going virtual – quick start guide to planning virtual events€¦ · going virtual - quick start...

VERSION 1.0 | APRIL 2020

Going Virtual – Quick Start Guide to Planning Virtual Events

Going Virtual - Quick Start Guide to Planning Virtual Events © 2020 Personify, Inc. 2

With the outbreak of COVID-19, show organizers and event professionals have had to reimagine their approach to in-person events rapidly. When looking to pivot from an in-person event to a virtual or hybrid approach, there are many considerations to keep in mind and it’s important to realize that not all activities that work well in a face-to-face environment will be effective in a virtual setting.

As you consider a virtual or hybrid approach, here are some fundamental considerations to keep in mind.


Pre-Planning Strategy

You’ve made the decision to transition your event…now what? First off, take a few deep breaths. Your team has likely spent many months working on the in-person event and it’s important to take a moment to reflect on your hard work before diving into the virtual version.

GOALS AND KPIS

Once you’ve had a moment to debrief, make goal setting a vital first step in your virtual event process. Setting goals ensures that you focus on what’s really important to your event. Effective goal setting also enables you to measure progress and keeps you and your teams accountable to what matters most. If you don’t know where you’re going, it’s hard to know when you arrive.

GATHER YOUR TEAM AND CONSIDER: • What do you want to accomplish?

• What are your metrics of success?

• How will you get there?

FACT-FINDING AND RESEARCH

After establishing goals for the reimagined version of your conference or event, spend a little time digging through previous year’s surveys and email outreach to understand how to best modify your event to meet the needs of your varied audiences:

• What feedback have you heard from your partners, sponsors, attendees?

• What are they looking for out of your experience?

• How will you balance each of their requirements for your event?


The 5Ps – People, Pricing, Placement, Promotion and Partners

PEOPLE (TARGET AUDIENCE/ATTENDEES)

Event organizers are often able to predict the number of people that attend their event based on the previous year’s show and analysis of registration data. But a virtual event is a completely new concept for most and some of the typical barriers to attend such as the cost of travel and significant registration fee may no longer be an issue.

Think through these questions:

• How many people typically attend your event?

• Will the size of the audience impact the technology you use?

• Will your audience want to consume this content virtually (are they tech-savvy)?

• Is there a limit to how much material that can be

consumed by each segment?

PRICING

The pricing approach for a virtual event can vary by organization and industry, and it’s crucial to understand the appetite for your event content and audience’s ability to pay for it.

• Will people pay for this content that you provide and the experience? How much would they pay for the service? Would it be a one-time charge? Recurring or subscription-based?

• Will this be based on CEUs or other education credits?

• Is it a value-add, or highly discounted based on your other programming goals? Does augmenting the pricing levers drive more attendees? Less?

• Will you offset the cost with sponsorship or

advertising revenue from your partners?


PROMOTION AND COMMUNICATION

You’ve likely sent a notice to audiences informing them of the change from an in-person event to a virtual or hybrid one. Be sure to plan out the full cadence of emails, newsletters, community and social posts, and more to help drive awareness and ensure a successful turnout for it.

PLACEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

Evaluate your EventTech Stack and understand what you have in place today and what you will need to secure before rolling out your new event. Make sure to think through the requirements to ensure you are not only delivering the event, but also tracking the success across solutions.

• Do you have form capture? Payment capture? The ability to run reports? Automated triggered communications?

• Does your registration list tie into your CRM? Can you track session viewership by registrant?

• How do your speaker profiles and agenda sync across your other channels, like your mobile app? How do your speakers fill out their profiles and upload content?

• Can you utilize your exhibitor and tradeshow floor as a virtual marketplace?

• Can you connect your sponsors and attendees?

• Can you use push notifications, polls and surveys to drive up engagement in your sessions?

• Are you doing this all manually? How can you

automate it?

• How will you promote the virtual event?

• What channels and vehicles will you use to drive registration?

• What grade would you give your database?

• What’s your compelling call to action?

• How are you tracking each channel’s performance?


PARTNERS, SPONSORS AND EXHIBITORS

Don’t forget, many events already have exhibitors who still desire to showcase their products or services.

• Can you leverage your existing floor plan as a virtual marketplace that allows exhibitors and attendees to schedule appointments or be matched on registration criteria?

• From sponsored tracks to speaker introductions, how can you add value to your sponsors across this new real estate?


STORYLINE AND TIMELINE

Most in-person meetings have breaks, meals and other events to break up the sessions and create opportunities for networking and connections. How can we ensure a cohesive experience with a virtual event? Consider using a dynamic host or emcee who can pop up between sessions, share reminders and help connect the keynotes and breakout sessions together.

Building Your Programming

TIMING

A shift from in-person to virtual may take additional time to arrange. A new date may attract new attendees but could potentially lose others.

• How will you string together your digital content?

• Will you have a theme? A guest keynote? One or more general sessions?

• Will you leverage an emcee and how often should

they appear on-screen?

• How will you strike the right balance?

• Will you deliver a week of content?

Binge all in one-day or over multiple days?

SPEAKERS

Many speakers have not traditionally presented in this new format, so you’ll want to check with your current speakers to ensure that they’re still available and feel confident in their online presentations.

• Are your speakers comfortable with the technology and new format?

• Can you provide education in advance to give speakers tools to make it more effective?

• Does this open your event up to other speakers that

no longer require travel?


SESSION LENGTH

According to a study by Microsoft in 2018, our average attention span is only 8 seconds. This is down from 12 seconds reported in the year 2000. There are a lot of things competing for our time. While 60 minutes is the absolute max length for a virtual session, it is important to consider how you will create and keep interest throughout.

• What format should your sessions take?

• Should you break up the content into shortened sessions? Do shorter sessions impact CEUs?

• Are there opportunities to add in multimedia? Can you increase engagement with real-time Q&A, polling,

chat and other engagement tools?

FORMAT

Deciding on the composition of a virtual event is just as important as in-person.

• Will most sessions be a single presenter, panel, or a mix of speakers?

• Will they all be live, recorded or a mix? Are you producing live sessions? Recorded

and on-demand sessions?


STREAMING/RECORDING/HOSTING

There are many technologies out there to help stream content. Whether you are using Zoom, webcastcloud, GoToWebinar or another hosting platform, it is essential to understand your programming needs are and partner with a service that can handle your immediate and longer-term goals with this content.

• Will you be using this content for the virtual conference or leveraging it as part of an educational campaign for several months?

• What is the process to store/download all sessions after the live event?

WHAT’S YOUR “JE NE SAIS QUOI”?

Many organizations are working quickly to develop virtual events and there’s a lot of competition for people’s time and energy right now. As you’re working through your overall concept, consider:

• How will you be uncommon and interesting with your virtual event?

• What are things that will truly be memorable, special and distinguished from other virtual opportunities?

ADVANCE PREPARATION

Without everyone on-site or in speaker ready rooms, coordinating efforts can be a challenge. We recommend that you overcommunicate with your partners, attendees, and speakers leading up to the virtual or hybrid event.


Post-Event

You made it! The virtual event was a great success with compelling content, inspiring keynotes, strong visibility for sponsors and more. Here’s how to finish strong:

FOLLOW UPS – THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING/SORRY WE MISSED YOU

Consider scheduling follow-up emails in advance for both attendees and those who registered but were not able to attend.

• How will you follow up from your event?

• Will you offer access to the content on-demand? And, will it be gated or un-gated content?

• How will you track post-show consumption?

FEEDBACK/SURVEYS

Feedback surveys play a crucial role in helping you understand the experience for attendees, sponsors, exhibitors, staff and more. They are especially important when introducing new activities and programs or leveraging a new concept (such as shifting to a virtual event).

• When will you send out feedback surveys and which groups of stakeholders should be included?

• What are the larger themes and takeaways that you see in the survey data?

• What value-add can you plan for your attendees, partners and sponsors for next year?

BUILD YOUR EVENT COMMUNITY

Keep the conversation going and foster engagement beyond the moment of your event. Build out topical threads and vibrant forums for collaboration about the day, experience, sessions on-demand and invite attendees to share ideas on programming and experiences for next year. Prompt members to upvote sessions for next year’s agenda, promote award nominations and build your tribe of advocates and influencers.


About PersonifyPersonify is the market-leading Constituent Management and Engagement (CME) platform that empowers nonprofit organizations to better engage their constituents, maximize revenue and optimize operations. For over 20 years, Personify has served as the technology foundation for organizations of all sizes from the largest associations, charities, YMCAs and JCCs to emerging nonprofits. Nearly 25 percent of the U.S. population interacts with Personify through their involvement in nonprofit organizations. For additional information, visit www.personifycorp.com.

going virtual – quick start guide to planning virtual events€¦ · going virtual - quick start...

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