A good event description is critical to attracting people to your fundraisers and other events. Let's face it, most of us are a pretty tough sell when it comes to saying, "That event looks fun! We should go!" We want to know it will be worth giving up a little of our spare time to attend an event--even if it's for a great cause!
Writing an event description that sells is both a science and an art (but it doesn't need to involve the dark arts). With a bit of understanding of your ideal audience and what details to highlight, you'll be able to write an event description that has people lined up out the doors for your next fundraiser!
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Event Description Basics
Let's start with a few basics about event descriptions before we get into how to write great ones.
What is an event description?
An event description is a blurb you write to tell potential attendees what will happen at your event and why they should attend. It should highlight any speakers, entertainment, or other key "ingredients." The description should tell your audience how they'll benefit from attending your event.
Well-written event descriptions can lead to greater attendance and more media coverage. It gives publicity teams, media outlets, and the general population content to work with as they're talking about your upcoming nonprofit fundraiser.
Essential "ingredients" of a great event description
As with most things we discuss, begin by identifying your target audience. It's critical to know who your event description is speaking to.
Once you know your target audience, there are countless ways to customize an event description to reach your target audience and reflect your nonprofit's brand. Still, whether you're hosting a virtual silent auction or an in-person seminar, all event descriptions should include some basic details.
We all learned about the "5 W Questions" as kids. Your event descriptions should answer each of those questions for your readers:
- What: What is the name of your event, and what will happen there? What can guests expect to experience or receive from the event?
- When: It seems pretty basic, but people will need to know when your event will occur.
- Where: Where will you be hosting your event? This information is critical, whether it's virtual or in-person.
- Who: Who is hosting the event? Who will be in attendance? Who is the target audience?
- Why: Why is your organization holding this event, and what are you hoping to accomplish? Why should people come to this event?
People are visual, so make sure to add an exciting and relevant photo to your event description to help tell the story about your event. It's also helpful to include keywords or hashtags to make the event more "searchable" on social media platforms.
People may not remember the exact title of your event or the name of your organization (or they might not know how to spell it). Including keywords and actionable hashtags will help people find your event easily, even without critical details.
6 Tips to Write an Event Description That Sells
Now that you've got the basics down let's take it up a notch. There are literally millions of event descriptions floating around the internet on any given day. How can you make your nonprofit event description stand out and not get lost in all that "noise"? Here are a few things you can do to spice up your event description to make it more effective and help you attract more people.
1) Keep the title short and sweet
When it comes to titles, short, simple, and snappy is the way to go. National Science Week rounded up a few creative event titles that are really eye-catching.
Wouldn't you stop and read more after seeing the event title, "Fifty Shades of Cray: Reproduction in the Sea" or "Can Science Save Humanity?"
You don't need to hire a comedy writer or spend too much time racking your brain to write your event title, but short, sweet, and clever is definitely the way to go. Or at least keep it short, simple, and easy to remember. The main goal is to grab people's attention, provide a sliver of information, and make the reader want to keep reading and learn more.
2) Stay organized and easy to read
Let's be honest; nobody wants to read long text blocks or have to sift through too much content to find the main points. Make sure you keep your event description organized and make the most important details (those "5 W" questions) easy to find.
People rarely read online content from beginning to end, so it's best to write your content with "skimmers" in mind. Bullet points or very short text blocks can keep things organized and help the readers stay engaged.
3) Highlight any speakers, entertainers, or other experts who will be at your event
If you're planning to have any speakers, experts, or entertainers at your event, be sure to highlight this in your event description! Your guest presenters or entertainers don't need to be famous. It's still valuable to introduce them and explain why they're relevant to your event (or what valuable perspective they'll offer).
One benefit of online event descriptions is that you can update and add details as they're confirmed. So, don't wait until all your speakers or panelists are confirmed. Launch your event as soon as possible and add details as they come.
4) A picture is worth a thousand words--even in event descriptions
Add photos, videos, and other media to your event page so guests will know what to expect and really know your event is worth attending.
If this is a repeat event, link to videos or Instagram photos of the previous year's highlights. Use attendee testimonials and quotes from past years. Include photos of keynote speakers or past panels and workshops.
All these details help paint a picture and draw people in. The goal is to create FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) around your upcoming event.
5) Don't forget SEO when writing your event descriptions
You don't need to be an SEO expert to include a few keywords to help people discover your event through search results.
Use keywords in your title and event description that your ideal audience would use when searching for your event. But make sure you don't copy and paste your event description from your website to your Facebook event page or other event listings. Google (and most other search engines) prefer--and even reward websites with unique content. So, even if you just change things up a little, it's worth the extra effort to avoid duplicate content.
6) Include an FAQ in your event description
Taking the time to write an FAQ section for your event description will save your team a lot of time and energy in the long run. It's also a practical way to care for your event guests by helping them get to your event as easily as possible.
Sadly, if people have questions that aren't readily addressed in the event description, some will just choose not to attend rather than contact your team to get the information they're looking for.
One strategy to create a comprehensive FAQ section is to keep track of questions people ask about each event and customize the answer accordingly. One thing that most people are very keen to learn about in the age of COVID is your refund policy (especially if you're writing an event description for an in-person event).
Writing an event description that sells really is both an art and a science. There are a lot of details to include in an organized and fun manner. Knowing your target audience and what will attract them to your next fundraising event is critical and will help make your event description writing process much more manageable.
Now that you've mastered how to write event descriptions, here are three more resources to help you plan your next nonprofit event!
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