How Can We Use Facebook To Promote Our Nonprofit Events?

Welcome to Facebook Fridays! Fridays at noon I take 15 minutes to help you navigate the crazy wilderness of Facebook for your nonprofit.

Today I answered your question: How can we use Facebook to promote our nonprofit events?

The power went out part way through, but I continued the conversation! The show must go on, right? 😉

Grab the Nonprofit Facebook Events Checklist – everything you need to create a fabulous event on your nonprofit Facebook Page!

Why should nonprofits care about Facebook Events? 

• 490 million people use facebook page events each month
• 41% of Facebook users in the U.S. engage with public events each month
• 35 million people view a public event each day

Nonprofits should also pay attention due to the most recent changes to the News Feed.

Public posts are getting much less reach, posting links to a website outside of Facebook will not get as much reach or as much engagement as an internal Event page.

Remember Facebook’s new mission statement: “To give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.”

They want to promote “meaningful interactions” between people and get us together IRL (in real life), which means showing us more events happening locally and events that are friends are interested in.

The good news for nonprofits

This Facebook push to make local news and updates a priority is good for nonprofits, especially those who hold a lot of local events. 

I am now getting NOTIFICATIONS when my friends join events nearby, and when Facebook Pages that I like create local events. 

Another exciting advantage is that all Facebook events are listed in the Facebook Local mobile app, a competitor to Yelp.

If I am traveling and I want to check out local nonprofit events or other happenings in the city, I open the Local app and search.

All of the Events that you create on your Page will also appear automatically in the Local app – it draws information from Facebook, so as long as you are signed in from the same account, it will have all the same info.

How to create an event

Facebook offers a free step-by-step guide to creating events on their website.

I also have a free printable checklist for nonprofits available that you can download and print when creating your next event.

Have you used Facebook to promote your nonprofit events? Leave your thoughts in the comments.