Digital Event Promotion – a free primer for the savvy Seattlite

Whether promoting a concert, charity benefit or art show, posting your event on on-line calendars is an effective and cheap / free way to get the word out.

This is the list I use for all my local events … the link will take you straight to the event posting page on nearly all of the sites:

– Nate –

p.s.  These are all FREE

NATIONAL EVENT LISTING SITES

1. ZVents
   This site is a source database for numerous local / regional newspapers on-line calendars
2. Yahoo Upcoming
   A quick way to get your event to show up in Google search results … I’ve had events pop-up in a Google search within a day of posting on Yahoo Upcoming, whereas regular website postings take a week or so.

SEATTLE EVENT LISTING SITES

1. The Stranger
   The first place most young Seattlites with a penchant for a nightlife look … fantastic for music listings, however, it’s best to have the menu post the event, since the events are subject to approval.
2. Seattle Weekly
   Simlilar reach as The Stranger, but a better fit for arts events.
3. Seattle Times
   Good reach, but not as prevalent as the Weekly or The Stranger.  FYI, the Seattle PI events use ZVents as their events source.
4. Craigslist = >> Events
   Easy to post … great place to post free events, but not as effective for paid gigs.

OTHER EVENT LISTING SITES (SEATTLE)

1. City of Seattle Calendar
   (for FREE local events)
2. Seattle Met
   Recently found this site … haven’t tested the impact of it (yet) but it looks promising

A few notes:

• Don’t forget about neighborhood blogs … most of them have calendars that you can post to, or an email address to their editor / moderator.  I’ve had success with the Maple Leaf Blog and Capitol Hill Blog.
• Facebook Events are handy if you have a solid fan base … if you already created an event, you can copy the URL from the address bar, and paste it into the “Link” section of a Wall Post and hit up local / niche-relevant Facebook Pages.  Like their Page then Post the Link to their Wall (works best if their Wall is set to display “Everyone”.