One of the questions we get asked the most is how to keep attendees engaged through social media all year round. Even if your event occurs once a year, there are still tons of ways you can maintain and grow your online audience as you build excitement for your next event! Don’t believe me? Here are four simple ways to engage your community even after your event ends.

1. Share a post-event recap, with photos. The first step to keeping the conversation going post-event is to publish an event recap and share photos from your event. Hopefully you had a smashing photographer on hand who was able to capture the excitement of your event. Be sure to publish the photos to Facebook and include links in post-event emails and social media posts. Encourage attendees to tag themselves and their friends so the photos will show up on their profiles.

2. Think outside the box. It may sound overly simple, but think about what brought all of your attendees together. If you hosted a muddy 5k, it’s safe to assume your community likes being active, and doesn’t mind getting dirty. Using that as a guide, brainstorm other topics that your community might be interested in. Safe bets might be: workout playlists, best pre-and post-race meals, mentions of your type of event in the news (Google alerts, use ’em!), or a new laundry product that guarantees to get your nastiest (muddiest) stains out. Play around with a few topics and see what gets the most engagement.

3. Consider promoting other/similar events. Take a look at other events in your space (yes, even your competitors) and pick an event or two that happens at a different time of year. Offer to promote to your community in return for them promoting your event to their community. This is a win win — more content for you to share with your community, and added promotional benefits when your event rolls around next year!

4. Be irresistible. All credit goes to Liz Strauss for this tip. Think about the people (and social media accounts) that you engage with, and enjoy engaging with, and figure out how to bring that to your own channels. Ask engaging questions, gather their opinions/feedback, crowdsource photo albums or playlists, etc. It’s very simple — people like doing business with people they like.

Do you have your own way of keeping your community engaged until your next event rolls around? Share your tips in the comments below!