How to Harness FOMO to Boost Event Signups

Tired of traditional marketing strategies that don’t produce the results you want? Or are you looking to add even more oomph to an already successful event marketing campaign?

One effective tactic you can use is to induce a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) in potential participants – nudging them from “perhaps I’ll think about it” to “I’ve got to register now!”

Here are some ways you can do so.

FOMO happens when we fear missing out on something – and one of the easiest ways to trigger this thought is by showing potential attendees that the people in their social circle are attending your event.

A great tool for doing this is Facebook events. When someone responds to your event invitation with an “I’m going” or “I’m interested”, Facebook informs their friends about it. And when the date of your event rolls around, Facebook does two things for you – it reminds participants to attend your event, while reminding their friends of your event (which can lead to more last-minute signups for you).

Scarcity is another effective way of creating a feeling of FOMO in your target audiences, and marketers know this. People simply value things more when they’re not always available – that’s why limited edition products often command prices that go beyond their actual value. (Because their perceived value is high.)

In fact, this concept is so powerful that you’ll see the scarcity being used for events and items that don’t even have physical limits – such as webinars, as well as digital products and courses. Include an element of scarcity into your events (such as “limited seats available” or “category A tickets are running out fast”) and see how this makes a difference to your sign up numbers.

Exclusive offers are an extension of the concept of scarcity. Here, you can offer event attendees a deal or opportunity that’s exclusively for event attendees – such as, “Be the first to see our new release”, “Get a hands-on experience with our yet-to-be-announced camera” or “All items at the exhibition will be available at a 40% discount”.

You could also use this strategy to encourage people to purchase more expensive tickets by offering them exclusive opportunities, like dining and chatting with your event’s speakers – or other opportunities that they would find incredibly valuable.

FOMO can be a powerful marketing tool when used skilfully. Think of the ways you can leverage on FOMO when promoting your next event, make it a part of your event marketing strategy and enjoy the results!