The planning is over, the participants start to arrive, a buzz of excitement is in the air, your amazing in-person event is going to be something people talk about until your next one. You know how to plan a great event, but now your event is going to be virtual. What do you need to do to create that same buzz and leave your participants wowed in this new space?
Have no fear, that’s why we are here! We will lay out a foundation for you so that planning your virtual event can blow your participants’ expectations away!
The Basics With A Twist: Let People Know It’s Happening!
Being virtual means being able to reach people who never could have come in person. Create a Facebook or Eventbrite event to gauge how many people will be in attendance. You need to be prepared on how to pivot in case your online event has WAY more people than your traditional in-person event. Make sure to promote online across various social media platforms. This is an opportunity to try different messaging, see which resonates the most and gets the most sign-ups. TRACK THIS! Pay attention to what message works best!
What Is This Going to Cost?
The best thing about a virtual event is that it costs significantly less than an in-person event! There is no travel, venue rental, catering, etc. Just because your event is going virtual does not make it free. Use some of your unused, in-person budget on high impact items (like tech, guest speakers, and swag). You will still save money but will shock people with what you can make happen.
Virtual Event Means Virtual Scheduling
When planning your event, you should keep in mind that although many people are working from home, not everyone is on the same schedule. This can be a challenge, but you can change that challenge into a huge opportunity. Think about mixing live programming at different times, some pre-recorded sessions that people can do on their own, small breakouts, and some recommended sessions with surprise live guests. Experts in the field, CEO’s, and celebrities are more available for virtual events and can bring in a huge wow factor!
Practice Makes Perfect
How many times have you attended an event where you felt there was room for smoother execution? This is amplified on a virtual event. Practice, practice, practice. Run tests with your coworkers and when that goes smoothly, run it again. Even consider hiring an IT professional to help facilitate during your event in case there are any issues that pop up. If the event doesn’t go smoothly because of IT issues your event will be a bust no matter what great programming you have.
Swag Out Your Attendees
When you go to a live event you get swag. The same should be said for a virtual event. Providing an incentive gives your attendees something to be excited about through the entire event! A customized swag box is a perfect way to both put in some fun surprises and program supplies while promoting your organization and encouraging attendees to be engaged in the content you are sharing.
Keeping Them Engaged
Attendees can take polls or quizzes, raise their hands to answer questions, participate in live tweeting, or use the chat tool to show engagement! They will be more excited to engage with content if YOU are excited about the content you are sharing! It may not seem like that big a deal, but looking into the camera can imitate actual eye contact and attendees will feel more comfortable keeping them more engaged!
Follow Up For Feedback
Once you have completed your event, take some time to reach out to attendees, and thank them for joining you! This is also a great time to ask for feedback about the event and what they would like to see more of.
To talk through how to make your virtual event something that stands out from the crowd, contact event specialist and Liquid Screen Design co-owner Bryan Goltzman at bryan@liquidscreendesign.com or 612-234-7230.
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Lexie Warren is a Social Media Intern at Liquid Screen Design a Branding and Swagging company. Helping nonprofits and businesses with their physical marketing needs and strategies.
