The Secret To Optimizing Your Hybrid Or Virtual Events (Without Losing Your Mind)

Virtual and hybrid events are becoming more popular. But honestly, for most organizations... they're still a mystery, and the idea of a hybrid combo of virtual and in person events is a total brain bender. With hybrid or virtual events, your audience can attend from anywhere in the world. It's important to make sure you optimize your event for the best possibility of success. In this video I'm going to share the Secret to Optimizing your Event without totally losing your mind.

What is Event Optimization

According to Webster’s Dictionary, Optimization is: 

An act, process, or methodology of making something (such as a design, system, or decision) as fully perfect, functional, or effective as possible. 

When we apply this to virtual events, it’s all about making sure your attendees have the best experience possible by designing the event specifically for them.

Here are some of the things you need to know to successfully design a virtual event:

Secret #1: Stop the Overflow!

If you’re part of a church or have been to a large church of any kind, then you might have experienced the overflow room. 

Nobody wants to be in the overflow room. 

You're essentially a non-participatory participant at this particular service. You're in the building. You're so close, but you didn't get there fast enough to get a seat on the inside. Audiences want to be a part of the action. 

This concept of the overflow room isn't new to us in the virtual world either.  In fact, we call them webinars. 

Think about whether or not you’ve experienced this:

• You get to the webinar and find that you (the audience member) have been cut off from the chat. You’re not allowed to talk or disturb anybody. If you do make a comment, it MUST be a positive one. 

• You feel entirely ignored by the person on the screen because they are just getting through the points they need to get through. They haven't asked you a question. They haven't made sure you’re pickin’ up what they’re puttin’ down.

I wish I could tell you I was making this up, but I’ve experienced this on more than one “event.”

Whether you'll be pre-recorded or entirely live, you can make it feel like you are talking with your audience rather than at them.

Let go of that overflow room/webinar mindset, and really get into the human experience that we all want and deserve.

Secret #2: U-N-I-T-Y

It’s easy to make the virtual experience for your audience be an afterthought, especially if it's hybrid. 

When designing a hybrid event, you need to carefully consider how you can unify your in-person and online platforms, and whether you will be doing them separately or together. We want no one to feel left out. And, the only way you can make that happen is to unify their experiences. 

This means going a little bit deeper and thinking about how you can create something that makes people attending online feel like they're a part of the audience that is attending offline. You want to find a way that makes them think they are glad to be a part of the event, even virtually. 

And on that note, please don't create an event where people participating virtually feel like they’re missing out because they didn’t attend in person. I get it, but that's not a good event design. Make them feel they got just as much for their money virtually as those who paid for the in-person event.

Secret #3: The Show Must Go On

If, for some crazy reason, the in-person side of your event can't happen, don't let people wait to experience what you have to put out there. 

Virtual events make training, conferences, networking, and other types of events possible in this day and age. This is especially true for those who can’t travel or have travel restrictions.  You can do away with these problems by ensuring you always have a virtual option for your event. 

Utilize and maximize this virtual option in the best way possible.

As you can see, a lot goes into planning a successful virtual event. But, by following these secrets, you'll be well on your way to creating an engaging and enlightening experience for your audience.

If you're looking for more tips or want help organizing your next virtual event, don't hesitate to reach out to me on beyondvirtualevents.com. I'd be happy to chat with you about what’s worked (and what didn't work) for our clients and offer some advice based on my own experiences.

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