Adam Asks: October 2013

Timing:
The first point I'll make in this post is preparation preparation preparation.

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail" ~ Benjamin Franklin

I've managed hundreds of event's entry process over the last few years & in Ireland there seems to be a sense of "sure we'll open up entry a couple of weeks before the event & it'll be grand". This leaves the organisers with very little time to promote the event & get the word out there.

The earlier you get set up for entry the better chance you have of maximising participation:

- Put thought into your pricing structure
- Cement your date on the calendar so potential competitors don't clash
- Plan your social media strategy (see my other blog post for tips) click here
- Get booked marketing support from ACTIVE & RunIreland.com
- Regular press releases to keep the event in people's mind throughout the year
- Make the most out of Charity support if it is a fundraiser

Pricing Structure:
Appropriate thought should be put into your pricing structure. There are 4 main reasons why it is beneficial to get people registered before the event:
- You know how many people to cater for / expect on the day.
- You receive entry fees beforehand to fund the event (ACTIVE systems pay monthly to your account)
- You collect vital data about your participants of which you can form trends and patters for future events
- Avoid the stress & hassle of large queues at registration and handling cash on the day

There are a couple of easy to implement ideas for encouraging participants to enter online:
- Early Bird Pricing: start the event off at a slightly cheaper price & increase it as time gets nearer the event. "Every little helps"
- On the day Admin charge: Charge participants a little extra on the day for administration time. This encourages participants to register online & also increases your revenue totals.

Cement your place on the calendar:
With events popping up in every small town & village, competition is more intense than it's ever been. You being listed on the running calendars puts off similar events in the area of taking your weekend.
- Link to add to the Active / RunIreland calendar click here
***Each of these Active / RunIreland pages get hundreds if not thousands of views, add as much info as you can to these***
- Link to add to runningcalendar.eu click here
- Link to add to Race Dates Ireland click here
- www.athletcisireland.ie
- www.nirunning.co.uk
- www.triathlonireland.com

Social Media Strategy:
By planning your event earlier this year you can put an effective social media strategy in place & build a community about the event. Focus on Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn. Click here

Between your social media channels & the calendar entries this should provide you with lots of exposure.

Marketing Support from ACTIVE Network & RunIreland.com
The companies that work with us for online entry registration get a whole host of free marketing opportunities. Get in touch with me early on so we can book some marketing support for your event:
- Listing on the RunIreland website
- Listing on the Activeglobal.com website
- The RunIreland Newsletter (approx 40,000 subscribers)
- The ACTIVE Newsletter (50,000 + subscribers)
- Using Press Releases on the site homepage to generate interest(averaging between 2,500 - 4,000 site visitors a day at the moment- & this is out "quiet time" )
- Social Media posts about the event leading up to it (approx 6,500 Facebook likes on the RunIreland page)
- You can also purchase advertising spots on RunIreland.com to boost exposure, contact angela@runireland.com for pricing.

Charity Support:
Adding a charity partner to the event has many benefits. It creates a feel good feeling around the event, raises money for a great cause & also opens you up to the charity's marketing channels.

We at ACTIVE Network are also partners with the online fundraising website Just Giving. Just Giving can help increase both fundraising & awareness around the event & make everything more streamlined. Get in touch with me to see how we can work together to help you with fundraising.

I hope you found this post useful for your upcoming events, thanks for your time in reading :-)

Thanks & Regards,
Adam O'Connor

Endurance Account Manager

adam@runireland.com

00 44 2075540932

Mobile - 00 44 7860 595869

Connect on LinkedIn - uk.linkedin.com/pub/adam-o-connor/78/307/ab/

Find us on Facebook - www.facebook.com/runireland

By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.

Benjamin Franklin

By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.

Benjamin Franklin

By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.