Human interaction is the foundation of success and progress. From ancient philosophers to modern corporate employees, communication has been the constant for growth. Within the events industry, effective collaboration between team members and punctual event communication with attendees decide whether an event triumphs or fails.
Through this article, the goals are:
- To help you understand the importance of communication in event management.
- Formulating an event communication plan.
- How technology can be used to perfect your event communication strategies.
It should be clear now that this content piece is similar to an event planning guide. But with a twist that simplifies everything related to communication in events for you. So you could be anything from a fresher organizer to a pro planner, the strategies here will provide you with something new to take into action.
Why Event Communication Matters
We know that human communication is what drives growth, however, how does that translate to businesses, specifically the events business?
- Clear, constant, and on-time event communications form and bring trust and faith respectively in the attendees. This bond between an attendee and an organizer is what matters, hence proving the importance of event communications.
- Additionally, when attendees get timely and correct information about the event and its proceedings, that gives them time to prepare.
This directly translates to a more positive perception in the attendees’ minds about the event. Other than this:
- Having effective communication holds the fort of expectations of your attendees, sponsors, and stakeholders with a clear understanding of the event:
- ➤ Purpose
- ➤ Schedule; and
- ➤ Potential benefits
Such a proactive approach lowers the scope of conflict and confusion so everyone involved faces the same direction, making the overall event experience even better. Moreover:
- Planned and strategized communication in event management acts as a ladder for reaching closer to obtaining an all-around event success. It guarantees that:
- ➤ All team members are synchronized.
- ➤ Potential issues are managed quickly.
- ➤ The event’s goals are promptly conveyed to the target audience.
Note: About 47% of planners are a testament to the fact that issues in communications negatively impact the execution of events. This firmly shows that communication in event management is an aspect that cannot be taken for granted.
Making The Perfect Event Communication Plan
Before we jump over to the second and third stages related to bolstering event communications, let’s go through the first and foremost step, i.e., forming an event communication plan.
This plan will be your map, blueprint, navigator, etc., which will act as a guideline on how to communicate with everyone involved, from attendees to sponsors, for the duration of your event.
But why is making a plan necessary for communication in event management?
It is important because without a plan that states what, how, and to whom to communicate essential event details, you risk downgrading your event execution. This downgrade can happen through various factors like false expectations and misguided attendees.
Elements Of An Event Communication Plan:
| Element | Description |
| Objectives | Outline precise goals that you would want your communication plan to achieve and work towards. These goals should be: ➤ Specific ➤ Measurable ➤ Achievable (Known as SMART) ➤ Relevant, and ➤ Time-bound. Increasing employee engagement, driving sales, etc., are some examples that organizers go for. |
| Target Audience | Find your ideal audience and separate them into groups like attendees, sponsors, and speakers. This way, you can know their preferred choices of communication and curate the most appropriate messaging for each group. |
| Key Messages | Next, decide on the kind of messages you wish to convey regarding your event or brand. Make sure that the messaging is clear and concise. Core messages reflect the main idea, followed by additional points and proof points. Note: The messages should answer: “What do I want my audience to think or do?” |
| Communication Channels | Selecting the most apt channels to reach the target audience forms the basis of your entire plan. There are various ways to communicate, which can include email, social media, mobile event apps, event websites, etc. Figuring out which communication tools to use and when is most important (e.g., email for external stakeholders, Slack for synchronous team communication). |
Timeline and Schedule | Preparing a to-the-point timeline for all communication activities, starting from before the event promotion all the way to after-event follow-up, makes the plan rock solid. Outlining the tasks to be completed and including a specific period serves as a to-do list and helps in the proper execution of the event plan. |
Crisis Communication Plan | This should be included in your event communication plan as it serves as a contingency scheme in case of issues or emergencies that arise during or before an event, for example, speaker cancellations or technical difficulties. |
| KPIs | Make sure to jot down your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that stay in parallel to your event objectives. That way, you can measure the effectiveness of your communication strategy and what might require further improvements. |
Read More: WhatsApp Automation for Business: Simplifying Events & Communication
How To Strategize Your Event Communication For Every Stage
Strategy-making is something that has quite a lot of variations as different organizers strategize differently based on their industry or niche. Nonetheless, the strategies we have described below for different stages are something that has been tried and tested by 100s. This means that if done properly with complete attention to detail, it will work irrespective of the industry one might belong to.
Pre-Event Communication Strategies
Before an event commences, there are multiple things you, as an event planner, can do to set the event’s repo. It’s similar to movie trailers, by releasing a sneak peek into what the movie is about, production houses essentially create the hype for their movie. Similarly, pre-event communication is all about teasing your event and showing its value.
1. Tease, Tease, And Tease
After jotting down the elements of your event communication plans, then taking care of the logistics and conceptualization of your event. You start releasing teasers about your event and its activities, this includes:
- Gradually announce your event commencement with countdowns and sneak peeks.
- Display attractive and hooking visuals of the behind-the-scenes or your gallery of images and videos from previous event activities.
- Use social media as a broadcast platform to make everyone aware of your event and what it’s gonna include.
2. Curating Content That Sells
Imagine you, as an organizer, want to communicate with your audience what your event is going to be like and why they should consider attending it. Now, you won’t just churn out random content and spread it out there. The right thing to do is to create content that hooks, sparks, and sells. Your content could be of any form:
- Podcasts
- Interviews
- Animation
- Blogs
- Conducting live polls
- Short or long-format videos
Hence, take your time and be picky with the content that you want your audience to see and take a liking to. Additionally, make sure to include important information in your content that talks about details like:
- Event itinerary
- Venue location and look
- Presenter/speaker information
- Food and beverages
- Dress code (if any)
- Parking system
3. Means Of Communication In Event Management
Everything mentioned above is about what you should communicate and how to present it. However, the question remains how to communicate that content and information. There are four main strategies for this in the present world, that are:
- Social media: This is a common and most used channel in even communication plans and rightly so. Everybody wishes to be social-media-worthy and share content and updates about themselves on it. Hence heavily use this medium through different applications like:
- ➤ X (formerly known as Twitter)
- ➤ TikTok
- ➤ Reddit and Quora
- ➤ Industry-specific platforms and forums (if any)
- Email marketing: Another to-date and common but result-providing strategy is email marketing. It’s one of the most trusted and professional methods of communication to any type of audience within any industry.
- Event website and mobile event apps: These are highly recommended and efficient event technologies that will boost your pre-event communication efforts with ease. Using them, the registration and ticketing process for both the organizers and attendees is made effortless. Additionally, your attendees can easily be informed regarding event details in real time.
Read More: Mobile Apps for Events and Conferences: A Complete Guide
During-The-Event Communication Strategies
Once the pre-event strategy is executed to the point of success based on your metrics, the next thing to be prepared for is during-the-event communication. Till now, the communication with your attendees has been about things that were planned and known. In this stage, the communication strategy takes a different shape.
Additionally, the communication effort at this stage is not just about your attendees getting the information but also about your event staff. Your event team during the event, needs to be in sync with changes or issues that occur in real-time, like:
- When and where to be stationed
- Technical difficulties that need to be resolved immediately
- Posting announcements through various communication channels
- Handling attendees with concerns
This stage of event communication hinges on updates being shared and broadcast in real time. So how to do that?
1. Live polling
Polling might sound like a boring strategy, but if executed properly obtains feedback that could change the flow of your event. Plus, with the use of event websites and mobile event apps, conducting polls and surveys has never been easier.
2. Social media
Yes, we mentioned this before in pre-event communication strategies, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be used at this stage. The use of social media is so heavy that it can be utilized throughout the different event communication stages. You can use the live-stream functionalities of some social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook to share updates on the event.
3. Push notifications
Once again, the use of mobile event applications comes in use over here. Using this capability of the event technology solution, you can safeguard your attendees from getting distracted or missing some important event activity or session. The best part is that this solution can be used in any type of event (virtual, hybrid, and in-person).
Note: 67.5% of attendees have stated that it should be made vital for event planners to offer a mobile event app for in-person events.
Post-Event Communication Strategies
After you successfully conclude your event, the conversation with your attendees doesn’t and shouldn’t stop here. The reason behind why this strategy came into being was to gather data, not just the quantitative but the qualitative as well. This way organizers know what can be repeated, improved, and discarded for their future event planning efforts.
For attendees, post-event communication shows that their opinions are of much importance and that their attendance and presence were appreciated.
So how to communicate and get your dialogue once the event is over?
Email follow-ups: Send out thankful emails stating how your attendees’ participation and attendance matter to you. Along with that, you could include a link in the mail or request them to complete a quick survey to gather their reviews.
Event apps: Another way to gather and obtain feedback from your attendees is by contacting your registered attendees through the event app. This is a faster approach compared to email follow-ups because at times emails get lost in the shuffle or end up unnoticed for long periods.
How To Know Your Communication In Event Management Works?
Having gone through and effectively implementing the above strategies and tools is a big thing on its own and is praise-worthy. But then, how do you know that it worked? Or how to quantify the success of your event communication plan?
To know the answer to this, first, you must define what it is you want to measure. This means knowing the event success KPIs (key performance indicators). In the case of event communications, it could be n number of things. We have listed the most important ones below:
| KPI | Description |
| Email Open Rate | Percentage of recipients who opened the event emails. |
| Email Click-Through Rate (CTR) | Percentage of recipients who clicked a link in the event emails. |
| Social Media Engagement | Number of likes, shares, comments, and mentions on social media channels. |
| Event Website Traffic | Number of website visits, page views, and bounce rate. |
| Mobile Event App Downloads | Number of attendees who download the event app. |
| Mobile Event App Usage | Number of active app users, session attendance, and feature usage. |
| Survey Response Rate | Percentage of attendees who complete the post-event survey. |
| Feedback Sentiment Analysis | The tone and sentiment of feedback received from surveys, social media, and other channels. (Positive or negative) |
| Net Promoter Score (NPS) | How likely attendees are to recommend your event to others? |
| Inbound Communication Volume | Number of inquiries received through email, phone, social media, or other channels. |
| Average Response Time | Time that is taken to respond to attendee inquiries. |
| Speaker Ratings | Average rating of speakers based on attendee feedback. |
| Sponsor Satisfaction | Level of satisfaction of sponsors with event communication and opportunities. |
| Staff and Volunteer Feedback | Level of satisfaction of staff and volunteers with event communication and coordination. |
All these metrics will help you determine whether your communication in event management bore the sweet nectar or not.
The best way to gather the data for the aforementioned metrics would be through mobile event apps and analytics platforms (for emails and social media). This way, you won’t have to back and forth between multiple platforms and effortlessly compile the data related to your event.
Read More: Event Success KPIs: 18 Essential Metrics Event Organizer Should Track
Conclusion
Well, we hope this event planning guide for 2025, helped you reach some solid conclusions regarding the:
- Importance of event communication
- Factors of a success-striving event communication plan
- Strategies to solidify your pre-, during, and post-event communications; and
- Your event communication success KPIs
The goal is not just to ease the convenience for yourselves as organizers but to make sure that the event brings value and efficiency.
FAQs
1. Why Is Communication Such A Critical Factor In Event Success?
Communication is the backbone of any event. It ensures attendees know what to expect which eliminates confusion, and helps create a positive experience. Clear communication also builds trust with sponsors, stakeholders, and staff, which is essential for smooth coordination.
2. What Should I Include In My Event Communication Plan To Avoid Common Pitfalls?
Your event communication plan should cover:
- Objectives: Clearly defined goals (e.g., attendee engagement or ticket sales).
- Audience segmentation: Tailoring messages for attendees, sponsors, and speakers.
- Key messages: Clear, concise points about the event’s value and logistics.
- Channels: Decide which platforms to use for different groups and purposes.
- Timeline: A schedule for communication before, during, and after the event.
- Crisis plan: A backup plan to address last-minute issues like cancellations or technical glitches.
3. What Are The Best Pre-Event Communication Strategies To Build Excitement?
Three effective pre-event strategies are:
- Teasers: Use countdowns, sneak peeks, and behind-the-scenes visuals to create curiosity.
- Compelling content: Share blogs, videos, or social media posts that highlight key speakers, sessions, or event themes.
- Social media campaigns: Engage followers with polls, hashtags, and event updates to spark anticipation and spread awareness.
4. How Can I Ensure Smooth Real-Time Communication During The Event?
Use these tools for effective during-the-event communication:
- Mobile event apps: Enable push notifications to instantly inform attendees of changes, session updates, or announcements.
- Social media: Utilize live-streaming and real-time updates on platforms like Instagram or Facebook for broad-reaching communication.
- Team sync tools: Use tools like Slack or WhatsApp to keep staff and volunteers informed of any behind-the-scenes changes or issues.
5. What Are The Most Important KPIs To Measure Communication Success After An Event?
Key KPIs include:
- Email metrics: Track open and click-through rates to assess how well your messages resonated.
- Engagement levels: Monitor social media interactions and event app usage for attendee involvement.
- Feedback sentiment: Analyze attendee surveys and comments for positive or negative sentiment.
- NPS (Net Promoter Score): Gauge how likely attendees are to recommend the event.
- Response times: Measure how quickly your team addressed attendee questions or concerns.
