTok viral videos and endless Reels favored by the Instagram algorithm? Don’t forget how effective event email marketing can be, using these pro tips.

1. Segment Your Audience

Remember that old adage, “it’s not what you know, but who you know”? Effective email marketing is not only about communicating the right message, but first and foremost, transmitting to the right people. The golden rule of email marketing is to make sure you’re sending out emails with your audience in mind. With average adult attention spans dipping below 8 seconds, that leaves a very narrow window to catch someone’s eye. That’s where audience segmentation comes in. This trick allows you to divide your email list into different sections that will receive different email messaging (or slightly varied versions of the same general email) based on who they are. For instance, you’d want to send 60% of your list who’s already expressed interest in your event or who attended last year a different email message than someone who’s never attended or doesn’t know much about your event. You can go into much more granular segments than this to create powerful, personalized event email marketing campaigns.

2. Get Personal

Speaking of personal – have you ever received an email that begins with a line greeting you by name (i.e., “Hey there, Joe!”)? Even if you know it’s from an email marketing provider, there’s something about that personalization that simply works. It’s “stickier” than an email without your name because it feels like it was crafted specifically for you. But being able to do this starts with the information you’re capturing about your audience. Be sure to use custom fields to gather everything you need from your email recipients (most importantly: their real names!) to be able to add this level of personalization to your event emails.

Also, keep in mind what name shows up in the “sender” section of your email. If your audience knows your event primarily from your brand, for instance, don’t use your CEO’s name as the sender. Use whatever will feel most familiar to your recipients to maximize open rates.

3. Keep Branding Consistent

As with any element of event marketing, the branding of your emails should be consistent with your event’s overall brand. When the visuals are instantly recognizable, your audience will be more inclined to open and read them. If you’re using different audience segments, you may choose to create slightly different branding for each one, to help it feel further customized to them and their needs.

4. Tease Information

There’s an art to providing just enough information, without giving away too much. One of the biggest mistakes event marketers make is telling all through promo emails. If a potential event participant thinks they’re learning all they need to know simply from email communications, they won’t have an incentive to register and attend. Instead, drip out information strategically to create demand and just enough FOMO to make those considering attending actually register.

5. Implement Early Bird Offers

The procrastination effect is real, and it impacts event registration. At least 20 percent of adults report regularly putting off something until the last minute. For events, seeing a ton of last-minute registrations, rather than a steady stream throughout the open period, can cause stress on the event management team, not being able to plan a predictable headcount in advance. To give readers a sense of urgency to go ahead and commit already, use the classic email marketing strategy of creating an early-bird offer. This may include buzz phrases such as “only 40 spots left,” “rates are going up soon,” “we’re almost sold out,” “early bird offer expiring tonight” and so on.

6. Create a Countdown

Like early bird offers, a countdown timer in your emails can help recipients to visualize the sense of urgency and register for your event sooner. It’s easy to automate these emails and schedule them a few days before your deadline, so readers receive a gentle nudge to act.

7. Promote Multiple Events in One Email

If your company has multiple events in a close time frame, or on the same date but in different locations, save time for yourself and your recipients by combining them into a single email. Use nicely branded visuals to create graphics that package up your event offerings, making sure to create clear CTA buttons for each one (or, create a landing page for the email, that gives you more space to work with).

8. Use Clear CTAs

A compelling, straightforward call to action is an ever-important, yet frequently overlooked part of any event marketing email. Don’t overthink it, but take care to always incorporate a link or button for recipients who want to register, check out the event’s agenda, download a mobile app or simply learn more about your event.

As you work to build an effective event email marketing strategy, don’t forget to continuously analyze what’s working (and what’s not), experiment with different tactics, and adjust your content to optimize results.

Make Registration Easy with Stova

Stova event registration software integrates seamlessly with your event technology stack. Once you’ve piqued your audience’s interest through email marketing, work with us to create solutions such as customizable checkout forms to capture attendee data, versatile registration pages and types, automated follow-ups (such as confirmations, reminders, and updates) and more. Schedule a demo today to learn how Stova can fit into your overall event strategy.