LinkedIn is a great platform for networking and promoting your business. One useful feature on LinkedIn is the ability to create event invitations and send them to your connections. Event invites allow you to publicize an upcoming event, recruit attendees and spread the word about what you’re organizing.
Creating a LinkedIn event invite is easy and free. In just a few simple steps, you can design an eye-catching invitation, reach your target audience and track attendance. Read on to learn how to create an event and invite guests on LinkedIn.
Benefits of LinkedIn Event Invitations
Here are some of the key advantages of sending event invites through LinkedIn:
- Reach a targeted audience. You can select who to send the invite to based on location, industry, job role and more.
- Promote your event widely. Get the word out to your network with just a few clicks.
- Appear more influential. Hosting events can improve your social clout on LinkedIn.
- Drive event attendance. LinkedIn makes it simple for people to RSVP and add your event to their calendar.
- Gain insights. You can view analytics on how many people viewed, shared and engaged with your invite.
With over 610 million users, LinkedIn is a valuable platform for promoting your event to the right crowds. Sending invites through LinkedIn makes it easy for your connections to learn about and register for your event.
Step 1: Create an Event Page
The first step is to create an event page on LinkedIn. This is where you’ll enter all the key details about your event that you want to promote. Here’s how to set up your event page:
- Go to your LinkedIn homepage and click on “Interests” at the top.
- Next, click on “Events” on the dropdown menu.
- Click the blue “Create an event” button in the top right corner.
- Enter your event name, time/date, location and description on the page that appears.
- Upload an eye-catching banner image for your event.
- Click “Create” to publish your event page.
Your event page will have its own public URL that you can share with attendees. People will be able to view event details, RSVP and add it to their calendar.
Tips for Your Event Page
Here are some tips to create an effective LinkedIn event page:
- Use a high-quality banner image that promotes your event visually.
- Write an engaging event description that explains what attendees will get out of it.
- Include logistical details like parking information and Wi-Fi availability.
- Link to your event website or registration page for more info.
- Select relevant hashtags and categories so your event is discoverable.
Optimizing your LinkedIn event page will help attract more visibility and signups.
Step 2: Design Your Invitation
After publishing your event page, it’s time to design the invitation you’ll send out. LinkedIn provides invitation templates you can customize.
Here’s how to create your own event invite:
- Go back to your LinkedIn event page and click “Invite” at the top.
- Choose one of LinkedIn’s pre-made invitation templates and click “Customize.”
- Edit the template with your event title, logo, imagery, colors and message.
- Highlight key event details like the date, time, location and call-to-action.
- Preview how your customized invite will appear to recipients.
- Once you’re happy with it, click “Send” to distribute the invitations.
Tips for Your Event Invitation
Follow these best practices when designing your event invitation:
- Use eye-catching visuals and your company logo.
- Keep invite text short, scannable and persuasive.
- Focus on how attendees will benefit by participating.
- Emphasize important event details like schedule and location.
- Include a strong call-to-action like “Register Now.”
An engaging invite gives recipients a reason to attend your event.
Step 3: Select Your Guests
Now it’s time to choose who you want to send the event invitation to. You can invite:
- Your 1st-degree connections
- 2nd and 3rd-degree connections
- All LinkedIn members in a specific area or industry
- A customized list you create of specific members
When selecting recipients, think about your target audience for the event. Focus on inviting relevant connections by location, job role and industry.
For example, if it’s a marketing conference, target people in marketing roles around the event city. Only invite connections likely to be interested in attending.
Tips for Selecting Guests
Here are some tips for choosing who to send your invite to:
- Leverage LinkedIn filters like location, job title and employer.
- Invite those you have strong existing relationships with.
- Prioritize recipients in your local geographic area.
- Only invite people relevant to your event topic and industry.
- Segment recipients rather than inviting your whole network.
Being selective when inviting will boost open and click-through rates.
Step 4: Send Out Your Invites
Once your invitation is designed and recipients selected, it’s time to send it out!
Here are the steps to distribute your event invites:
- From the invitation page, click the blue “Send now” button.
- Double check the preview to verify all details are correct.
- Select the guest list you want to receive the invitation.
- Choose whether recipients can share the invite with their own connections.
- Click “Send” to deliver your LinkedIn event invitations.
- Recipients will receive an email and LinkedIn notification with your invite.
After sending your invites, promote the event regularly up until the date to maximize awareness. Share updates, attendee spotlights and reminders to generate excitement.
Step 5: Track Invitation Metrics
LinkedIn provides metrics so you can see how your event invitations are performing. Click “See invite analytics” on the event page to view:
- Number of invites sent and opened
- Click-through rate on the call-to-action link
- Social engagement like likes, comments and shares
- Employee demographics like job role and industry
- Top click countries and companies
Analyzing these metrics allows you to optimize future invites for higher open and click rates.
Tips for Improving Metrics
Use these tactics to boost key invitation metrics:
- Send invites from accounts recipients are more likely to open.
- Personalize subject lines to improve open rates.
- Highlight urgency and exclusivity to increase clicks.
- Target more niche, relevant audiences.
- Experiment with different templates and content.
Continuously test and refine your invites based on performance data.
Conclusion
Sending event invitations through LinkedIn is a highly effective tactic to promote your event and recruit attendees. With LinkedIn’s templates and analytics, it’s simple to create and optimize professional invites.
To summarize, follow these key steps:
- Set up an event page with all the details.
- Design an eye-catching, benefit-focused invitation.
- Strategically select recipients based on relevance.
- Send out your invites and promote the event ongoingly.
- Track performance metrics to improve future invitations.
Leveraging LinkedIn events allows you to tap into your professional network and drive event success. So what are you waiting for? Start creating and sending those LinkedIn invitations today to supercharge awareness of your next event!