Tips for Driving Engagement at Virtual and Hybrid Events

What works for in-person events doesn't always work for virtual ones.

Here are three things you need to know to create content that will grab your virtual audience's attention – and keep it.

KEEP IT BRIEF  

When you're sitting down with a live audience at an in-person event, a compelling speaker can make an hour session feel like ten minutes. But put that same speaker on a computer screen or a mobile device and suddenly that hour seems way too long.

Virtual event sessions should be much shorter than in-person ones — twenty minutes or less is right for most topics, giving enough time to get your point across without your audience getting restless.

CHANGE IT UP 

No one likes to see the same thing over and over again. Giving your viewers visual variety throughout your sessions will help keep things moving. Consider using various camera angles, B-roll footage, slides, or graphics to help change things up for your audiences.

Also, think about how else you can keep engagement high and attendees involved with interactive features like:

• Polls

• Quizzes

• Q&A sessions

PUT YOURSELF IN YOUR ATTENDEES' SHOES 

Think like the person attending your event, not like the person planning it. If you consider what your audiences want to watch and, more importantly, how they want to watch it — whether that’s live or on-demand — you’ll get a more tailored virtual experience.

Live works great if the presentation is high profile or central to your event. For example, important announcements from company leadership or keynotes from well-known speakers are best left happening in the moment. It drives attendance when your audience doesn’t want to miss out on what’s going on.

Video-on-demand is best for the rest of your program. Delivering an always-on experience for breakout sessions, interviews, and panel discussions can help keep engagement high long after your event is over.

If you’re planning a virtual or hybrid event, we’d love to help. Get in touch with us here.