Event Marketing Strategy in Columbus, Ohio That Builds Community and Converts
The Challenge
When a local entrepreneur organization reached out in late July, their September 30th event with a well-known guest speaker was fast approaching, but RSVPs weren’t.
With no existing email list and minimal online promotion, their goal of filling the room and converting attendees into future cohort members was slipping away.
They needed a fast, data-driven event marketing strategy that didn’t just promote an event, it needed to build a foundation for ongoing community engagement in Columbus, Ohio.
The Rebel Approach
Rebel Marketing joined forces with the entrepreneur organization at the end of August, ready to move fast and get scrappy.
Our strategy focused on three key goals:
Improve the conversion funnel from awareness to attendance.
Build trust and excitement through consistent digital touchpoints.
Create landing pages that spoke directly to founders’ motivations: community, momentum, and growth.
To make it happen, our team:
Designed new landing pages for both the event and their October cohort, optimized for clarity, conversion, and storytelling.
Built a multi-step email journey that included:
Instant welcome emails after sign-up
Automated reminders leading up to the event
Tailored follow-up surveys for both attendees and non-attendees
Created custom links and QR codes for print materials to track in-person engagement.
Developed a lead tracker dashboard for real-time visibility.
Created a custom reporting dashboard consolidating data from website, email, and social platforms to visualize performance at a glance.
Posted 3–5 weekly social posts (video, audio, and static) and trained their team on best reposting practices for maximum algorithm reach.
Added heatmap tracking to monitor clicks and scroll behavior, identifying how users interacted with key calls-to-action.
The Results
Even with a short timeline, the campaign delivered measurable impact.
Social Media Growth (September)
While list-building and engagement were top priorities, social traction surged fast, especially on Instagram and LinkedIn:
Follower Growth: +2.62%
Impression Growth: +58.84%
Engagement Lift: Interactions +125.61%, Reactions +293.75%, Shares +300%, Clicks +67.24%
Follower Growth: +0.51%
Impression Growth: +1162.96%
Engagement Lift: Followers up +0.51%
Follower Growth: 0%
Impression Growth: +75%
Engagement Lift: Reactions +75%
Audience Insights (Instagram):
43% Female, 30% Male, 27% Unknown
Largest Age Brackets: 35–44, 45–54, 25–34
Top City: Columbus, OH (29.67%) followed by Hilliard, Upper Arlington, Dublin, and Lewis Center
LinkedIn Audience:
61.64% from Columbus Metro Area
Secondary audiences in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Buffalo, DC, and Phoenix
Email + Engagement Wins
Automated sequences increased awareness and maintained communication with attendees and members alike.
Ongoing monthly membership emails sustained engagement and visibility beyond the event.
The organization’s team saw immediate momentum, not just in numbers, but in confidence. They now have structured email lists, segmentation, and automations ready for every future event.
Event Success
10 new sign-ups for the event from social media efforts
40 total attendees (a full room for the space and first-time campaign)
17 tracked conversions from distributed flyers
The Collaboration
This wasn’t a “set it and forget it” project. Rebel and the entrepreneur organization met weekly to review progress, brainstorm adjustments, and fine-tune messaging in real time.
Transparency and education stayed at the center. The client didn’t just get results—they learned how to sustain them, backed by clear dashboards and heatmap insights that showed how users actually engaged online.
The Takeaway
In under 60 days, this Columbus-based entrepreneur organization went from minimal RSVPs to a successful, well-attended event with measurable engagement and new systems for long-term growth.
“You should never have to babysit your marketing vendors, you should know where your project stands at all times.”
That’s exactly how we roll.
We delivered clarity, confidence, and a repeatable framework they can use again and again.
Rebel Reflection
This project embodies our Education-Focused and Collaborative brand pillars. We didn’t just market an event, we built the foundation for a scalable community funnel.
Rebel Marketing’s vibe stayed true: approachable, creative, and results-driven (with a few tacos and mimosas along the way).
