The Secret to Planning a Once-in-a-Lifetime Outdoor Event

As outdoor events commence again in the UK, and marketing efforts are raised, how can you make sure that your outdoor event is noticed and make your first event back as memorable as possible? We work with a large number of events companies across different industries, and these are all the graphic design tips and tricks you need to start utilising right now to boost numbers at your outdoor event this summer.

Build anticipation across social channels

Teaser posts here, a reel there... using your social channels to build anticipation for an event is crucial. Once you have your logo, you can use your social channels to create a virtual audience to which you can feed all the important information they'll need to know. Not only is this important from a logistics side, especially during additional COVID-19 restrictions, but having a platform to shout about your event from is a super important way to make sure that people arrive full of excitement.

When it comes to designing social media posts for your event, you might find that using free design software just isn't cutting it. This is probably down to the fact that template designs are becoming increasingly popular and so if you're looking to create a truly unique experience, your graphic design needs to be equally as unique. Whatever outdoor event you're planning to create, keeping your social media posts distinctive will go a long way in getting your particular event noticed and spoken about.Read our previous article for more practical tips aimed at the non-designer on how to create engaging social media design.

Why not try these posts in the run up to your event?

• A daily countdown to ticket sales
• A trailer of what the event will include
• Imagery from past events you have held

Prepare your posters

An olden but golden tool for advertising, poster design is going to help spread awareness about your event locally to a really diverse audience. The beauty of poster design is that, should a person not use social media or simply miss your ad, it's more unlikely that they will miss your well-placed poster. Traditional marketing mediums like this are most definitely alive and thriving in 2021, and in a world where more people are appreciating and prioritising getting outdoors, utilising a more minimally saturated advertising space is a great option.

Why not try the following ideas for your poster?

• Keep your copy relatively short and snappy. You won't have long for a passer-by to read your poster, so keeping your messaging short and to the point will mean that the viewer digests and remembers the information more easily.

• To increase engagement with your poster, why not try including a QR code that links to relevant information?

• In order to get people to stop and read your poster, try injecting some humour. You could do this by witty commentary on the whereabouts of the poster, the timing or anything else that would relate to your audience!

• Bright colours work well for posters because it means that it will likely be contrasting to any background and therefore will drive more attention.

• Create a digital version of your poster. Sharing a digital version of your poster will strengthen your marketing efforts even further and do even more to increase awareness of your event!

Promote your merchandise

Like we covered earlier on in this article, the secret to a truly once-in-a-lifetime outdoor event is to create a sense of community where everyone feels a part of something special. Graphic design can go a huge way in creating this experience from the social channels right through to the tickets. Is there even more ways to build a sense of community though? Creating merchandise is a fun way to do this that you can really get creative with as well as being an effective extra revenue stream.

Bear in mind what will be the most attractive design and garment choice for your target audience, and then just get creative!

So, what is the secret?

It's safe to say that everyone is ready to get back to doing the things they love this year. We all can't wait to be back making memories with friends and family and outdoor events are no doubt going to be a widely popular choice for this. It might be slightly daunting when it comes to trying to promote your event in such a saturated market where the competition is fierce at the moment, but the secret really is in creating a sense of community. Whilst this is done primarily by those fantastic loyal members of your audience and word-of-mouth, attracting people to your community and keeping them engaged is accomplished through high quality graphic design. This can be in the forms mentioned in this article such as merchandise, poster design, social media design and logo design but it can also be so much more. Take for example paid advertisements - these are really commonly used to promote tickets for an event and require professional graphic design in order to see the results you need.If you'd like help from a personal UK-based graphic designer, subscribe to one of our unlimited graphic design subscription plans today. We'll connect you with one of our in-house graphic designers who will work with you every business day on an unlimited amount of design requests, all for just one flat-rate fee. Book a demo today and see how the service could work for you!