How to promote an event on Facebook and Instagram

Creating a Facebook event

A Facebook event is the backbone of your promotion. It gives people one place for the date, time and details, and a way to say they are Interested or Going. Events hosted by a Page are always public, which is what you want for a pub, bar, restaurant or cafe.

Steps on a computer

1. Log in to Facebook and click your profile photo in the top right.
2. Click See all profiles, then select your Page.
3. From your Feed, click Events in the left-hand menu. You may need to click See more first.
4. Click + Create new event.
5. Choose an event name, the date and time, and whether it's In person or Virtual.
6. Add your information under "What are the details?".
7. Click Create event.

In the Facebook app the route is similar: switch into your Page, then find Events in the menu and create a new event.

What to put in the details

• A clear name. Say what it is and what makes it worth coming to, such as "Sunday folk session in the garden".
• The right date and time. Check them twice before you publish, because Facebook only lets you change them up to a couple of days before the event.
• The location. Your venue's full address.
• A description that answers questions. What happens, who's playing, start and finish times, the price, how to book, food, whether dogs are welcome and step-free access. Facebook's event rules say any costs to attend must be clear, including extra fees.
• A cover photo. A real photo of the act, the room or a previous night usually beats a generic graphic.
• Co-hosts. Add the band, the quiz host or the brewery. A Page can add another Page as a co-host, and co-hosts can invite people and edit the details.
• Repeat event. For a weekly quiz or open mic, choose Repeat event, pick daily or weekly, and set when it should stop. An event can repeat up to 52 times.

Share it once it's live

• Share it widely. Use the event's share option to post it on your Page or in local groups that allow it, and paste the event link into your other posts and messages.
• Add it to your story. In the Facebook app, you can also share the event to your story.
• Pin it. On your Page, click Manage in the Featured section, then Pin next to the upcoming event. It stays at the top of your Page until you remove it.
• Post inside the event. Once it's published, add updates to the event itself: the line-up, the menu, a reminder of the start time.

A posting plan before, on and after the day

This is how to promote your event on Facebook and Instagram week by week. Scale it to the size of the event: a weekly quiz needs less build-up than a festival weekend.

Before

• Three to four weeks out, or as soon as it's confirmed. Create the Facebook event and post an announcement on both platforms, with the date in the first line.
• Two weeks out. Give people a reason to come: who's playing, what's on the menu, what the prizes are, a short video clip.
• One week out. Post a reminder, and add a story with a countdown sticker.
• Two or three days out. Share the practical details: booking, start time, food times. Post them inside the event as well as on your Page.

On the day

• A morning post saying it's tonight, with the start time.
• Stories as you set up: the soundcheck, the quiz sheets, the kitchen getting ready.
• A last story shortly before doors open.
• A few stories during the event, if the performers and guests are happy to be filmed.

After

• A thank-you post with the best photos, tagging the performers or the winners.
• Add the event's stories to a highlight so they stay on your Instagram profile.
• Announce the next date while people are still talking about this one.

Instagram posts, Stories and reminders

On Instagram, the closest thing to a Facebook event is a feed post with a reminder attached.

Add a reminder to your announcement post

If you have a professional account, you can add an event reminder to a feed post:

1. Create a new feed post.
2. Scroll down below New post for more options.
3. Tap Add reminder.
4. Add your event title and start time. An end time is optional.
5. Finish the post and tap Share.

People who see the post can tap the bell icon to opt in, and Instagram then notifies them 24 hours before, 15 minutes before and when the event starts. You must create the post at least one hour and no more than three months before the event. You can also attach the same event to later posts, so your reminder post in the final week can point to it too.

Use Stories in the run-up

• Countdown sticker. Name the countdown and set the date and time it ends. Viewers can tap to be reminded, and everyone who turned on reminders gets a notification when it ends.
• Link sticker. Add your booking page or event link to a story. Anyone who can see the story can tap it.
• Highlights. Stories disappear after 24 hours, so add your event stories to a "What's on" highlight on your profile.

Instagram says not every sticker is available to everyone, so update the app if you can't find one.

Collab posts with performers and partners

Invite the band, the quiz host or the brewery as a collaborator on your announcement post. If they accept, the post appears on their profile as well as yours and goes to both sets of followers: an easy way to reach people who don't follow you yet. Instagram says collab posts can't be scheduled at the moment, so post this one live from the app. Keep your booking link easy to find too. A link-in-bio page can list every upcoming event in one place.

How to promote an event on Facebook for free

Advice on how to advertise an event on Facebook often jumps straight to paying for reach, but everything below is free. So how do you promote an event on Facebook with no budget? Mostly through people.

• Co-host with everyone involved. The act, the caterer, the charity you're raising money for. Co-hosts can invite people too, so more hands share the work of spreading the word.
• Share to local groups. Community groups can reach nearby people who don't follow you. Read each group's rules first, as some limit business posts.
• Ask for shares, but don't bribe people. Ask performers, staff and regulars to share the event or tap Going. Don't run a "share to win" competition, though: Facebook's policies for Pages, groups and events say a promotion must not require or reward sharing, reposting or tagging.
• Keep it pinned. Leave the event in your Page's Featured section until the day.
• Post inside the event. Keep reminders and news in the event itself, where the people who responded will look for them.
• Promote it in the venue. Mention it on menus, a chalkboard and table cards, using the same event name people will see on Facebook.
• Put the price up front. Facebook's rules say event costs must be clear, and a clear price saves answering the same question in the comments.

If your event involves bingo, a raffle or a sweepstake, check the rules before you promote it. Facebook's policies say you need Meta's written permission to use a Page, group or event to promote online gambling, and that this also applies to games where something of monetary value is needed to play and forms part of the prize. Their examples include raffles, bingo and poker. Our guide to pub event ideas lists where to check the UK rules for music, sport and games.