It’s not simply because of the Coronavirus that virtual events are becoming more popular. It gives the audience a more affordable experience because they don’t have to pay for transportation, and hosts can lower ticket prices because they don’t have nearly as much overhead.
Here are some tips that can come in handy when hosting a good virtual event.
Understand Your Audience
When preparing for any event, it’s critical to understand your audience’s requirements and expectations.
It is recommended that you ‘pitch by not pitching,’ which means you convey your goal without turning the event into a hard sell. The audience, who may be secluded in their houses, will be able to make a human connection due to this.
It’s important to note that the most significant difference between a live and a virtual event is that the audience can log out at any point, so you’ll need to provide participants reasons to stay involved and participate throughout the event.
Come Prepared
Comprehensive planning is essential for a successful event, whether virtual or in person. This entails setting up dry runs for speakers to test their audio and video and practise their presentations. If any real-time activities are planned, such as whiteboarding or polling, they should be practised.
To avoid “Zoom bombing,” make sure your event platform is safe and secure, and the meeting link is only available to those invited.
Select The Right Platform
When coming up with virtual event ideas, the most important task is choosing the right platform to utilize for your virtual event. And it may be a minefield of questions, conflicting information, and competing platforms that all appear to provide similar features. Don’t worry; finding the right platform is just doing little research.
Before you choose which platform is best for your event, there are a few questions you should ask yourself.
Is it possible to use the platform for free? If not, what are the associated costs?
- How many people could this platform accommodate?
- Is the platform equipped with all of the functionality you require?
- Is there help available throughout the event if things don’t go as planned?
Consider whether your event will be live or pre-recorded, as this will influence which platform would work best for you.
Troubleshoot Ahead of Time.
Live virtual events are no strangers to technical challenges, so it is always best to troubleshoot ahead of time. The first thing you should do is make sure everyone has a good Wi-Fi signal.
Estimate the number of individuals who will be using your speakers’ Wi-Fi and how close they will be to their router. You should also ensure that customers who have several virtual platforms installed on their devices have closed such programmes.
Keep your listeners engaged.
Allow 10 minutes before the programme begins for your participants to become acquainted with one another. Create a sense of anticipation for the event by allowing attendees to introduce themselves. Even if that particular group just interacts once, this will assist in building a feeling of community and make them more comfortable with one another.
To introduce your presenters and information, employ graphic presentations. Remind your audience that they can ask questions and express their thoughts at any time.
Create a microsite.
Creating a microsite would be a great virtual event idea as it is a one-of-a-kind website designed specifically for your event.
Attendees can go to your microsite to get all the information they need for the event, such as a plan, speaker profiles, and chat boxes.
Promote the event.
The importance of promoting and marketing your event cannot be overstated. No one will show up if your potential guests are unaware of your upcoming event. Determine your virtual event’s main selling points and create an advertising campaign around them.
- Use your social media channels to promote the upcoming virtual event by using Instagram and Facebook stories to create a countdown.
- Run adverts in a planned manner to attract the right audience.
- Promote the event’s web pages and website.
- Make use of the correct collection of influencers to market your product.
- For optimization, choose SEO-friendly keywords.
Less is more
The duration of a virtual event is a fraction of that of a live event. Thirty minutes is a good length, but anything longer than that necessitates a compelling reason for the audience to keep watching.
Choose date and time wisely
When it comes to attending online events, people have many options. They can participate from anywhere in the world as long as they have access to the internet. However, this does not eliminate the need to select your event’s date and time properly.
It’s unlikely that arranging your event early in the week and during typical business hours will work for a target audience that comprises working professionals. While scheduling the event over the weekend is advantageous, individuals still desire and deserve relaxation. In this situation, a Thursday or Friday would be a suitable day to hold your event.
Gather feedback
Finally, get feedback from your participants after the event to learn what you may have altered or done differently. This can also be used as marketing material for your next event.
Wrapping up
Professional development, networking, and education should not be held just because we’re stuck at home. There are many safe, dependable, and productive ways to host conferences and gatherings in an online context. Audiences are becoming accustomed to the digital format and want to remain involved in their professional communities. You’ll be well on your way to presenting a successful virtual event if you follow the tips mentioned above.
