While the media landscape is constantly evolving, one thing that never changes is the promotional benefit of a well-planned, well-executed event.

The word “event” is often mentioned in the same breath as the word “big.” After all, there’s always an excuse for a party. At Albers, we have produced and promoted everything from a corporate anniversary celebration for 400 people to a huge hotel opening that was open to the public.

These types of extravaganzas are a fantastic way to show appreciation to the community, re-energize employees and create buzz in the media. An anniversary gives you the opportunity to highlight how your business has changed and where it’s going; a holiday gala can be tied to a charity; a splashy launch can set just the right tone for a new product. While they’re not exactly free publicity, they do provide the kind of high caliber exposure that money can’t buy.

But not every event your company sponsors has to be epic – or to consume epic amounts of resources. Smaller, well-timed events complement bigger ones to keep you in front of your client base throughout the year. In fact, we collaborate with our clients on several of these every month. If people can actively participate in something at a given time, it can, and should, deliver value as an event.

One of the easiest, most cost-effective ways to do this is via webinar. They’re interactive, flexible, and require very little preparation – just the expertise you already have. Unlike cocktail parties, clients can attend webinars in the time and the space that they are making decisions. And, unlike cocktail parties, it doesn’t really matter who shows up to a webinar. Even if only a handful of people attend, you have a recorded product that you can share again and again.

What a webinar can’t do, of course, is bring your client physically to your business. For that, consider a medium-scale function such as a seminar or lecture series, an on-location appearance by an expert, a charity drive or a limited-time free added service like product recycling. Such events give you an opportunity to invite your customers and the media to your business without significant cost to you.

Events also have exciting social media potential. Consider using contests and incentives to encourage your customers to check in to your event on foursquare or Facebook, live Tweet about it or post their coverage of the proceedings to your YouTube channel. These platforms not only add a fresh, new element, they also help you engage others to tell your story.