Book a demo

Tag: event engagement

5 Smart Strategies to Help You Plan Your Hybrid Event

Posted on by Michelle Kristoff

As we move further away from the restrictions put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, we have to acknowledge that life has yet to return to “normal.” The past two years have reshaped how we do business and how we move about in the world on both a professional and personal level. For that reason, hybrid events remain a crucial option for companies eager to move forward, while respecting the safety concerns of their clients and colleagues.

That’s why we’ve dedicated a post to unpacking some smart strategies to help you plan your next hybrid event. The fact is, five years ago, hybrid events weren’t really on anyone’s radar. Now, with the emphasis on accommodating everyone’s post-pandemic wishes, it’s easy for even the best of intentions to fall short.

We’re here to help you take hold of the hybrid event helm and avoid some of the pitfalls that result from failure to plan appropriately.

So, What are the Pitfalls to Planning a Hybrid Event?

Hybrid events are attractive just by their very nature — a surefire solution to pleasing everyone, whether they prefer to attend in-person or remotely. In fact, according to the Harvard Business Review, “In 2021, 64% of businesses say they’re increasing their virtual events, and 58% say they’re planning for a mix of virtual and in-person events,” a trend that has continued now, midway through 2022.

The trouble is “surefire” doesn’t mean foolproof and hosting a hybrid event comes with its own unique challenges. Now is the time to understand — and overcome — them.

Here are a few hybrid event pitfalls to avoid:

  1. Embracing event inclusion in name only.

    When you host a hybrid event, equal and engaging attention must be paid to both the  remote and in-person attendees. It’s critical that companies embrace inclusivity in more  than words and empower all participants to actively engage with the presentations,  breakout sessions, Q&A formats, even social networking events like happy hours. Consider this statistic: 39% of people who attended hybrid events virtually state that they do not feel included in the event. This is an opportunity to bring more mindfulness to your hybrid event and ensure that virtual participants are given equal attention.

  2. Spreading the event budget too thin.

    Unlike the events of the past, companies eager to host hybrid events have to allocate funds appropriately to ensure adequate in-person and virtual offerings.

  3. Missed opportunities to make meaningful connections for both audiences pre and post-event.

    Connecting to these two unique audiences ahead of the event will keep them interested and excited to attend. Certainly, these efforts need to carry throughout the event itself, with special attention dedicated to staying in touch with meaningful content after the event has ended. The event might be over, but hosts need to nurture the connections made by staying top of mind with relevant offers.

  4. Failure to plan… (you know the rest).

    A recent poll of event organizers found that nearly 33% experienced issues with internet connectivity, which negatively impacted the virtual component of their hybrid event. What percentage do you think had a backup internet connection in place? Not many — only 12% in fact. Remember: Every plan needs a backup plan.

With an understanding of what to avoid, set your sights on the following five smart strategies to help you plan for hybrid event success.

Pathable’s 5 Proven Strategies for Hybrid Event Success

Whether you’ve never planned a hybrid event or consider yourself old hat, keep in mind the following tips for a successful experience, not only for your business and bottom line, but your attendees, both live and virtual.

  1. Clarify Your Cause

In other words, why are you hosting a hybrid event? After all, plenty of companies have embraced a total return to in-person offerings, so why have you opted for hybrid? A clear answer will help you determine how to effectively offer events, lectures, workshops, and breakout sessions both online and in person. What is the goal of this event? How can you leverage the unique merits of in-person and virtual to your advantage? It can help to put yourself in the shoes of your attendees in order to evaluate whether both options are going to deliver the value they should.

  1. Scout Location… and Platform

A trick to hosting any event is scouting the right location. The right location requires adequate space and conveniences like ample parking, but it should also reflect some aspect of your brand or business. Ideally, the space itself should be a conversation starter for in-person attendees. As if these factors weren’t enough to consider, hybrid event organizers also need to secure a reliable online platform to launch the livestream component of their event, and organize vital attendee information, including ticketing and registration.

  1. Curate Compelling Content

Although this sounds like a big task — and it is — creating content that matters to your audience can be as simple as reviewing what’s worked in the past and aligning that with current industry issues, concerns, and developments. Review your business’ blog and social channel and do a quick audit on the posts that inspired the most engagement. Ask yourself what it is your event attendees need or want to know in order to keep competitive in their field and do more for their customer base. When it comes to creating content — whether on a regular basis or specifically for your event — always keep value for the consumer as the primary focus.

  1. Get Social, Both In Person and Online

This is arguably a bit trickier and maybe even more important with respect to virtual attendees. When the pandemic pushed business communication almost exclusively online, Zoom meetings became the norm and, consequently, so did Zoom fatigue. We’ve all zoned out on a virtual call and it’s far too easy to avoid engaging when we feel like just another face in the gallery. Did you know that the typical no-show percentage of virtual events is 35%? For these reasons, creating meaningful opportunities for audience engagement at hybrid events is critical. Some virtual event engagement strategies that have proven effective include games, contents, quizzes, polls, and even “choose your own adventure” style opportunities for attendees to decide what session or presentation they want to engage with next. Certainly the same types of opportunities can be made available to in-person attendees and you also have the added convenience of scheduling small breakout sessions, roundtable discussions, and post-event cocktails or meals (bonus points if those are provided by event sponsors!).

  1. Secure Support from Strategic Partnerships

An easy place to start is during the scouting process for your location. Would a local business host your event in exchange for sponsorship perks? Depending on the size of your hybrid event, exposure alone could be enough reason for a business to open its doors and make its AV capabilities accessible to you. Aside from a host sponsor, you’ll want to solicit other sponsors — and strategy is key. Find businesses whose products or services will benefit your attendees and isolate opportunities for them to showcase or share those items and expertise through event marketing collateral, sponsored digital downloads, presentation, and speaking engagements. The sky’s the limit when it comes to involving your sponsors in ways that will delight and deliver for event attendees. Engaging in conversations with these potential sponsors well ahead of the event date is a great way to glean that information and ensure the event benefits all involved.

As with any event — in-person, virtual or hybrid — be sure to thank your attendees for their participation, as well as the sponsors who helped make the event possible. Consider partnering with a company that specializes in custom branded virtual and hybrid event gifts to send as a thank you to all event attendees and sponsors. What a perfect way to express gratitude and leave your mark — quite literally!

Get started today

There is no better time to upgrade or begin your journey with event technology like a hybrid engagement solution.

For more information on Pathable’s end-to-end event management software, including their mobile event app, book your free demo today.


BOOK a demo

How To Make a Hybrid Event Successful

Posted on by Jennifer Fuller

Are you keeping up with changes in the event landscape? In-person conferences, seminars, and other events were providing powerful outreach for many businesses while bringing in substantial profits. Then COVID-19 hit, and everything switched to virtual events. Now businesses in many areas of the world have the option of planning live events again, but a year or two of virtual event planning has changed everything.


Many people now prefer to attend events from home because they don’t have to get dressed up, risk exposure to a crowd of unknown people, and possibly spend time sitting in traffic. Many event planners also prefer virtual experiences because they can use pre-recording to include people who might otherwise not participate.


Put all of this together, and you see why hybrid events are expected to take the lead in 2022. You can plan a dynamic event that includes far more people than you could ever allow in person while giving participants the option to attend live or virtually. If that sounds like a win-win for your upcoming event, keep reading as we highlight some of the most effective ways to make your hybrid event a massive success.


Take Interaction One Step Further

In the pre-COVID days, event planners were all about introducing new interactive features for live events. You may have used some of those ideas yourself, including interactive games, billboards, and selfie booths. That focus on interaction transferred to the virtual event space with features like online polls and chat boxes.

Interactive features are just as important with hybrid events. You just have an added challenge: boost interaction between virtual and live participants. You want your virtual audience to feel like part of the live audience rather than like outliers.

One survey that included respondents from North America, Europe, Asia, and South America, identified this connection as the biggest challenge for more than 70% of event organizers. If you can find ways to bring both audiences together and encourage connections, you could overcome this challenge. You can create an event that participants rave about regardless of their location.

Backup Your Technology

Have you heard any horror stories about virtual and hybrid events? They’re floating around social media and are often discussed at parties while the champagne is flowing. There are also some business leaders and event planners who would prefer not to talk about select events in their past.

Technological glitches star in many of those stories, yet thousands of events are still held with no effort to create a backup plan. You can fix that by doing at least two things during the planning phase of your virtual or hybrid event.

The first precaution is to establish backup internet connections. Wired connections are best as your primary source of internet connectivity. You can use your Wi-Fi as a backup. Then take that a step further and designate a device that runs on a different internet network that will stay fully charged and available for tethering if needed.

The second precaution is to pre-record some live content for the event. If a major speaker cancels at the last minute or another unexpected event occurs, you can always go with your pre-recorded content.

Boost Content for Virtual Attendees

Remember the survey of international event planners and attendees that we talked about a moment ago? That research also revealed that nearly 60% of respondents favored live events over hybrid events. More than 70% believed live events deliver greater value.

Do you want to boost your virtual attendance for future events? Start by giving your virtual experience just as much thought and planning as your live experience. It’s easy to plan the live event and then create a virtual component for as much of that content as possible. Unfortunately, that is the approach that leaves so many virtual attendees feeling disconnected and unvalued.

You may have elements of the live event that don’t translate well to the virtual experience. That’s okay as long as you also create elements that are unique to the virtual experience. One way to do this is to create unique content that is only displayed online. We’re talking about fun graphics, interactive games, and pre-recorded interviews or talks. You may even allow live participants to snap photos that are shared virtually in real time.

Your virtual attendees will get more value out of the event when you cater to the strengths of virtual event technology. You can always provide links to some of the virtual content if your live attendees want to watch it after the event.

Don’t Stop at the End

Do you think of your final speech or breakout session as the end to your event? It’s time to correct that if you do. Many successful events deliver their best results days or even months and years after its conclusion. Think of the event as planting seeds that you hope will grow into healthy plants. Eventually, you want those plants to create beautiful flowers that allow your business to flourish.

You probably already collect contact information as attendees sign up for an event. Maybe you already have that information because you’re holding an event for employees or established teams. That information allows you to reach out to participants for marketing purposes, but you want it to go the other way as well.

We’re talking about giving every participant a reason to contact someone within your business in the future. Maybe you give a special discount on select products or services to everyone in attendance. Perhaps you offer smaller event tickets that will allow further growth and development related to the current event.

There are many ways to do this, but your goal is to keep the interaction going. You can even encourage participants to network between one another. That delivers another element of value that will lead to repeat participants in future virtual or hybrid events.

Erase the Screen

A successful hybrid event will somehow erase the screen that separates your audience. You can maximize participation by including a virtual audience, but that audience must feel included.

Even if the virtual attendees pay less to attend than the live attendees, they must get something of value for their time. You do that by creating an interactive, rewarding virtual experience that may differ slightly from the live experience. If you can do that while ensuring it all feels like one big event rather than two separate events, you’ve hit it out of the park.

Partnering with the right technology provider

With the right technology and a few proven approaches, you can create highly effective hybrid events. Find out how the Pathable event platform can help support the ideas in this article and more: Explore Pathable.

Four ways to maximize your events & learning budget in 2022

Posted on by Jennifer Fuller

It’s no secret that the past two years has presented the events industry with new opportunities and undeniable challenges. As many events continue to lean towards an in-person return, or at least have an in-person component, there are still many factors that continue to drive our approach to events; including health concerns, onsite safety, and knowledge of technology to pull off a multi-faceted event, just to name a few.

To execute a successful event, whether virtual, in-person, or both, we must also ensure event professionals and organizational leaders are aligned with how the attendees want their education delivered. So, we must ask ourselves:

  • Are we sure all our attendees are fully ready to get back to in-person events?
  • Do some attendees still prefer learning in a virtual format?
  • How can we ensure we bring the most value to our attendees and sponsors, no matter what the event format is?
  • Do we have the right technology and support to pull off our event vision?

These are all questions we’re hearing, so we took a deeper dive and conducted some research – a study of 1,000+ members and 850+ association professionals – to get a feel for what 2022 has in store for all of us.

In this Community Brands’ research study, 2021 Association Trends: Building the Next Normal, all these questions, and many more, were addressed to help us better understand what we should be thinking about to meet our organizational goals, and the needs of our attendees and sponsors. Not only did we find out the answers, but we also brought in two of the experts from the events industry to take a deeper dive into the results, discuss some of the event trends they are seeing, and provide onsite and virtual event recommendations as we roll into 2022:

Heather Cooke-Barnett, Assistant Director of Group Sales
Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort

Orlando Monge, Regional VP of Venues
Encore

Here are some of the things we learned, and some tips and tricks on how to maximize your events and learning spend to meet your goals and pull off a successful event:

1. In 2022, it will be important to broaden your event mix and frequency.

According to the research study, 58% of event professionals said they were ready to return to in-person events by the Fall of 2021, while only 32% of the attendees were ready, and still, there’s another 11% of attendees not feeling comfortable to return until the second half of 2022. What is this telling us? It’s time to mix it up, but also not forget about staying connected with your virtual audience. The shift to virtual events in the past year and a half have allowed us to reach new attendees who hadn’t attended previous in-person events. And as in-person events continue to return, we must still engage with those at-home attendees by providing virtual and hybrid event and online community experiences that align with their needs and expectations. Here is how:

  • Provide year-round online course via live webinar or short videos
  • Webcast your live events
  • Create a hybrid experience through live-streaming and pre-recorded content
  • Enhance the technology you use for professional education and certification
  • Add smaller, virtual events throughout the year to supplement your larger meetings or conferences
  • Level-up your AV (Audio Visual) to help overcome virtual fatigue
  • Select a virtual event platform and AV services partner that can help facilitate the needs of both your in-person and virtual attendees

2. Investing in event technology will help meet event goals for your organization, your attendees, and your sponsors.

50% of the professionals feel technologically unprepared going into 2022. As we investigate the near future, event professionals indicate that sponsorships and in-person ticket sales will be the top drivers of revenue from their events. To assist with event planning and execution, they are turning to online registration tools, a virtual event platform, and AV services for virtual attendees and are considered the most important tools to have in your stack. These will be important investments going into the new year, preparing you for any event format you plan to tackle. Technology to consider:

• Online registration
• Virtual and hybrid platform
• AV production and services
• Analytics tools
• Mobile event app
• Onsite event check-in and badge printing
• Attendee tracking tools
• Expo management
• Lead retrieval
• Sponsor management
• Speaker management

3. Leveling-up your AV will help to combat virtual fatigue and bring more value to your virtual attendees.

Let’s face it – virtual fatigue is real. Attendee expectations have never been higher, so it might be time to step up your game and reboot your approach to virtual and hybrid events. According to the research study, the professionals feel like the two biggest challenges for holding a hybrid event is providing comparable value to both their in-person and virtual attendees, as well as the audio-visual planning and execution. Aside from choosing the right technology and services partner to help you pull off your AV production, Orlando Monge from Encore (formerly PSAV) offered some tips to ensure AV success and maximize costs at your next hybrid or in-person event:

  • Plan, plan, plan. As event professionals, advanced planning is an easy decision, but when it comes to AV production, the further in advance, the better. If you know you will add a virtual element or livestream to your event, make sure you are communicating your needs well in advance so you won’t be scrambling and increasing unforeseen costs at the last minute.

  • Account for onsite space coordination to ensure your attendees are socially distanced properly. This may cause in increase in space needs, which, in turn, requires more AV setup and a potential increase in cost. Think through your layouts and get creative with your AV needs to cut costs.

  • If you are live streaming, choose a few rooms (as opposed to every meeting room onsite), where you will hold live streamed meetings or sessions. This will help your budget overall, as you will limit the amount of equipment and staff needed to execute your live streaming needs.

  • Consider pre-recording some content for your virtual attendees – this is a cost-effective way to bring value for those who cannot attend onsite, and cut the amount of staff and equipment needed onsite to record every session.

  • Make sure you are working together with both your AV event production partner as well as your onsite AV partner to create a seamless event. When everyone is communicating, you ensure both your in-person and your virtual attendees are being taken into consideration and all receiving the same value at your event.

4. Enhancing safety measures and precautions onsite will not only help to bring your attendees back in-person but help you to meet your onsite minimums.

As we continue to watch the fluctuating trends with the pandemic, it has been difficult to make that final decision and move forward with how to approach the next event – are we going to host this in-person next year? Should we stick with virtual? Should we do a hybrid event so we can bring attendees in-person, but also reach those who are uncomfortable to be in a group of people? What if we choose hybrid, and we can’t meet our venue minimums because more people choose to participate from home? What if Covid cases unexpectedly rise, and our in-person attendees drop? Heather Cooke-Barnett, Assistant Director of Group Sales, Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort, had some ideas to help you determine your approach, and create an onsite experience that your attendees won’t want to miss, despite the uncertainties and challenges that we are all facing:

  • Survey your audience. The best way to determine the comfort level of your attendees is to ask them. Once you analyze the results, you can make a better-informed decision on how to move forward, how many attendees you would have onsite, and to create a safe environment that makes them want to attend in person.

  • Create a safe environment and communicate the precautions you are taking in advance. Most everyone is concerned these day with, “How will you keep me safe in a large group setting?” Heather Cooke-Barnett recommends not only going above and beyond to create that safe space, but also stresses the need for communicating all the tactics leading up to the event to help increase onsite attendees. Here are a few things to consider:


    • Select a venue that is experienced with in-person or hybrid events, and follows their own safety protocols for staff and guests

    • Determine if you will require vaccine proof, a negative Covid-19 test, or both before the event, and ensure your guests know the requirements before arrival

    • Determine your mask policy in accordance with the venue guidelines and the CDC (Center for Disease Control) recommendations and ensure your guests know the requirements before arrival

    • Work with a third-party vendor like CLEAR to help you set up onsite health needs and pre-event screening

    • Set aside space in your event planning that allows for daily symptom checks, pre-event vaccine card screening, testing, and an isolation room in the event someone tests positive

    • Meet often with your onsite hospitality staff and meeting organizer prior to the event to determine the safest space and food and beverage setups for your attendees. Here are some check-in and setup tips to help ensure your onsite guests are always comfortable:
      • Use contactless event check-in tools like Expo Logic to save line time in line, reduce gathering in large groups, and not require your attendees to touch screens that multiple people have touched

      • Work with your venue partner to create an online check-in process and keyless entry for their hotel room

      • Require daily symptom checks

      • Offer colored bands for attendees in green, yellow, and red that indicate their comfort level with other attendees – red for those who are not comfortable being close to other, while green indicates those who are fine with closer contact

      • Allow guests to use the virtual platform you selected to watch the livestream sessions from their hotel room

      • Ensure food and beverage is distributed safely:

        • Keep airwalls open in larger food and beverage settings
        • Switch your normal self-serve, double buffets, to one-sided buffets with plexiglass and servers
        •  Consider serving your meals plated, and offer to-go boxes for those who may feel better eating alone
        • Reduce the amount of chairs at your rounds from 10 to 8, or even less, if space allows
        • Set up some smaller tables for one for those who feel less comfortable in a group setting

The bottom line is, the safer you are onsite, and the more you communicate with your attendees about the protocols you are taking, the more probable your attendees will want to be an in-person attendee. In turn, this helps you to better plan and meet your in-person minimums.

Key Takeaways:

How we approach events has been ever-changing – uncertain times have continued to steer our decisions on whether we connect virtually or take a shift to delivering our education face-to-face. But one thing remains clear – we are all trying to build the next normal.

Whether you choose to host an in-person, virtual, or hybrid event in 2022, there are many budgetary considerations you need to think through. Ensuring you are putting your dollars towards event technology, onsite safety protocols, and AV production and services will help to increase your reach, attendance, and value for all your attendees, no matter where they are located.


To hear more from our panel of experts, check out this on-demand webinar: Diving into the research – Maximizing your events & learning investment in 2022

Great ideas for hybrid event success

Posted on by Jennifer Fuller

As in-person events make a comeback, virtual events are no longer the only game in town. Many event planners for associations and other member-based organizations are turning to hybrid events. They pull together the best of in-person and virtual events to offer attendees the convenience of choosing the attendee experience that works best for their schedule and budget.

 

But if you’re just getting started with hybrid events, how do you know what to do?

First, keep in mind that there’s no one way to make your hybrid event work. You’ll need to evaluate your situation and determine what is best for all of your stakeholders – speakers, sponsors, attendees, and your organization – as you create your plan.

However, there are some best practices that will help ensure a successful event. Start with the three pillars that make up the value of an event:

  • Education
  • Networking
  • Commerce

Now, let’s focus on how to apply the hybrid model to each of these pillars.

Education

For many member-based or corporate organizations, education is the primary reason to hold an event. Members need to earn a certain number of continuing education credits or learn about the latest research within their fields.

 

When it comes to education, a simple hybrid event set-up can be a livestream of your in-person presentations to virtual attendees while using polls and chat functions to keep everyone engaged, including your in-person attendees. More complicated plans involve additional cameras and multiple touchpoints for both audiences.

 

Here are some ideas:

  • Use a single interactive platform, like Pathable by Community Brands, for both in-person and virtual audiences to make it easier for everyone to connect during sessions.

  • Offer the same session materials to everyone, and distribute them at the same time within your platform or in person. In-person materials can be printed, while virtual materials should be downloadable.

  • Consider having a master of ceremonies (MC or emcee) for each audience. The in-person emcee can handle session introductions, transitions, announcements, and Q&A for in-person attendees. The virtual emcee can interact with the in-person emcee on behalf of the virtual attendees and relay questions from the virtual audience during Q&A sessions. The virtual emcee can also interact with the virtual audience during breaks and breakout sessions.

  • If it’s within your budget, add a virtual wall of attendees to the in-person meeting space so that speakers, the in-person emcee, and in-person attendees can see and easily engage with the virtual audience.

  • If you have virtual speakers, broadcast their presentations to both audiences at the same time so that everyone has a similar experience.

  • For breakout sessions, blend your in-person and virtual audiences whenever possible. This will make virtual attendees feel more like they’re part of the action.

  • Consider making sessions shorter and easier to digest for all attendees.

  • Include breaks for everyone, not just your in-person attendees, so they can stay fresh and focused during sessions.

Networking

For some attendees, networking is a key reason to go to events. The connections they make in the hallway, the lunch buffet line, during small group meetings, and networking cocktail hours can result in collaborations, job opportunities, and thousands of dollars in sales.

It’s a good idea to build networking time into your schedule for both in-person and online groups. Whenever possible, bring your in-person and virtual audiences together to enhance everyone’s experience.

Some more ideas:

  • Schedule longer breaks during the day for one-on-one and group networking opportunities.

  • Make sure your event platform includes the ability to schedule meetings with other event attendees.

  • Include pre-determined tags and filters in your event platform so that attendees can find others with similar interests to connect with during the event.

  • Offer a list of ice-breaker questions to help individuals and groups ease into virtual conversations.

  • Provide networking stations at your event site where in-person attendees have somewhere to sit and connect with virtual attendees. These can include:

    • A booth or semi-enclosed structure for privacy

    • Electrical access or charging stations for in-person attendees to charge their devices during meetings

    • One-on-one meeting device checkout (internet-connected tablet or laptop pre-loaded with your event platform app) for those who didn’t bring an appropriate device, or who find they have difficulty with their own devices

  • Incorporate a virtual space so attendees have direct interactions throughout the event.

Commerce

Sponsors, exhibitors, and many organizations rely on their annual events to make money. For some, it’s their one big opportunity of the year.

With advances in technology, your hybrid events can continue to bring in revenue for your organization, sponsors, and exhibitors, with some modifications that work to everyone’s advantage.

Here are some ideas:

  • Use an event platform that allows for in-person and virtual exhibitor and sponsor booths, so everyone can participate in the exhibit hall experience.

  • Offer tiered sponsorships, based on how sponsors wish to promote themselves and to which audience (including options for promotion to both audiences.)

  • Include listings and promotional pages for each sponsor and exhibitor, with tags so attendees can search by interest, function, and product type.

  • Allow attendees to opt in to receive sponsor and exhibitor emails with a virtual “business card drop” based on information within the event platform.

  • Include sponsorship opportunities throughout your event, including:

    • Display ads and banner ads within the online platform

    • Speaker sponsorships, including polls and Q&A sessions

    • Recognition on your website and in emails to attendees

    • Swag and downloadable content

    • Messages and announcements

    • Onsite materials and signage

    • Sponsor and exhibitor interviews
Learn more

With the right technology and a few proven approaches, you can create highly effective hybrid events. Find out how the Pathable event platform can help support the ideas in this article and more: Explore Pathable.

Conference session ideas for virtual and hybrid events

Posted on by Jennifer Fuller

Great virtual and hybrid events require great conference sessions. You might be just getting started with virtual and hybrid events. Or maybe you’ve been hosting them for years.

 

Either way, it’s important to breathe new life into your events with unique sessions that grab (and hold) attendees’ interest.

 

Let’s take a look at some creative conference session ideas to help you pull off more successful events:

 

  1. Get interactive.
    Presentation after presentation of slide decks filled with text can be a snooze. Use interactive elements, including animations, videos, and an event management platform, as well as interactive tools, like Canva, Flowvella, and Google Slides, to interact with your visuals while on-screen. Your attendees will thank you for livening up the sessions.

  2. Use a video wall.
    Helping your onsite and online attendees feel connected makes for a great hybrid event experience. A video wall that shows faces of virtual attendees during conference sessions can help speakers interact more effectively with both in-person and online audiences.

  3. Put attendees up on stage.
    What says attendee engagement more than attendees as speakers? Ask attendees to submit proposals for short presentations related to conference sessions or event themes, and then select a few that stand out. Give them the floor for 15-30 minutes to present to both in-person and virtual audiences.

  4. Chat by the “fire”.
    Mix a few fireside chats into your conference session lineup to stir things up a bit. Select a moderator (from your organization or your industry) to engage a knowledgeable guest in conversation. By adding a few of these less formal sessions, your conference content will have more variety and feel more engaging to attendees.

  5. Make it fun.
    Break up the conference agenda with some fun activities. These might include live music, gamification, a magic show, a painting session – the list goes on as far as your imagination can take it. Just be sure to design the activity so that both in-person and online audiences can participate.

  6. Keep the ideas flowing.
    Keep in mind that there’s not just one way to make your virtual and hybrid events more interesting for attendees. Consider maintaining a running list of ideas for conference sessions as you think of them or come across them in articles or at events you might be attending.

    A helpful way to generate new session ideas is to think about the type of event experience you want to offer attendees. Come up with a list of words to describe it, such as interactive, relaxed, informative, engaging, and fun. Then use each word as the inspiration for new ways to bring that “feel” to life for your attendees.

 

These are just a few ideas for creative conference sessions for virtual and hybrid events. For more ideas, details, and inspiration, check out some of Pathable’s Customer Success Stories and see how other organizations made their virtual and hybrid event experiences more engaging.

 

endorsed pathable logo

2021 Pathable by Community Brands
9620 Executive Center Dr N #200,
St. Petersburg, FL 33702

Solutions
Company
Resources

© 2021 Community Brands Intermediate, LLC. All rights reserved.