I’m pleased to feature the very talented Hannah DeMilta as a guest blogger today.

Hannah and I met a few months back via social media, and found that we both shared the Otterbein College experience in Westerville.  She is set to graduate from Otterbein this Spring and has already begun weaving the threads of her professional network, in large part with the relationships she’s built using tools like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

In my opinion, Hannah is an extraordinary example of  how students can jump ahead of the career curve by making a commitment to using social media tools to reach career goals, developing a personal brand presence and networking like crazy.  My advice?  Keep your eye on Hannah.  She is on the rise.

Hannah DeMilta blogs about PR, college, her career goals and other communication-related topics.  Here are a few how-to tips from her own experience using Twitter to promote the Otterbein PRSSA PaRtners Conference.

HOW TO Promote an Event Using Twitter

There are some simple ways we are using Twitter to promote our upcoming event.

PaRtners Conference is a one-day event being held at Otterbein College on April 24. It is geared toward public relations and communications students, organized by Otterbein PRSSA (Public Relations Student Society of America). You might consider some of these same details when promoting your next event through Twitter.

We decided not to create a separate Twitter account for the conference. We had already built a following for @OtterbeinPRSSA and decided to focus on the network we already had. We knew that a lot of our followers were communication students, PRSSA chapters and local professionals already invested in what we had to say. A lot of times I see groups create new accounts a month before their event and they don’t have the time to build their following. Don’t reinvent something that is already working for you, because your followers won’t need to be messaged from two accounts.

The alternative to developing a new Twitter handle was establishing a conference hashtag. We wanted to be very clear on what the official tag was before other people could come up with their own. We chose #ocpartners because it was short and hopefully easy to remember. We shared the hashtag by tweeting it, listing it in emails, posting on fliers and our Facebook wall. There will also be a sign the day of the conference during registration. Don’t let someone else beat you to the punch, as it’s part of your event’s brand.

We also utilized additional hashtags that are popular with PR and communications students. Some examples are #PRSSA (general PRSSA tag), #PRSSANC (PRSSA National Conference), #PRStudChat (a popular PR student chat on Twitter), and #COPRSA (Central Ohio PRSA). You will have to research if there are appropriate hashtags to partner with your event tweets.

Another Twitter feature that many aren’t taking advantage of is lists. We created a list called ocpartners with the sub-line “Speakers, organizers & registered participants for Central OH PaRtners Conference @ Otterbein 4/24” and added everyone who we knew was on Twitter. Generally people love being put on lists so it was a positive decision regardless. It also created visibility for people who viewing the list. It allows students to network more easily with their peers and attending speakers, beforehand.

Follow some basic guidelines when promoting your own event:

• Use Twitter as a way to properly promote to your network, not spam them.
• Make sure you are communicating with the people who are actually potential attendees.

If properly executed, Twitter can be a quick and low-cost way to spread the word.

What advice would you share?  Have you successfully used Twitter to promote a past conference or event?

Photo credit: eellewzeeya

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