The time between the winter holidays and until we see the first sign of green can seem unbearably dull and cold. The spring promises warmer weather and leads us into the prime season for throwing special events and parties. The allure of these special occasions in the wintertime can make it hard to wait, but the truth is, now’s the perfect time to start planning for all those spring and summer events for the upcoming the year.
Taking the time to nail the design of your event or party invitations can make a big difference, no matter if you’re choosing a print or a digital format. The following article is a guest blog from Ben Hindman, CEO of Splash, that can help marketing coordinators and self-proclaimed event planners do just that.
While planning an event, we can fall into the trap of mismanaging our focus. We get obsessed with making sure the venue, the food, and the pacing of the event is absolutely perfect, but often overlook the importance of every other touchpoint—like the event page and invitations. This can leave us in one of the saddest predicaments known to mankind: All dressed up, nowhere to go. So before you even think about hitting “send” on your invite, you have to make sure it does two things: (1) captures your guests’ attention, and (2) gets them in the door.
To get that excitement from your guests, using a free event planning software will make your party invitation is as as legit (and engaging!) as possible.
Get personal.
We all love to feel special, and are hardwired to connect. So consider using a personalized salutation in the body of your invite. Bonus points if it’s in the subject line: A recent study found that personalized subject lines were 22% more likely to be opened by the recipient.
Subject line is key.
Your biggest challenge is to get people to open your email in the first place. So opt for shorter subject lines with punchy copy—it’s a great way to get your invitees’ attention. If you’ve got a massive guest list, try sending out different lines to a small portion of segments, monitoring the open rate, and then blasting the entire list with the best-performing copy. And don’t forget to make sure you have a familiar email address & name in the “From” field.
Simplify your message.
Recent studies have shown that our attention span has fallen to a grand total of about 8 seconds. When it comes to email invitations, that’s not a lot of time to work with. So, our advice is to always promote the most important information at the top of the page, or above the fold. All the nitty-gritty details can live in the FAQ section of your event page; do not include them your invitation.
Simplify your CTA.
Your guests likely get plenty of invites that follow the old cookie cutter formula. So make sure yours is a breath of fresh air. One way to get a higher RSVP rate is to have one clear call to action. If your event page is cluttered with 15 different buttons, your guests will easily get confused. Remember, an easy RSVP process gives your event a 13% higher chance of being attended.
Make it fun, make it flashy, make it dazzling.
Recipients are more likely to become guests if they’re having fun—and all they did was open an email. GIFs are the perfect way to generate positive emotions prior to your event. No matter how huge, how epic an event is slated to be, when it comes to invitations, it’s all about the individual. Let your invitations speak to one person, and watch hundreds show up.
I help female entrepreneurs and business owners create brands that command the spotlight. I love working with women to help them create beautiful, one-of-a-kind brands that give them the confidence to take their business to the next level and get them seriously noticed. I’ve worked with coaches, authors, influencers… you name it, and I bet I can help you too.
