4 Things To Consider While Planning A Virtual Event

Not much has changed in several respects in 2021. We are still facing a comprehensive pandemic and is still impacting the lives of every earthling. Most of us are still limited to our homes, which can be very tough, but we should be glad that we live in a modern age, where technology helps us communicate with others almost everywhere in the world.

So many technologies and organizations are concentrating exclusively on interactive business meetings and multimedia activities. As for a company that has to be a part of an international event, we have been significantly affected by the pandemic due to postponed meetings, quarantine steps and travel restrictions. Until it is safe to hold in-person events, we must embrace the available technology and march on with corporate events and meetings.
Here are some things to consider when planning your next online conference, digital meeting or virtual event. From planning to execution, these tricks will cover all the pointers that you need to consider for organizing a virtual event from the very start till the end.

1. Create a floor plan for your event

Whether large or small, offline or online, any case is expected to have a plan. Begin with a central aim and idea, then carry it out of there. The sooner you get the planning, the more relaxed you are during the event.
Try to understand the scope of your event by addressing these queries before every event.

• Understand the kind of experience you want to deliver.
• Is it supposed to be a live stream, on-demand, or both?
• Finalize where you want to showcase your content.
• Will the audience have viewing access to your event, or will it be gated? Also, will they require event registration?
• List out the data that you plan to track.
• What are your requirements for event promotion? Do you need an advertiser or another partner?
• When are you planning on executing the event?

2. Participant Engagement

Before exploring the logistics of a virtual experience, it is essential to determine your audience's desires and demands; most importantly are you capable of delivering those needs in an online world. This is extremely necessary to make your virtual event more meaningful. So ask yourself these set of questions while considering the audience;

• What is the potential to deliver your expected content online?
• What kind of content are you catering to the audiences?
• What virtual perks will you hand out to for the attendee through your event?
• What kind of obstacles are they facing in the current scenario?
• Are you expecting your audiences to be active participants or passive listeners?
• Have trends and priorities of attendees altered since the COVID-19 pandemic?

With all these considerations in mind, it is therefore vital to understand the case's meaning on the broader community and the industry/market. You can need to widen the target market as a simulated event has a global impact!

3. Choose the Virtual Event Platform

Where are you hosting the event? Perhaps this is the first question that comes to mind when you think of managing a virtual event. Fortunately, several solutions are available, from using a dedicated virtual network service or hiring a virtual event management company. Getting too many options can be very daunting at times. Here all you need to check is whether;

• the platform has the features you need,
• does it integrate with the existing software that you use,
• and most importantly, is it fitting in your budget.

4. Basic block for any meeting: Timing

Because your guests are not limited to being in the same place in the same time zone, you may want to reconsider the perfect date, time and length of your gathering. As the crowd starts to dream, ask yourself, where do you want your attendees to tune in from? Based on the event's raison d'etre;
Do you want the participants to get the best out of hosting an event in their evenings, or will it be ok to run alongside their working day?
Of course, this all depends on whether you choose to run a live or on-demand virtual event. Try to settle in a time zone that suits most of the attendees.

5. Structure of your virtual event

There are many types of structures for virtual events. However, your preference would depend on your combination of interactivity v/s presentations or alternative content.
Some of the structures are listed below for you to choose from;
Meetings
Seminars
Roundtables
Workshops
Webinars
Conferences
Multi-Track
Hybrid - A mix of in-person and virtual features

Bonus:

It is an excellent time to concentrate on greater sustainability efforts and to create new opportunities for CSR. We have access to the internet and other options that many people in the world are not lucky enough to have, so let's take advantage of it and give it back! Make sure that you choose the right set of 3D virtual event platforms or virtual event management companies that suits your needs.

Wrap:

Keep in mind that by transitioning to simulated events, you're not only helping to avoid coronavirus transmission, but you're also helping to minimize the carbon footprint in the environment. It's important to note that any scenario has a silver line and to do your best to remain optimistic during these uncertain times.
So this marks the end of this 5-minute read. Let us know what you think about it in the comment section below.