10 Expert Tips for Hosting a Successful Virtual Event
Face-to-face interaction is often preferred for interviews, webinars, delivering presentations, etc. where a speaker can analyze and understand the non-verbal aspects of communication of the audience.
On top of that, face-to-face in-venue events such as concerts, parties, conventions, etc. offer a wide scope of opportunities for socializing. Also, that environment, that atmosphere of togetherness is what brings people closer.
From the sound of thousands of voices reverberating in your favorite band’s concert to getting to know a complete stranger in a festival who ends up becoming a life-long friend, on-site events are truly experiences that you cherish even long after they’re done.
Come what may, it can be quite hard to emulate the same experience virtually.
While face-to-face interaction is still the preferred mode of communication, the global crisis due to a pandemic that has forced everyone to take the road less traveled.
People often wonder how a virtual event can ever replace face-to-face interaction, even with video streaming turned on. A speaker or session conductor(s) will never really be able to gauge the reactions of all the guests/audiences through a screen.
However, if managed and organized with certain factors in mind, an online event or session can turn out to be quite valuable and successful. The only major difference between an in-venue and an online event is the fact that the audiences and the speaker(s) aren’t present at the same physical location.
At the same time, a virtual event offers a wide range of options such as screen sharing, file sharing, online chats, etc. These can make the sessions very lively and interactive.
Here are ten detailed tips curated carefully from successful as well as failed attempts at organizing virtual events. Keeping these in mind will help you plan and execute a successful event like that, be it conferences, webinars, educational training sessions, festivals, conventions, etc.
1. Choose an Accessible Channel
The channel for conducting an online event must be decided after taking into consideration seven critical factors. These factors depend on the kind of event that you’re hosting. A channel is basically the medium or platform through which the online event is conducted. It could be Zoom, Twitch, MS Teams, YouTube Live, Skype, Google Meet, etc.
These mediums or channels must be chosen after careful consideration since choosing the wrong one will prove catastrophic for audience experiences.
The Right Channel for Your Target Audience
This is a very underrated aspect of choosing a channel. Often, organizers decide on a channel based on their preferred brands, beliefs, observations, and financial spread. They couldn’t be more wrong. The target audience must be able to relate to the channel, be able to operate it, have some sort of familiarity with and understanding of the resources of the channel.
For example, if you conduct an online workshop on WhatsApp Video calling just because you find it more comfortable, the audience will find it hard to learn, interact, and witness the hardware or practical representations on the small screen of a mobile phone.
Number of Gathered Attendees
While Skype might be the right platform for hosting your annual video conference, Google Meet may not be ideal for a webinar on a global scale with over 300 participants since it allows only 100 entrants. The number of people on the call will help you determine which platform to choose.
Also, some channels may support up to any number of attendees, you also need to make sure that the server of the service provider has enough bandwidth for seamless audio, video, screen sharing, etc. without screen lags, audio delays, or call drops.
Platforms like Twitch, YouTube Live, or Instagram Live do not limit the number of attendees and can be a great way to connect with people for sessions. Then there are also apps like Periscope where you cannot only view your video up to 24 hours after the session is over but also download it.
If you’re holding repeated events with different audiences, this recording can come in quite handy, therefore you must see if the gathered attendees are changing with each of your sessions (new topics, new or old target audience) or attendees are changing but the session subject isn’t (same topic, new target audience).
If it’s the latter, you can use such Live Streaming apps to pre-record your session, and even post it again for a wider reach.
Features Provided by the Channel
Depending on the type of event you’re hosting, you’ll need to ensure your channel has some resources as prerequisites. For instance, a web conference must be on a channel that supports file sharing, screen sharing, etc.
On the other hand, an educational event (workshop, webinar, online classrooms, etc.) would need resources like screen sharing, whiteboard, online chat platforms to discuss student doubts, etc.
For best results, the speaker(s) and organizers need to come together and discuss the flow of the event to list certain resources that will be needed.
Budget
There are free platforms, paid platforms, and then there are hybrid platforms. Free platforms may offer minimalistic resources, support, and security. Paid platforms may have subscription-based costs or a one-time license-based payment offering premium features.
Hybrid platforms offer some features for free while others are paid. The best example for this is the video conferencing-based software ‘Zoom’, which allows everyone to confer for 40 free minutes, post which the call is automatically disconnected unless you’re a paid customer.
Based on your budget, you can choose any of these platforms that best serve your content delivery plan. However, it’s important to ensure that no platform asks for an undisclosed payment from participants upon connecting to the event.
Networking and Connectivity Scope
Webinars, international conferences, etc. between a group of audiences unfamiliar with each other are a great way to get to know like-minded people. While networking may not be possible during the event, it should be possible before and after the event, as well as during breaks.
Some functions of networking you should look out for are file sharing (for sharing work samples, past projects, reports, etc.), private chat mode, connection requests, etc. Connectivity scope is especially important for workshops that are conducted for more than one day.
2. Select a Convenient Time and Duration
This is obvious, especially in the case of international conferences or educational sessions. You need to analyze the region that the target audience is based out of, the content to be delivered, and then determine the best time to schedule the event.
For example, afternoon hours, post-lunch wouldn’t be ideal for educational sessions — even a little boredom causes a full stomach to be drowsy. Likewise, an international conference cannot happen at 9:30 am EST — for participants living in Washington D.C, that’s midnight!
Also, you must decide a time that doesn’t clash with similar events to ensure maximum participation.
3. Promoting the Event is Critical for Success
Publicize your event on platforms meant for events, such as Calendify. Share posters and banners on Social Media like WhatsApp groups, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and community forums relevant to the event. This will ensure that your event attracts many participants from diverse backgrounds. This will positively impact your brand image.
4. Be Clear About the Resources You Offer
By resources, we mean the material that you and your virtual event platform have to offer. Will you be providing soft copies of handouts? Will you share audio or video clips related to the topic for a better understanding? Will the screen be recorded and shared with participants as a long-term subject resource? Will you send any extra notes on topics, or the presentations you show?
You can inform the participants about these at the start of the event so that the attendees have something to look forward to. This also shows your commitment to making their experience value-added, which is a big bonus for you.
5. Content is the King, Speaker Credentials are Crucial
Content and content delivery are different but equally important aspects. You may have a great speaker, but sometimes even the best of them tend to go off-track or deviate from the topic that needs to be discussed.
Similarly, your content may be valuable and engaging, but is the speaker well-versed with it? Are their credentials impressive enough that an attendee would sign up to hear them?
6. Include Engaging Activities for Improved Audience Interaction
An online event can last anywhere between one to several hours, and the same duration could well extend up to a few days for webinars, festivals, and conferences. During this time, it’s important to include quizzes, questions, fun test-based games, among others. to make sure the event doesn’t turn monotonous for the audience.
Also, a virtual audience may be distracted by their phones or anything in their surroundings. Ensure that your speakers keep asking questions. You might want to keep your audience engaged by cracking a few jokes to pull the audience’s attention back in when they start to get restless.
7. Ensure Attendees and Speaker(s) Adhere to Standard Etiquettes.
Standard etiquettes include but are not limited to:
- Be mindful and respectful of the audience’s cultural, religious, ethnic, and racial diversity.
- Mute devices when not speaking.
- Be respectful and optimistic.
- Don’t spam the group chats with irrelevant messages or start talking to your buddy on a group chat.
- Ensure the speaker is mindful of the timing (start, end, breaks) and doesn’t veer away from the topic.
- Ensure the speaker shares the resources and provides the information that is promised to the participants.
If these are conveyed before the session starts, organizers need not worry about breaking the flow midway to admonish someone who disregards these etiquettes.
8. Keep in Mind Attendees’ and Speakers’ Privacy
Obtain no more information about the participants and speakers than essential. Also, never share the data you obtain without their consent. Do not click and post pictures of the call or record the screens without prior intimation to all participants. Also, as a host, you need to ascertain that the medium you choose is completely secure.
Security here refers to customer-friendly privacy policies, ‘no data sharing to third parties’ policy, and most importantly end to end encryption. End-to-end encryption ensures that the sent messages are encoded and that only the sender and receiver’s side can decode these messages to maintain privacy and confidentiality.
9. Pre-Plan for Last Minute Setbacks
Setbacks include internet connectivity issues, speaker(s) canceling sessions due for various reasons, the number of participants is fewer than expected, etc. An organizer also needs to have backup plans, like publishing your event schedule also on platforms like Calendify to avoid an outpour of visitors.
Your plan B for when disaster strikes could be anything from a backup speaker to pushing the event to an alternative date. However, these methods are harder to pull off. What’s easier is you can arrange with the speaker to pre-record the entire session before-hand.
Doing this lets you hold the session as per schedule as you play the recording for your audience. However, this should be used as a last resort considering that it takes the interactivity out of the picture since there is nobody at the other end to interact with.
10. Seek Feedback, Create and Post Success Stories on Social Media Profiles After the Event
This will enhance your image for future events. Also, thanking all participants or sharing snippets of what happened during the event on social media platforms creates enduring memories in the minds of your attendees.
Final Word
The points mentioned above are tips-cum-guidelines to increase the chances of a successful event. Event platforms like Calendify help your business in promoting your events, planning, and scheduling to assist you in organizing the event overall.
A virtual event needs at least as much preparation as on-location events, if not more. Additionally, you save on traveling, catering, venue-booking, and other expenditures.
Therefore, regardless of whether you’re a potential attendee or an organizer, an online event is clearly much more advantageous if executed with the right approach. Publicity, planning, and scheduling are key factors for any online event.
