In today’s fast-paced world, simply hosting a successful event is not enough. The real challenge for marketers and event organisers lies in what happens after the event – to ensure that the time, effort, and investment put into organising it continues to deliver value.
Attendees may quickly move on to other priorities, so keeping them connected, energised, and interested after the event ends is essential for building lasting relationships and maximising the impact of the event.
So how do we keep the conversation going well after the event has concluded?
Once an event ends, attendees may quickly shift their focus to the next thing on their schedule, potentially forgetting the key takeaways or the brand experience they just had. By extending engagement, you create opportunities to maintain your brand’s presence in their minds, build stronger relationships, and encourage future interactions.
Post-event engagement also allows you to further nurture the connections you made during the event, ensuring that it was more than just a one-time experience. Instead, it becomes part of an ongoing journey that delivers value to attendees and provides additional touchpoints for your brand to stay relevant.
Practical ways to maintain engagement
- Send a personalised Thank-You email
A personalised thank-you email can go a long way in showing appreciation for your attendees’ time. Rather than sending a generic ‘thank you for attending,’ reference specific sessions or content they engaged with during the event. Personalising the email helps make it feel more meaningful.
You can also include additional resources such as downloadable content (eBooks, whitepapers) or links to further learning opportunities that are tailored to their interests. This not only reinforces your event’s value but also provides them with actionable takeaways they can explore afterwards.
- Repurpose event content
Repurposing event content is a great way to keep your audience engaged. Recordings of keynote speeches, panel discussions, or breakout sessions can be turned into different forms of content that continue to provide value.
For example, blog posts, podcasts, and video snippets can highlight key moments from the event and be shared across your website, social media, or email newsletters. These bite-sized pieces of content allow attendees to revisit important discussions or catch up on things they might have missed. Additionally, creating an on-demand content library for your virtual or hybrid event allows attendees to engage with content at their own pace.
- Engage on social media
Social media is an excellent platform for extending the life of your event. Post-event, continue the conversation by sharing highlights, event photos, and key quotes from speakers. Encourage attendees to share their favourite moments or insights using the event’s dedicated hashtag.
You can also run interactive posts, such as polls or Q&A sessions, that invite attendees to reflect on what they learned. These tactics keep the conversation dynamic and help build a sense of community around the event content.
- Create a post-event survey
Gathering feedback through a post-event survey helps you understand how attendees felt about their experience and what you can improve in the future. Surveys also give participants an opportunity to reflect on the event and provide valuable insights for your next one.
Keep the survey short and focused to encourage participation. Ask attendees about the sessions they found most valuable, the overall event experience, and areas for improvement. As a follow-up, share a summary of the feedback and any actions you plan to take. This shows attendees that their opinions matter and that you’re committed to delivering an even better experience next time.
- Offer exclusive access to future content or events
One way to keep attendees engaged after an event is by offering exclusive access to future content or events. For example, you could provide early-bird registration for your next event, special discounts, or VIP access to webinars or workshops that build on the event’s themes.
Offering exclusive opportunities helps create a sense of continuity and rewards attendees for their participation. It also gives them a reason to stay connected with your brand and look forward to future interactions.
- Foster a post-event community
Building a community around your event can keep engagement levels high long after it ends. You can create a dedicated online group or forum where attendees can continue to network, ask questions, and share insights.
For example, hosting follow-up discussions or ‘office hours’ with event speakers or industry experts provides additional learning opportunities and helps maintain a connection between attendees and your brand. Creating a community allows your event to become more than a one-time experience, evolving into an ongoing conversation that delivers lasting value.
By focusing on personalised communication, repurposed content, social media interaction, and exclusive access to future opportunities, you can ensure that the conversation continues long after the event has ended, providing continued value to attendees and helping your brand stay top-of-mind. It leaves a lasting impression; rather than being seen as a single experience, it becomes the foundation for a broader, ongoing engagement strategy that helps build relationships, nurture connections, and maximise the impact of your event.
