Communications Resources - Events

OVERVIEW

So you've planned an event and want to promote it! There are many ways to reach your audience and increase awareness of the event.

BEFORE THE EVENT

Create your event flyer, referring to the Flyer Design Best Practices.
Add your event to the Vanderbilt Events Calendar, referring to the Event Calendar Best Practices.
Send event invitations via email and on your social channels.

Designing event flyers

Considering your audience:

Who is your audience? Faculty, students, staff? All of the above? This will determine the tone and content of the overall design and messaging.
What do they need to know? Why should they attend your event? Will your audience learn something new? Take away important skills? Get a free lunch? Time is a finite resource, and events should be worth your audience’s effort to be there. Be clear by setting expectations early. When crafting your messaging, consider what would get you to attend the event.
Limit text to important information. Lengthy bios and descriptions are not likely to be read. If possible, link off to a webpage with the detailed information.
Consult the VU Editorial Style Guide for best practices in grammar, punctuation, and style.

Design Best Practices:

Include your department lockup (preferably in the upper left-hand corner).
Use the VU brand colors/fonts to align with university branding.
If your event is part of a series, use the same design for each flyer to create brand consistency and increase awareness.
Use approved VU color combinations for accessibility compliance.
Ensure you have permissions to use imagery, and credit as needed.
Include a QR code to link away/help minimize text (printed flyers only).
Use high-resolution imagery/photos (300 DPI for best results) for print flyers.
One flyer will not cover all platforms—consider where and how it’s being distributed and create options for each platform’s needs. For example: 11x17” flyer for print; 4:5 ratio for Instagram; 3:4 landscape ratio for Facebook.
Learn more in the Flyer Design Best Practices
Vanderbilt Printing Services

Accessibility:

Technically, accessibility is about designing for users with disabilities. Philosophically, it isn’t so much about designing for disability as it is about designing for everyone. (Accessibility compliance is also legally required.)

Web/email:

You can include a flyer, but the same information also needs to be included in the written description (web and social).
Include alt text for any photos/images (web).
Avoid PDFs (web).
Include a web hyperlink for additional information (web and social).

Socials:

Include information in the caption and/or link away.
Ensure imagery text is readable on smaller screens.
Use high-quality images (in content and resolution).

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Promoting your event

Digital platforms:

VU Events Calendar

Promote your event on the main VU Events Calendar to expand awareness. Review the best practices before submitting your event.
Tag the event appropriately if your website is configured to automatically pull in properly tagged events.
Submit through the VU Events form, use appropriate tags, and allow plenty of lead time.

TV Displays

Several A&S buildings have digital displays available for promoting your departmental events. Please follow these guidelines when submitting:

All flyer slides must be submitted by a representative of an A&S department/program or an officer of a Vanderbilt student organization.
Slide must clearly indicate the sponsor of the program. Departments must include their official lockup, centers/labs/student orgs must include their name and/or logo.
Content must not violate the Student Handbook.
Slide must be for an event with a set end date.
Submit your slide at least one week prior to your requested start date.
Slides will run for a maximum of 21 days.
Maximium one slide submission allowed at a time.
Individual course promotions are not permissible, unless submitted by the A&S Office of Undergraduate Education.
Images must be in horizontal/landscape orientation (9:16 aspect ratio).
Slides must be submitted as .jpg, .png, or .pdf files.
Submit your slide via this form.

In addition, you can display your slides in other buildings on campus. See the Student Centers policies for more information.

Website:

Be sure to list all events on your program website—either automatically through the VU calendar or manually.
Use the VU calendar link for promotion on social, QR codes for flyers, etc.
Do not post pdfs or images of flyers on your events page. Use text instead.

Social media:

Add to your social media platforms to spread the news!
No social media presence? No problem! A&S can share your event on our Instagram story.
Email the event details and an image to A&S Comms at least one week in advance.
Images must be vertically oriented.
You must provide a link to your event (either on your site or the VU Calendar site).

Campus-wide channels:

Share your promotional materials with event partners/co-hosts, other Vanderbilt schools, and units across campus who share your mission.

InnerVU – a new weekly newsletter that goes to all undergrads and others who’ve subscribed. Sent by Student Affairs and is events-based.

MyVU – campus-wide newsletter for faculty, staff, and students.

Learn about the various ways your can promote your events and programming to students across campus.

Additional event resources:

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DURING THE EVENT

Filming and/or photographing your event is a great way to keep an archive, expand your audience, and continue promoting the event after it's over. There are several ways to do this:

Photography/Videography: Have a photographer and/or videographer cover the event. This could be for either live streaming the event, producing a polished video to share after the event, or sharing photos after the event. Having a filmed recording is especially useful if your event is an interview or conference. If you need a photographer/videographer, please refer to our list of freelancers.
DIY! Read more tips on photographing or filming your event.
Facebook/Instagram Live: Live-streaming on social media is a quick and accessible way to share with your audience in real-time. However, when considering this option it's important to note that: a) you won't have the ability to monitor the content or edit it after the fact, and b) social media live-streams perform best when the audience knows what content to expect and and when to expect it. Promoting the event ahead of time, creating a library of valuable content, and building an engaged and dedicated audience takes time and consistency.
Record webinar: Most webinar platforms (including Zoom) offer the ability to record the webinar as a separate file, which can then be uploaded directly to YouTube or another media library. This is useful for audiences who cannot make the webinar but want to access it later on their own time. This is also helpful when there is instructional information being provided, such as how-to tutorials.

AFTER THE EVENT

As always, remind your audience to follow your social channels, sign up for your newsletter, etc. so you can stay in touch with them about future events. Remember to post any photos or videos to your social media platforms and website. Cross-promotion can be helpful to remind your audience that the content is available. Post the content as soon as possible after the event has taken place to maintain relevency.

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