You plan the event, pick the date, work out the food, drinks, entertainment, tickets, and whatever else needs to happen.

Then promotion starts.

You print flyers, hang them around town, drop a stack at the coffee shop, post the event on Facebook, share it again a few days later, and maybe throw a few bucks behind the post.

Then you wait and pray people actually show up.

I’ve done it.

Back when I managed a restaurant here in town, we planned a special Italian dinner that should’ve been a big night.

We spent weeks getting everything ready. We made flyers, posted on social media, and did all the stuff businesses normally do when they’re trying to get people through the door.

Then the night came, and the room wasn’t anywhere near as full as we’d hoped.

The kitchen was ready, the food was there, and the staff was waiting, but the customers weren’t.

What made it worse was knowing we had an email list with more than 500 people sitting there.

These were people who already knew the restaurant, had eaten with us before, and had given us permission to contact them.

And we didn’t send them a damn thing about the event.

That one hurt because we spent all that time trying to get strangers to notice us while ignoring hundreds of people who already knew who we were.

That’s a mistake local businesses make all the time.

An event's coming up, so the first thought is usually flyers and Facebook posts.

Meanwhile, there’s a customer list sitting in a POS system, email platform, spreadsheet, or somewhere else collecting dust.

If you’ve got a list like that, start there.

Your odds get a whole lot better when you’re talking to people who already know your name.

1. Find the list you already have

Before you print another flyer, figure out who you can already reach.

Look through your email platform, check your POS system, find old customer spreadsheets, and look at previous event signups.

You may have more people than you think.

These aren’t random people scrolling past an ad. Some of them have already eaten at your restaurant, bought something from your store, booked with you, or came to an event.

At some point, they raised their hand.

That’s worth something.

Put those contacts together and clean the list up before you start promoting.

You don’t need thousands of subscribers either. I’d rather have 300 local people who know the business than 10,000 random followers who live three states away.

2. Start talking about the event early

A lot of businesses wait until every detail is finished before they promote anything.

Don’t wait that long.

You can send a short email before tickets are even available.

Tell people the date, give them a little information about what’s coming, and let them know your email list will hear about it first.

You aren’t trying to make the sale yet. You’re putting the event in their head so the next email doesn’t feel like it came out of nowhere.

Something as simple as:

“We’ve got something coming up May 15th.

I’m still working out a few details, but if you like good food and an excuse to get out of the house, keep that night open.

I’ll send you everything soon.”

You don’t need a giant graphic or a polished flyer attached.

You told them early and gave them a reason to watch for the next email.

3. Give people a reason to open the email

“Upcoming Event at Mike’s Restaurant”

That’s easy to ignore.

So is:

“Save the Date”

Your subject line has one job. Get the email opened.

Think about what would make one of your customers curious enough to click.

It could be early access, something they haven’t seen yet, or the fact that tickets are almost gone.

The subject line should sound like something you’d say to a customer standing in front of you.

“Wanna get first dibs?”

“We’re doing something weird next Saturday”

“Only 7 seats left”
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You don’t have to sound like some giant marketing company. You’re a local business, so write like one.

4. Don’t send one email and call it good

This is another mistake I see all the time.

A business sends one promotional email and then... nothing.

If the event doesn’t sell out, they assume email didn’t work.

One email isn’t much of a campaign.

People are busy. They miss emails, see one while they’re at work, or forget to come back to it later.

Some people need to hear about an event more than once before they decide to go.

So send another email.

If someone didn’t open the first one, resend it later with a different subject line.

As the event gets closer, send another update about what’s happening, what’s left, and when registration closes.

You’re following up with people who already asked to hear from you.

5. Give them a reason to stop putting it off

People procrastinate.

They see something they want to do and think:

“I’ll grab tickets later.”

Then later turns into tomorrow, tomorrow turns into next week, and then they forget.

Your emails should give them a reason to make the decision now.

If you only have 50 seats, tell them.

If early-bird pricing ends Friday, tell them.

If reservations close Wednesday because the kitchen needs a final head count, tell them.

Use the real deadline and don’t make one up.

Fake scarcity is easy to smell.

If you’ve got 11 seats left, saying you’ve got 11 seats left can move somebody who’s been sitting on the fence.

6. Write like a person

You probably don’t need a giant event graphic inside every email, and you don’t need a bunch of polished corporate language either.

Try writing the email like you’re talking to one of your regulars.

“Hey Sarah,

We’re doing another whiskey dinner next Thursday and I wanted to give you a heads up before we start pushing it everywhere else.

We’ve only got 40 seats for this one.

Here’s what we’re serving…”

That feels a whole lot different than:

“Join us for an unforgettable evening featuring an exquisite selection of…”

You know the type.

Most local businesses don’t talk like that in person, so there’s no reason to suddenly turn into a brochure when you send an email.

7. Keep the list alive after the event

Let’s say it works and the event fills up.

Everybody has a good time, people spend money, and the night goes the way you hoped it would.

Don’t disappear afterward.

Send them something.

Thank the people who came, share a picture, tell them something funny that happened, or ask what they thought.

If you’ve already got another event coming, give them a heads up.

The people who came to this event may be some of the easiest people to sell the next one to.

That’s how the list gets more useful over time.

You aren’t starting from zero every time you decide to host something because you’ve already got people you can reach again.

Stop printing and praying

I’m not saying you can never use another flyer.

Put one in the window if you want, hang one by the register, and post the event on Facebook too.

But don’t make those things your entire plan.

A flyer can’t follow up. A Facebook post doesn’t guarantee your followers will see it. Email gives you a direct line to people who already know the business.

So the next time you’ve got an event coming up, don’t wait until the week before and start plastering flyers all over town.

Pull up the list, tell people early, keep talking to them, and give them a reason to act before the event gets here.

You’re still going to have to promote your event.

At least now you’re not crossing your fingers and hoping somebody notices a piece of paper taped to a coffee shop window.
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Mike "stop printing and praying" Downs
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