What is a Virtual Event?
When an individual joins an event online like on video conferencing, webinar online or on-demand classes rather than gathering physically that is a Virtual Event. According to today’s trends and facts on google worlding is more moving towards Virtual Events.
The Basics: How to Host a Virtual Event
When you plan that you want to host a virtual event, so how do you do it? The planning process is very simple and similar to that of any other in-person event. Just consider yourself as an attendees’ when planning an in-person event, you should do the same thing for a virtual event platform as well. You wouldn’t keep attendees in their seats for same time being as same goes for virtual events. Proper and almost same planning tricks and tips needed while going forwards to arrange virtual event. Virtual events may feel different than physical event but the more you treat them like an in-person event, the better you feel similar.
Questions to Ask When Planning a Virtual Event
- Event should be Live or On Demand or Mix?
- Create a guide for attendees like how to join speakers, attend sessions and use chat tools? Before the actual event?
- What happens if you face any connectivity issues?
- Will you charge for your event or offer it for free?
- If on demand content is required after the event than up to what time it will be available?
- What will be Duration of the sessions?
- Which type of tools will attendees use for network and scheduling appointments?
There are four main types of Virtual Events:
- Webinars:
Virtual webinar last for approx. 80 minutes and allows attendees from all over the global to join in and listen one or number of speakers with presentation. Companies may or may not ask for charge to attend the session. It use VC tools that allow Q&A session, present live or play pre-recoded content and also offer Video on Demand facility after the completion of the event.
- Virtual Conferences:
Much like physical conferences, virtual conferences are built around a live, complex agenda that which includes keynotes speakers, sessions, breakouts, and many more. Virtual conferences include multi- level sessions content and can involve community engagement tools. While less effective in terms of lead generation and networking as an in-person event, virtual conferences allow attendees to view keynotes speaker in real-time, build their own agenda from relevant session, on-demand content, and interact with other attendees.
- Internal Hybrid Events:
These are different town halls, sales kick-offs meeting, companywide events, trainings, department meetings, and many more. For organizations that is available in number of countries, even continents, internal hybrid meetings or events are used to share a common message to the entire company when employees are all gathered in the same place. While it would be great to fly for every employee to your organization’s HQ, it would be very costly, and the scheduling the meeting or event would be time-consuming. Another best way to host such events in parts like ask few people physically and other virtual virtually. Virtual team building activities can work very well at internal hybrid events.
- External Hybrid Events:
Events which are held for outsider of your organization. There can be user conferences or industrial conferences. These events require good levels of video production and design so that virtual attendees get the similar quality which he/she getting in-person attendees. These events are useful to those attendees who are unable to travel to the event to participate and learn. It is challenging to provide the same value to the all people in external hybrid events, as in-person attendees are able to make great network more freely and engage easily with content than those attending virtually.
Why Host a Virtual Event?
Virtual events are held to deliver your company’s message to drive leads and revenue, drive adoption, and build loyalty lifetime value which are same reasons as in-person events. Meeting and event handler or planners have been making the choice between physical, virtual, and hybrid events for years and each have their own set of pros and cons.
Here are a few reasons to host a virtual event:
Accessibility: This virtual option will help those attendees to attend the session who are unable to reach in-person.
Budget: Your organization needs to cut the costs and make events and webinars small but virtual can help move money to go for bigger events of the year that brings in the largest number of leads. This will also help to attendees who have budget issue for travelling.
There’s no other option: Due to many concerns like extreme weather, travel bans, or an act of God, or like current pandemic situation you have to cancel the events physically and go for virtual events.