How to Create an Event on Facebook Meta Business Suite

Thinking about hosting a webinar, a local workshop, or a live sale? Creating a Facebook Event is one of the best ways to get the word out, manage RSVPs, and keep your audience engaged. This guide will walk you through exactly how to create and manage your event using Meta Business Suite, giving you a central place to handle all the details and track your success.

What is Meta Business Suite and Why Use It for Events?

Meta Business Suite is a free tool designed to help you manage your Facebook Page, Instagram account, and communications from a single dashboard. While you can still create an event directly from your Facebook Page, using Business Suite offers some distinct advantages, especially for businesses.

• Centralized Management: See all your content, messages, ads, and event details in one place instead of clicking between different windows.
• Better Planning Tools: Use the built-in Planner to see your event alongside all your other scheduled posts and stories, giving you a complete view of your content calendar.
• Integrated Advertising: Easily create and manage promotional ads for your event directly within the same interface you use for everything else.
• Deeper Insights: Access more detailed analytics on your event's performance, helping you understand what worked and how to improve next time.

In short, using Business Suite streamlines the process and treats your event like the important marketing activity it is, integrating it fully with your other business actions.

Before You Begin: Gathering Your Event Details

A little preparation goes a long way. Before you even click “Create Event,” it’s helpful to have all your essential information gathered and ready to go. This makes the setup process much faster and ensures you don't forget any key details.

Here’s a quick checklist of what you should have on hand:

• Event Name: Make it clear, compelling, and descriptive. Instead of "Marketing Webinar," try "Content Marketing Crash Course for Small Businesses."
• Description: This is your sales pitch. Clearly explain what the event is about, who it's for, and what attendees will gain. Use bullet points or short paragraphs to make it easy to read.
• Date & Time: Include the start and end dates and times. Be mindful of your audience's time zone if it's an online event.
• Event Type: Will it be In-Person or Online? Knowing this ahead of time determines which setup options you’ll see.
• Location or Link: For an in-person event, have the full, accurate address. For an online event, decide if you'll use Facebook Live, an external link (like Zoom or YouTube Live), or another format.
• Visuals: A great event needs a great cover photo or video. The recommended size for an event cover photo is 1920 x 1005 pixels. Having an eye-catching visual can dramatically increase interest.
• Category: Pick a category that best describes your event (e.g., Music, Food & Drink, Business). This helps Facebook show your event to a relevant audience.
• Ticketing Information (Optional): If your event requires tickets, have the link to your ticketing platform (like Eventbrite) ready.

Once you have these details compiled, you're ready to jump into Business Suite and bring your event to life.

Step-by-Step: Creating Your Event in Meta Business Suite

Alright, let's get your event set up. The process is straightforward once you know where to look. Follow these steps to get everything published.

1. Navigate to the Events Section

Log in to Meta Business Suite. On the left-hand navigation menu, look for the Planner tab. If you don't see it immediately, you might need to click on "All tools" to expand the full menu.

Once you're in the Planner or All Tools menu, find and click on “Events.” This will take you to your Events dashboard, where you can see past and upcoming events, drafts, and the option to create a new one.

2. Start Creating Your Event

On the top right of the Events dashboard, you'll see a blue button labeled "Create Event." Click it. Meta Business Suite will then ask which Facebook Page you want to host the event. If you manage multiple pages, be sure to select the correct one from the dropdown menu.

3. Choose Your Event Type: Online or In-Person

This is a crucial step that determines the rest of your options. You'll be presented with a choice:

• Online: Choose this for webinars, virtual classes, live streams, or anything else that doesn't have a physical location.
• In-Person: Select this for concerts, workshops, store openings, meetups, or any event where people need to show up at a physical address.

After you make your choice, a window will pop up with all the event creation fields.

4. Fill in the Core Event Information

Now it’s time to plug in all the details you gathered earlier.

• Event Name: Enter your compelling event title.
• Start/End Date & Time: Use the calendar and dropdowns to set the schedule. You can set up a recurring event here if it happens regularly.
• Description: Copy and paste your well-written description. Double-check for typos and make sure your formatting looks clean.
• Category: Choose the most fitting category from the dropdown to help people find your event.

5. Add Your Location or Online Details

Based on your choice in step 3, this section will differ:

For an In-Person Event: Start typing the venue name or address in the Location field. A map will appear, allowing you to select the correct location. Make sure the pin on the map is accurate for directions.

For an Online Event: You'll see a section titled "Choose a format." You have several options:

• Facebook Live: Host the event directly on your Facebook Page. This is great for engagement, as attendees can comment in real-time. You’ll go live from your Page when the event starts.
• External Link: If you're using a platform like Zoom, Teams, Webex, or YouTube, choose this. You'll simply paste the meeting or webinar link into the provided field.
• Messenger Room: Best for smaller, more interactive group sessions or meetings. It creates a private room where up to 50 people can join via video chat.
• Other: A catch-all option where you can provide custom instructions. For example, "Instructions will be emailed to registered attendees one hour before the event."

6. Set Up Event Settings and Permissions

Scroll down to the Settings section to fine-tune your event. This is where you can:

• Add Co-hosts: Want to collaborate with another page or person? You can add them as a co-host here. They’ll need to accept the invitation, and then the event will appear on their Page as well, expanding your reach.
• Add a ticket link: If you checked the "This event requires tickets" box, this is where you paste the URL to your ticketing page.
• Guest List Visibility: Choose whether the list of attendees ("Going" and "Interested") is visible to the public. For most public events, keeping it visible is fine, as it provides social proof.
• Posting Permissions: Decide if only hosts can post in the event feed or if anyone can. For community events, allowing attendees to post can build excitement. For more formal corporate events, you might want to restrict this.

7. Add a Compelling Event Cover Photo

This is your event's first impression. Under the Event Name field, you'll see an option to upload a cover photo or video. Drag and drop your image, or click to upload from your computer. A strong visual that includes the event title and a key detail or two can make a huge difference in catching someone's eye.

8. Publish, Schedule, or Save as a Draft

Before you go live, double-check everything one last time. Read your description, confirm the date and time, and check your links.

At the bottom of the page, you have three options:

• Save as Draft: If you're not ready to publish but want to save your progress, click the down arrow next to the "Next" button and select "Save as Draft."
• Schedule Event: A better option if you want to publish it later. Click the same down arrow and choose "Schedule Event," then select the date and time you want it to go live on your Page.
• Publish Event: If everything looks perfect, click "Create Event" to publish it immediately.

Congratulations! Your Facebook event is now created.

After Publishing: How to Promote Your Event

Creating the event is only the beginning. Now you need to make sure people see it. Here are a few essential promotion strategies you can manage right from Meta Business Suite:

• Create Announcement Posts: Use the Business Suite Planner to schedule a series of posts counting down to your event. Share sneak peeks, speaker introductions, or reminders about why people should attend.
• Run Event Response Ads: If you have a marketing budget, boosting your event is one of the fastest ways to increase RSVPs. Click the "Boost Event" button on your event page to create an ad that’s optimized to get people to click "Going" or "Interested."
• Invite People Directly: From the event page, you can invite people who have liked your Page. You can also share the event link in your email newsletter or other marketing channels.
• Engage With Attendees: Post updates, polls, and questions in the event feed to keep registered attendees excited and engaged. Answer any questions that come up promptly.

Tracking Event Performance with Business Suite Insights

How did your event actually perform? Business Suite has built-in tools to help you measure its success.

In the navigation menu, go to Insights > Content. Here, you can filter by content type and select "Events" to see your data. Look for key metrics like:

• Reach: How many unique people saw your event in their feed.
• Event Responses: The total number of people who RSVP'd "Going" or "Interested."
• Ticket clicks: If you included a ticketing link, you can see how many people clicked it.
• Engagement: Comments, shares, and reactions on any posts you made directly within the event.

Use this data to understand what's working. If a particular post had high reach, consider using a similar style for your next event's promotion. Over time, you can use these insights to fine-tune your event strategy for even better results.

Final Thoughts

Creating an event in Meta Business Suite centralizes your planning, promotion, and analytics, making it a powerful tool for any business. By following these steps - from gathering your information to promoting and analyzing your event - you can effectively build buzz and drive attendance for your next virtual or in-person gathering.

Once your event is live and you're running promotional ads, understanding the impact on your overall marketing becomes the next challenge. Measuring event clicks in Meta, website traffic in Google Analytics, and eventual sales in Shopify is often a manual, time-consuming task. At Graphed, we handle this reporting work for you. Connect all your marketing accounts and ask questions like, "What was the ROI of my last Facebook event campaign?" to get instant dashboards that show you the complete picture of your success without ever touching a spreadsheet.