Virtual events aren’t new, but may be new to your business. Our team has worked on many, and we have 5 tips to help provide you with the best outcome when hosting one.
1. Length
It’s difficult to hold audience attention in a virtual event because there are so many distractions. We recommend taking the expected time and reducing it by 25 to 50 percent.
2. Engagement
People attend events to have face-to-face interaction to help foster relationships with peers, prospects, and clients. Since this isn’t an option in a virtual event, we recommend integrating engagement by allowing attendees to ask questions. A Q&A tool is a must for this. This tool can also be beneficial for the presenter(s) by polling the audience and getting real-time feedback.
3. Visual
Give attendees a reason to watch and feel a personal connection by requiring all presenters to use their Webcam while presenting. Each presenter should be prepared for this and have a proper camera and lighting to ensure no technical difficulties transpire during the virtual event.
4. SoundSuperior audio is crucial with a virtual event.
If the attendees have difficulty hearing the presenter, they will log off.People won’t tolerate audio that is intermittent or if there are distractions in the background.We recommend each presenter use a USB headset microphone to ensure the optimal audio quality.
5. Content
Content is everything whether your event is in-person or virtual. It’s critical that each speaker focuses on the topic and doesn’t make their presentation a commercial for the product or service their company offers. One thing to consider is to leverage a moderator who welcomes the attendees, interacts with each presenter, and helps with the question and answer portion.
Take these tips into consideration when planning your next virtual event during these uncharted times. And most importantly, give yourself enough time to plan and work directly with each speaker to ensure a successful virtual event for everyone who participates.