Yes you can! You can create an effective virtual event with your existing virtual platforms, with a little help…
Virtual events continue to be the wild west of the meeting and event business. The offerings are plentiful, the journey is daunting, the risks are great, yet the reward is worth it.
Historically we have recommended clients utilize a plush tour bus with full kitchen (including wine fridge)and multiple tv’s to drive to this virtual wild west. Now with new players entering the field, perhaps you’re willing to take more risk by taking a green E-bike, retro Airstream or jacked up Harley. Ok, we may be overdoing the analogies, but you get the point…there are many roads to take to get to this ever-evolving e-frontier without breaking the bank.
Once you have developed a solid agenda, it is important to dive deep into what platforms can truly support your plan in an effective way. Often you don’t have to look much further than what your company uses for e-collaboration. You may think Zoom, Microsoft Teams & Webex are only great for your typical conference call. But when paired with a streaming platform and a beautifully branded website, you can create an effective, branded and cost-effective virtual meeting that achieves your goals.
The key is to work around any shortcomings your existing platforms might have and make navigation easy for the attendee to keep engagement up and frustration down.
Here are a few tips and tricks to help you navigate this new frontier:
Build a front facing website with sophisticated brand design and detailed agenda to support your attendee experience.
Utilize a professional logistics team to support you in all the platform/website/branding/registration details so your team can focus on content and goal achievement.
Discover upgrade capabilities to your existing platforms such as Zoom Webinar, On24 Engagement Hub and shared hosting capabilities that will elevate the attendee experience and increase back office functionality.
Create a detailed run of show as well as speaker and support guidelines.
Devise backup plans and a detailed communication plan if functionality issues arise. Have these plans fully baked before show!
Train, Test, Train, Test and then test everything again.
Create a virtual green room or watch party to centralize behind the scenes production team communications and real time actions hub.
Sleep soundly knowing you are surrounded by a professional support team, all working together towards your ultimate success.
