Virtual Events | How to get your business set up.
Conferences and other business events are a trillion-dollar industry that paves the way for exchanges in ideas and building professional relationships. However, with the recent virus outbreak, many organisations have been forced to postpone or cancel their face-to-face events.
In a study by the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), eighty-seven percent of respondents said they have canceled — and 66 percent have postponed — events as a result of COVID-19. As a result, many companies bridged the gap between business continuity and the interest of public safety through virtual events. The recent pandemic may have accelerated the shift to go online. However, more and more businesses are recognizing the benefits that come with hosting virtual events. Not only does it provide hosting flexibility, it’s also less expensive than face-to-face events. It also offers greater engagement globally, which increases your generation of leads and helps you establish yourself or your clients as industry leaders.
SO WHAT IS A VIRTUAL EVENT?
From the name itself, virtual events are any organised event that takes place online rather than in-person. You don’t need any physical location.
Virtual events are great because they lessen the carbon footprint without compromising the quality of the audience experience. More often than not, online events give the audience direct access to the speaker/s, which builds trust with attendees and your brand, and boosts your credibility as a thought leader.
WHAT SORT OF EVENTS CAN BE HOSTED VIRTUALLY?
Perhaps you’ve attended a webinar online or joined your bosses for a coffee break via Zoom. You might’ve even participated in an online cooking class or a conference from the comfort of your desk. These are all examples of virtual events. Virtual events can range from webinars, small question-and-answer sessions to large-scale conferences, and company-wide gatherings with thousands of attendees. Generally, there are four main types of virtual events.
Online Training & Education
I n an online training session or webinar, there is typically one or more speakers presenting content to an audience from around the globe. The event usually lasts from 25 to 60 minutes, and it can be paid or offered for free. Webinars typically use video conferencing tools that allow for Q&A so that attendees can interact with the speakers and vice-versa. It’s such a great way to show your audience that you know your stuff and will also assist in your audience trusting you and potentially becoming a client down the track..
Live Streams
This is great for events, instore showcases, presentations or behind the scenes. It is a way to show your audience what is happening in your business, but doesn’t offer the interaction a webinar or conference does. A live stream can be very easy to set up and allows your audience to log on and see what they want to and leave when they want to too.
Team Building
Flying all your employees to your main headquarters will be the best way to network and get to know each other. However, this idea would be extremely costly, and scheduling your employees would probably be a nightmare for everyone. As such, the next best option will be to host events that are part in-person and part virtual. It’s a great way to share a message with the entire company when employees are in different locations.
Conferences
Virtual conferences are much like in-person conferences but provide less potential for lead capture and networking. However, it’s also built around a live, complex agenda that includes keynotes, sessions, breakouts, and more.
image source: https://digiengage.live/
WHAT TECHNOLOGY OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE TO SET UP MY EVENT?
There are so many technologies available today that can enable you to stream online without hassle.
Most of these are for free, and you can use them to view keynote speeches, training seminars, or product roll-outs, etc. YouTube Live, Facebook Live, Periscope, Livestream, Brightcove & Twitch
As such, rather than just streaming, you can use these technologies to facilitate engagement between you and your event attendees:
Zoom
GoToWebinar
Livestorm
ClickMeeting
Google Meet
Sometimes, videoconferencing platforms are better suited to interactive virtual events, such as business meetings, training sessions, and webinars.
With these platforms, you can share screens dynamically and have back-and-forth conversations with your attendees.
WHAT TO CONSIDER BEFORE GOING VIRTUAL
Last March, Salesforce, a US marketing platform maker, decided to convert its Sydney World Tour event to run digitally. According to the local vice-president for marketing, Renata Bertram, the conference gathered more than 1.5 million views across Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. 80,000 of which tuned into Salesforce Live and gave some of their details, which meant they were able to engage with everything Salesforce had to offer on the day of launch.
Successful virtual events such as this make you think about the things you should consider before going virtual.
For one, you need to consider the attendee journey. Unlike physical events, you don’t need to worry about the décor, staging, lighting or audio. More consideration needs to be put to the attendees’ experience. How will the attendees engage with the presenters, host, and sponsors? The goal is to secure at least three to four minutes of keyboard touch time. If you manage to do this, you are also ensured of your attendees’ commitment and active engagement.
Second, consider the medium. Virtual attendees will have a much shorter attention span than those in a physical conference. As such, make adjustments to your presentations. For example, if your event is going to be eight hours long, break up your virtual event into four-hour segments over two days. Consider adding a 15-minute break in between presentations to allow attendees to rest and ask questions. Moreover, consider that attendees and speakers may be in different time zones, so offer on-demand videos or use a “simulive” format where the event is pre-recorded but then played “live” to your audience with a Q&A session.
Third, evaluate your streaming capabilities. It’s also essential that the live stream is a smooth and high-quality experience to avoid attendees becoming distracted and losing concentration. Research has shown that audience will disengage and react negatively to low-quality streaming incidents such as buffering regardless of the quality of the content. So, companies need to equip themselves with the proper infrastructure and streaming capacity to offer their audience a seamless experience.
Fourth, but definitely not the least, you need to pull together the right team. This will include graphics support, attendee support, and other roles and responsibilities that you’ll need to ensure that you can deliver a satisfying virtual-led experience.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO SET UP A VIRTUAL EVENT?
It will all depend on your scale. Is it a hybrid event wherein part of it is only virtual, or is your vision to convert the entire event into a digital one? Can you meet your objectives with your chosen environment? You need to consider the time and resources you have and how it will relate to your goals and objectives for the event. For example, a simple, single-room environment with webinar presentations can be set up in a few weeks, but a full-scale online trade show can take up to two months to complete.
