Every year, over 1 million people choose to run 26.2 miles to test their endurance and compete with other runners in marathons all over the world. If you want to fill out your roster and get more runners to compete, here are four online marketing tips to promote your summer marathon event.
Create eye-catching graphics
Digital marketing is all about graphics. There’s so much content uploaded to the internet daily that only the best, most eye-catching graphics get people to pause for even a second. But professional graphics and posters take time to design, and you’re busy planning for a marathon! That’s where templates come in.
There are thousands of free fitness poster templates available online from websites like PosterMyWall. All you need to do is browse the designs, choose the one that best fits your marathon’s branding, customize the information with the easy drag-and-drop editor, and you’re ready to upload to all your digital platforms.
Because templates are so easy to use, you can create professional posters for your social media accounts, website, and any other online promotions you want to set up for your summer marathon. It’s the best way to get professional designs without needing professional design skills.
Build a website or landing page
Before anyone enters a marathon, they’re going to want to know everything about it. And since only so much information fits on a poster or social media post, it’s a good idea to create an easy-to-find source for runners to learn everything they need to know about your marathon, like a dedicated website or landing page.
Think of your marathon’s website or landing page as a home base for all your online marketing efforts. Everything you post to promote your marathon should link back to the website, so it’s easy for entrants to find the information they need.
Remember to include all the important information about your summer marathon:
- Date and start time
- Location
- Course outline
- Entry fee (if applicable)
- Entry deadline and instructions
- Coordinator’s contact information
You should also include a few frequently asked questions (FAQs) that contestants might want answered. The more information you include on your website or landing page, the more marathon entries you’ll likely get.
Get social on social media
You want to get a lot of runners for your summer marathon, so you need to promote it where a lot of people spend their time. In 2024, that place is social media.
With over 5 billion active users worldwide, social media is a marketing powerhouse for anyone looking to promote an event.
Create a profile on various social platforms to promote your summer marathon. Try to choose profiles that suit your ideal audience. For example, if you typically get younger runners, Instagram and TikTok would be great places to start.
Once you have a profile, create regular high-quality posts to get attention to your event and keep your marathon top-of-mind for any interested runners. It might take a few times of seeing your content to convince someone to enter, so post at least three to five times per week, if not more — especially as it gets closer to race day.
Start an email marketing campaign
Email might be one of the “longest running” online marketing platforms, but just like any marathon runner, it’s here for the long haul as one of the most effective forms of digital marketing. In fact, the average email marketing campaign generates an incredible $36 for every $1 spent!
Email marketing is especially effective if you host regular events. You can collect runners’ email addresses during every race, and then when you’re ready to start planning your next marathon, just email the whole list and see who’s interested.
Since you already know everyone in your database is a runner, it makes your marketing materials that much more effective. You’re reaching your ideal audience demographic 100% of the time!
Start sending marketing emails about your summer marathon long before the event, so people have time to sign up and start training. As the race gets closer, start sending more and more emails to keep entrants engaged and up to date on the latest marathon information.
Email is like the marathon of the marketing world. It takes time to build your contact list, but it could pay off the most in the long run.
Get more entries for your summer marathon with online marketing
Nearly everyone uses the internet. The more information you upload about your summer marathon, the more runners you’re going to get to enter. To really spread the word, create some eye-catching graphics with templates, build a marathon landing page or website, engage with other runners on social media, and start an email marketing campaign.
It takes time to train for a marathon, so make sure you start all your marketing campaigns well before the day of the race. But if you employ all these online marketing tips, you’ll have a full roster for your summer marathon in no time!