Planning Virtual Events: Checklists and Best Practices

Living in the current pandemic crisis has not been easy for us. We saw many highs and lows but the world continued to revolutionize in its own way and at its own time. Truth to be told, the novel coronavirus eradicated traditional events out of the picture as meetings in public were banned after the announcement of nationwide lockdown. After the unexpected mishap of the virus, the event industry derailed immensely. To overcome the losses event organisers came up with a contingency plan- The Virtual events!

The new normal has uplifted the term ‘Adaptability’ which event experts are very well familiar with as developing new skills and dealing with challenges is in their routine. There are many digital options available in the market today which have helped planners to

cope with any unexpected scenario. You can call it a live stream, a webinar, a virtual event, or an online conference. But while planning these events you must have an easy to follow checklist and practices that suits best for your business while also exceeding the expectation of your virtual audiences.

In the following segment of this blog, we have prepared a go-to checklist and enlisted a few captivating practices that will help you make your upcoming virtual event immensely successful and noteworthy. Time to get started!

What are Virtual Events?

You may have attended many online seminars, workshops, or meetings by using a video conferencing tool. These are all perfect examples of digital events. Rather than gathering in public, virtual events are an online platform that provides similar tools and tactics to its customers. No matter what event you choose to host, this platform allows you to create events according to your preferences and convenience. Now you must do one thing while planning your event, digital components require the same attention and care as an in-person event. Hence, market your virtual event effectively, create buzz amidst audiences, and inculcate engagement tactics to provide them with a token of remembrance.

Lately, virtual events have become an engagement-driven and value-added platform for the event organiser and have enabled them in creating the most exclusive and impactful event which exceeded the expectations of their audience.

How to Organise a Virtual Event: The Ultimate Guide

We all are currently seeing an exponential rise in technology emerging each day. This has helped even organisers to conduct their event in a more flexible, engaging, sustainable, and viable way that enabled them to connect with global audiences at a seamlessly lower cost.

Here is an ultimate checklist of how to plan a virtual event in a way that you might never have imagined. Let’s have a look at it:

Determine Your Goal

This is the first step of planning a virtual event. But how to do this? Well, first things first ask yourself the following questions- What is the motive behind hosting an event online, is to bring new leads, or you want to inform people about your new business. Next, who is your target audience? What will they receive from attending your event- knowledge, market updates, or trends. Once you have a clear vision, you can easily set the tone of your event.

Know Your Audience

Once you have identified your event goals, it becomes extremely simple to understand your target audience hassle-free. But you must consider one thing during this outreach process. Who will benefit from your goals? That indicates which prospect division you must reach upon in order to get hold of your oriented goals.

Decide What Type of Event you are Willing to Host

Now, based on your event goals and target prospects, you must decide what kind of event you are willing to organise. Which event will suit the best as per your curated objectives. Are you planning to host a large multi-session virtual event or one session will be enough to deliver the message to your attendees?

Select the Right Platform

Choosing software to run your event becomes seamlessly easy once you decide which kind of event you are going to host. As the demand for virtual events is rising every day, multiple platforms have landed their services in the market which makes it, even more, easier to select a platform. Just mention your event requirement and type over the internet and you may find a list of platforms available on Google- created differently, each with its own special tools and functionalities.

Create Engaging Content and Promote it Effectively

If you want to maximise your attendance at your event, you must create content that is rational, out of the box and provides value to your audience. Depending upon the topic you choose for your event you must decide the following factors- What visuals to add to your content to make it look more exciting and attractive. Add engaging presentations, images, clips in order to include more character in your content.

Pro Tip:

Always keep a close eye on what your competitors are doing and how well their content is delivering. This will help you create content that does not match their content and also allow you room for improvement.

Now, you are ready to host a virtual event but there is one thing that is missing. How will your attendees know about your event? For this, you have to plan out a promotional strategy that will straight away target your attendees. Include every detail about your event on your landing page, social media channels paid advertisements, and use appropriate hashtags to reach wider audiences.

Choose the Right tech Tools

As the entire event is going to be conducted online, technology plays a critical role in every aspect. An event planner must understand what tech tools they are using, know how to use them, and run a quick test with their team to ensure everything is working efficiently and smoothly. And in case there is any hindrance occurring before the event begins, they can easily fix it immediately.

Over to You

The idea of hosting a virtual event can be mind-boggling for some businesses but there are still a few skeptical organisers who haven’t been able to deliver a quality and successful event. This can be due to a lack of knowledge about the technology trends or choosing the wrong service provider for their event experience. If you are one of them then don’t worry! This ultimate guide of hosting a virtual event will not only generate new leads but also lead you to the most realistic aims for your business in 2021.