I started a Singles Events Company and have set up 2 events - a Speed Dating Event and a Happy Hour Mixer. I have it at a very reasonable price - $10 for the Speed Dating Event which also gets you free admission to the Happy Hour. And ladies get their first drink free at Speed Dating. Anyways, I am having trouble spreading the word outside of my direct friends on Facebook. I’ve created a FB page and events for my company, paid FB ads, messaged and posted in tons of FB groups, posted the events/Tix for sale on eventbrite, and the venue has shared my FB event. My website is www.SPARXevents.com. I know I need to still write an “about us” page and have a gallery for pics. Do y’all have any advice on how else I can spread the word? Hoping for free ways to market but also open to paying - I just don’t want to break the bank unless I know it’s effective. Any help is greatly appreciated!
@Ziggy is a cook at Torchy's Tacos. Maybe give him some flyers to pass out as that place gets crazy busy on evenings.
I can't really say much about marketing since it's not my field of expertise. But I can say something about design - I think you could use a more memorable logo.
Find out what similar companies are doing and one-up them. Study your competition. How is your pricing compared to other companies? Being the cheapest is not always best. Sometimes, people don't gravitate to the cheapest option because they assume it won't be as good as the moderately priced options. Might be better if your pricing was in the middle of your competition? Give some stuff away when you're first getting started. Free drink to the ladies is a good idea. Maybe one for the guys too? Do a google search for "guerilla marketing." Lots of great resources out there. And maybe read the book. It's a little outdated (written in 2007) but it will still put you in the right mindset for finding creative (and free) ways to get your name out there. Like you said, I wouldn't spend a lot of money on marketing until you start making a lot of money. Good luck!
Pay 'influencers' to try it out and give you a good review. Hold 'free' events to build groundswell. Fiverr for SEO work. Stop asking for advice on a basketball fan off-topic forum where the demographic is middle aged men with kids.
Advertise a free drink for the ladies and no cover. For the men, charge them 25 and state no women over 30 and weight restrictions on the women. Hire half a dozen hot women to show up.
First you have to learn who your customer base will be. I don’t think catering this towards young people will work. To get dudes to come out, you need attractive women who are younger. You can’t get those women to come out to these events unlesss you pay them. Why would cute girls need speed dating when they have tinder or bumble. It’s a waste of time for them to go to these events just to get harassed by multiple guys all night. I would cater towards older men and women. Older women have a harder time on dating apps so they are more likely to use your service.
Once you have the name of your company, you need a logo. You cannot market yourself and build a reputable brand without it. Ive been in graphic design/marketing for over 13 years (dont make me do the math), and there are so many bad logos out there. People get excited to start something new and rush through, instead of doing it the right way from the beginning - one step at a time. At the same time, people like you, dont know where to turn. Where can you find a good graphic designer? Most people know someone that knows someone. The results are definitely mixed. There are a lot of people out there who are self proclaimed graphic designers with little knowledge and experience. Ask yourself - What is your company/brand? How is it different than others out there? What demographic are you trying to appeal to? Some of this has already been stated... but are must haves in setting your brand. If you want people to feel comfortable using you, you need to perceive yourself as reputable and trust worthy. A logo is a big part of this - along with a website, "leave behinds" (flyers, postcards, business cards, promo items, t-shirts, etc.), and finding the right advertising scope to get things going. It is a lot more work to market yourself if you dont have a company or materials that work for you instead.
On the other hand he could market it as an alternative to social media dating. I'm sure there's a fair amount of younger folks who may be feed up with that or may prefer this sort of meet and greet style. My advice would be to find a away to make it "cool". My sarcastic advice would be to serve avacado toast. We millennials love that.