According to a recent Forbes article, Virtual Events were up 1000% in May of 2020. No surprise as Coronavirus ran rampant across the U.S. and the world over the last 12 months. 2021 is proving to be a slow recovery for business and in-person conferences as regulations fluctuate from state to state.
Infinity Park Event Center jumped on the virtual conference trend and was recently recognized by Unique Events as a Top Pick Venue for Hybrid Meetings. You may be exploring virtual or hybrid options for your meeting, event or conference strategy. If so, we would like to share some ideas around how to shape up that meeting with a solid foundational plan.
Here are five considerations to help you make your virtual event a success:
Goals.
Consider the type of event you would like to host. What are the goals? Are you a non-profit looking for a way to raise awareness or collect donations? Or is this a small corporate get-together with team building as the main focus? Create event goals at the beginning and this will help you to thrive throughout the planning process.
Audience.
Identify the audience that would be attracted to attending your event. Are they donors, co-workers or industry professionals? Does everyone have the correct technology to make them an able participant? Will you be asking for specific actions like a donation or voting in a poll? What does that require from your users?
Technology.
What type of technology does your event or meeting require? Is this a produced event like an awards show where you will need a stage, microphone, and a camera? Will you need a high-speed internet connection to help with attendee connection and participation?
Program.
To keep your event exciting and entertaining consider the activities that you would like to incorporate. What about a virtual bartender that helps you to mix a special drink (start the video at 05:30 you won’t be sorry). Will you have a Question/Answer session with speakers? What can you do to encourage participation?
Marketing.
What tools are you planning to use to encourage attendance? Do you have an email or digital marketing plan to help support registration and attendance? Does your organization utilize social media platforms to help communicate with your audience? LinkedIn and Facebook have specific tools you can use to create energy and excitement like business-to-business marketing and Facebook Events.
Going virtual can be fun and challenging at the same time. Infinity Park Event Center has the experience and the tools to make this change to your event easy, engaging and successful.
