Social Media Event Strategy: How to Build Buzz Before Your Virtual Event

Virtual events may not have the physical buzz of a packed venue, but they can create just as much excitement online if you plan your social media event strategy well. The weeks leading up to your virtual conference, summit, or webinar are critical for building awareness, driving registrations, and ensuring participants are ready to log in on event day.

Here’s how to design a pre-event social media strategy that makes your virtual event unmissable.

1. Identify and Understand Your Digital Audience

Unlike in-person events where geography plays a big role, virtual events can attract attendees from across the globe. That means your audience is potentially larger, but also more diverse.

Start by defining your ideal attendee profile: industry, job title, time zones, and interests. If you’re hosting a tech webinar, for example, your audience might be mid-career developers and startup founders. Use these insights to decide not only what to post but also when to post, so your promotions reach the right people in the right regions.

Not every platform drives the same type of engagement. For virtual events, think about where your digital audience already gathers:

LinkedIn for B2B webinars, conferences, and thought-leadership events.
Twitter (X) for quick updates, live discussions, and event hashtags.
Instagram for visual teasers, reels, and countdowns.
Facebook or LinkedIn Events for centralized registration and community building.

Look at past campaigns and double down on the channels that delivered the best results. Spreading too thin across every platform often dilutes impact.

3. Create a Memorable Event Hashtag

A hashtag consistent with the event’s branding keeps all your content connected and searchable. Keep it short, easy to spell, and tied to your event theme. For instance, a virtual summit on digital marketing could use #DigitalEdge2025.

Promote the hashtag early and often on your event landing page, registration confirmations, email campaigns, and speaker bios. Encourage registrants, sponsors, and speakers to use it so your event community starts forming before the event begins.

4. Partner with Influencers, Speakers, and Digital Advocates

In a virtual setting, social proof is everything. People are far more likely to register if they see respected voices endorsing your event. Ask speakers and sponsors to share your posts or create their own using branded graphics. Provide them with plug-and-play assets like images, short videos, or sample posts that make it easy to spread the word. You can even encourage early registrants to post about attending, helping you tap into new networks organically.

5. Keep Your Branding Consistent

Your audience will interact with your event in many places before they ever join the virtual session: your website, registration form, LinkedIn posts, and teaser videos. Make sure they all feel cohesive. Use consistent colors, logos, and fonts across every piece of content. Decide on a brand tone—whether professional, friendly, or playful—and stick to it. This creates trust and ensures attendees immediately recognize your event content in crowded feeds.

6. Plan and Pace Your Content Calendar

For virtual events, timing matters. Start building buzz at least 4–6 weeks in advance, with content that escalates as the event date approaches:

Weeks out: Announce the event theme and registration link.
Midway: Share speaker highlights, agenda teasers, or short video clips.
Final week: Run countdown posts, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, and urgency-driven reminders (“Only 2 days left to register!”).

Consistency beats volume. You don’t need to post every day—just ensure your content has a clear rhythm that sustains interest.

7. Tease the Experience

Virtual events need to compete with endless digital distractions. Teaser content helps set expectations and spark curiosity:

Short clips of keynote speakers sharing one tip.
Screenshots of the virtual platform setup.
Interactive polls (“Which session are you most excited about?”).
Prize or giveaway announcements for attendees who register early.

The more your audience knows what’s coming, the more likely they’ll commit to showing up live.

8. Use Event Pages and Communities

Tools like LinkedIn Events, Facebook Events, and Eventbrite are especially powerful for virtual events. They provide a hub for registration, updates, and discussion. When setting up an event page:

Use a high-quality banner image and engaging description.
Be crystal clear about the virtual format (platform link, time zones, joining instructions).
Tag speakers and companies involved.
Post regular updates to keep the page active and visible in feeds.

This not only drives sign-ups but also helps foster community before the event starts.

The Power of Pre-Event Strategy

A strong pre-event social media strategy does more than promote a date and time. It builds anticipation, credibility, and community, so when your virtual event goes live, attendees feel like they’re part of something bigger than a Zoom call.

By identifying your digital audience, leveraging the right platforms, creating a unified brand presence, and rolling out teaser-driven content, you’ll ensure that your virtual event is buzzing with energy well before the first speaker takes the virtual stage.