How To Increase Attendance for Your Virtual Event With Emails

Attendance matters when you’re hosting a virtual event

One of the key performance indicators (KPIs) for virtual events is the number of registrants that show up. 

Since one of the main driving factors for hosting virtual events is lead generation, meeting your attendance KPI is critical for a successful event. You want as many people to show up as your virtual event capacity will allow. 

The average no-show percentage for virtual events is 35%. This is slightly higher than in-person events.

But how do you get people to show up after you go through the trouble of planning a virtual event?

One of the easiest ways to do this is to increase attendance for your virtual event with emails.

Sure, promotion is a big part of the process, but sending the right emails at the right time can have an even bigger impact on your attendance numbers. In fact, 76% of marketers say email is the single most effective way to drive event registration. 

With the right emails sent at the right time, you can improve your virtual event show-up rate.

Use these 6 emails to increase attendance for your virtual event

Now that we’ve established that emails are an effective tool for boosting virtual event attendance, let’s look at some emails you can send to your list.

1. The invite email

An invite email is one of the first emails that should be sent once your event details are finalized. If you already have an email list, these subscribers should be among the first to learn about your event.

Send invite emails to your list, and encourage them to invite their colleagues, friends, and family who may be interested in the event.

It’s a good idea to send several emails instead of just one. If you have a weekly newsletter, consider mentioning the event each week leading up to the date. (A PS section at the end of your email works well in this case).

SparkToro sent out the first invite email to their list more than 6 weeks ahead of their SparkTogether virtual marketing event. The email included the event date and a link to purchase tickets at early bird prices, as well as the speaker lineup.

The follow-up email below for the SparkToro event is sent by the founder Rand Fishkin. It doesn’t use a marketing template like the one above. Instead, it has a much more personal feel.

The email mentions the end of early bird pricing and specifies how much extra tickets will cost after the deadline. That’s a great way to drive conversion and get people to take action.

2. The confirmation email

A confirmation email is perhaps the most critical of all the emails on this list. The confirmation email is your opportunity to share conference details and reaffirm registrants’ decision to register for your event.

It should include the event date and time and the ‘join’ link for the event. If that link will be shared in a separate email, you should be sure to mention it in the confirmation email.

In this example, Dyspatch does a good job with its confirmation email:

The email is short and simple, but it includes:

• The title of the event
• The speakers
• The date and time of the event
• A join link
• A link for participants to add the event to their calendar

Here’s another example from DemandCurve for the 2022 Growth Summit:

The email includes a bit more information:

• The title of the event
• The value people will gain from attending
• The speakers
• The date of the event
• A join link
• A link for participants to add the event to their calendar

The only thing I’d do differently if I was sending this email is to add the time for the event. While the Growth Summit was a 2-day event, it would still be helpful if the organizers included the start time in the confirmation email.

3. The follow-up email

This email is not always necessary, but if you’re hosting a larger multi-day event, you may want to send emails leading up to the day to share additional information and continue engaging registrants.

These emails are also great for when you add speakers to your lineup or add perks or incentives for registering.

Segment sent out a separate email with the addition of an extra fireside chat in their event. They used this email to make the announcement and push ticket sales.

4. The reminder email

The countdown (aka reminder) email is an excellent opportunity to engage registrants before the event and remind them to attend. It’s also an opportunity to build momentum.

Consider sharing information about the topic the speakers will be presenting on. This is also a great opportunity to share information about each speaker’s background and highlight why they’re suited to speak on their topic.

Litmus sent an email the day before their multi-day Litmus Live event with the agenda for that day:

The one-hour reminder email is also a great email that can have a significant impact on attendance.

Kajabi sent out a reminder 1 hour before their Newport Live Recap event with a button link to join the event:

5. The starting now email

This email is another important one. It’s a good idea to send an email at the start of your event and include the join link. This makes it easy for attendees to show up.

This can have a big impact on how many people actually show up live to your event.

Thinkific sent a longer version of this email for their Think in Color 2020 event. Itl included details on speaker segments with individual links to join each session:

6. The event recap email

After the event, be sure to send out your recap email — the last email on this list.

Your recap email will serve two purposes. To share the details of the event with registrants who did not get to attend, and to share the recording — if available — with those who attended but may need more information.

Apple’s recap emails usually do a very good job of covering everything they talk about at their launch events.

TL;DR: Use these 6 emails to increase attendance for your virtual event

1. The invite email. Share the event with your list and encourage them to register.
2. The confirmation email. Share the event date, time, speakers, and the link to join the event.
3. The follow-up email. This is a great opportunity to share additional event details like when you add speakers to your lineup or add perks or incentives for registering.
4. The reminder email. Send a day or several hours before the event and use it to share information on the speaker topics to get registrants excited.
5. The starting now email. Sending this email at the start of your event and including the join link makes it easy for people to show up.
6. The event recap email. Use this email to share details of the event with registrants who did not get to attend, and to share the recording — if available — with everyone.

Bonus: Download these 10 email ideas to keep your subscribers engaged after your event.