The Future of Virtual Events — Has COVID-19 Curtailed Events Forever?

Events make up a large part of business activities. In-Person events such as conventions, conferences, briefings etc., all offer opportunities for people to network, make new connections, upskill and promote their products/services. Unfortunately, events of this nature are currently no longer possible in the wake of COVID-19 and this has prompted an enormous shift toward virtual events. The real question here is, will this phenomenon last? Are people seeing the benefits of these virtual events which certain in-person events may not always offer? Let’s look at this in more depth.

Proven Benefits of Hosting Virtual Events

Time-Saving

Virtual events allow event planners, staff members, and attendees the opportunity to save more time. Although virtual events do require some setup time (event website, registration, event marketing, promotion etc.) it’s tremendously less than that of an in-person event. They also require no travel time, so employees and attendees can use that time to work on all the other things that need their attention during these crazy times!

Cost-Effective

COVID-19 has resulted in businesses tightening their belts significantly, so event planners need to shrink their budgets. The overall cost of events has greatly reduced due to hosting these virtually, 75 percent less expensive according to studies. Planners save on costs such as venue hire, hotel rooms, catering, travel and so much more. The only expense is the costs of the virtual meeting platform.

Easier to Form Connections

Due to the fact that virtual events tend to be faster-paced since attendees don’t have to move from session to session, room to room, it can be easier to make connections with other attendees and speakers than an in-person event. Since everything is online, attendees can easily record important information, like people’s names, titles etc.

Global Reach

A primary objective of events is to increase reach to engage more people and it has been found that virtual events make this easier. You can promote events by sharing the link to your website and social media channels. People from across the world can join instantly without having to worry about travel. Hosting a virtual event allows planners to grow their audience and get everyone to participate, no matter their location.

Easier to Gather Audience Feedback

Just like in-person events, feedback is also crucial for virtual events. However, unlike in-person events, attendees are constantly online at virtual events, which means they can easily answer real-time polls or surveys in sessions. Not only will this real-time feedback help presenters get a feel for how their session is going (especially if it is a virtual event where the presenter may not be able to see the faces of the full audience) it will also be useful to measure the overall success of the virtual event.

Measurable Results

Although data that virtual events produce varies depending on what platform and event management software you use, it should be easier to gather certain data on your event and attendees during your virtual event than an in-person event because everything is done online, so it can be easily tracked. For instance, you can know when your attendees logged on, from where, the number of people attending, record of Q&A, interaction ratings and so much more

What Should Event Planners Take Into Account Post Covid-19

Attention to Contracts

Due to event cancellations, event organisers are spending more time than ever reviewing event contracts. It’s clear that everyone will need to be more familiar with contracting terms going forward. Planners should know the exact financial ramifications should something prevent an event from occurring.

Hotels Will Require More Financial Security Upfront

One of the largest shifts will be in regards to hotel financial security. It’s probable that hotels will demand greater financial commitment i.e some form of payment upfront. This might take the form of a non-refundable one night room and tax deposit, a group fee guaranteed upfront, or more severe attrition clauses.

Supply and Demand Issues

Immediately post COVID-19 we are going to see a short term supply and demand issue across a variety of venues. Many hotels/event venues have had to close down permanently due to financial loss, once the demand for travel is back to pre-pandemic levels, will there be enough supply? Venues may offer heavily reduced rates at first to boost demand, then a sharp increase in prices due to supply shortage.

Increase in Local Travel

It is predicted that there will be a surge in local travel for quite some time post-COVID-19 if people are still hesitant about international travel and being at large events amongst thousands of people. Driving to a nearby destination for an event will be appealing to many, not only for safety concerns but to reinvest money back into their local economies. For event professionals, this is a great opportunity to strengthen your partnerships with local businesses.

Are Local And Virtual Events The Future?

It has been estimated that by next year, online video including conferencing will account for 80% of web traffic. While it may seem that video conferences are a chance for people to zone out, in fact, the opposite is true: nearly 90% of virtual meeting participants report the same or higher participation levels as in-person conferences.

Public opinions vary but it has been stated that once the pandemic is over (whenever that may be) it is likely that many of the changes that have been currently necessary will stick around for some time. People have shifted to remote work and it is unlikely they will want to get back into an office until it is safe to do so, especially if working from an office is not a necessity for their work. The same goes for virtual events, once people realise that they can retain the same benefits of joining certain events online they may be reluctant to travel to these events going forward, and this should be factored into event planning.

It is important to note that this blog is not to state that in-person events are now of no importance and should become a thing of the past, absolutely not, in-person events are still crucial in terms of their human connection. It is simply stating that organisations now having explored & utilised virtual events more, realise that certain in-person events they have undertaken in the past, may run more effectively online.

No matter what is to come, one thing I am grateful for is that this pandemic has shined a light on the unity amongst the event industry. This focus on unity, and how we can help our fellow partners, customers etc. is something that I hope will last long after this passes.