Hybrid or virtual, which is right for you?
Event planning can be a long and difficult road. From conferences to trade shows to fundraisers, the event space is in a revolutionary time. While traditional in-person events are still happening, engaging in the virtual space is becoming a necessity for any event. Whether your goal is to educate, showcase, network, or celebrate, there are a few different approaches to the type of event you host. First, we need to understand the different types of events.
Event Types:
Live In-Person: Traditional in-person events are often hosted at a hotel or other similar venue where all of the guests, speakers, and sponsors are physically present.
Virtual Events: Hosted 100% online, event speakers and attendees gather together on a virtual platform for interaction.
Hybrid: A combination of in-person and virtual experiences including a physical venue for a portion of the attendees and an online virtual platform for attendees and speakers to engage in the event from any location.
So what type of event the right fit for your organization? There are a variety of factors to consider and each event type has its own benefits.
Live Events:
>Familiar and Effective for Personal Connections
Familiarity with in-person events is common. We have learned that communication is easier in a face-to-face setting and people get a more personalized interaction when they meet someone in person.
Virtual Events:
>Lower Cost, Bigger Reach, Faster Execution, Eco-Friendly
Companies and event planners have watched the virtual event space boom in popularity since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic that caused a major shift in how meetings are run. Despite a transition back to more in person meetings, virtual events have continued to rise in popularity for multiple reasons including budget, time, and inclusivity. In addition, there are some events that just lend themselves better to the virtual space such as short educational sessions, panel discussions, and presentation style sessions. Virtual events are generally quicker to plan and execute requiring less preparation time and more time to engage your audience.
Fully virtual events allow for remote participation from all over the world and with easy integrations, close-captions and translation services are easily accessible now more than every with technology.
In addition, hosting in-person events have a negative impact on our environment contributing to global warming. From travel, accomodations, catering, to the venue, in-person events create a significant amount of waste and Co2.
Hybrid Events:
>Flexible, Inclusive, Large Scale Reach, Extended Value, More Sustainable
Hyrbid events combine the best of both worlds. Hosting an in-person experience at a venue while simultaneously hosting a virtual experience on a custom branded virtual platform expands your audience inclusivity while being able to engage people anywhere in the world.
Hosting a hybrid event is incredibly flexible as speakers can join for their presentation anywhere. Attendees who might not be able to afford to travel for the in-person event are offered a lower cost ticket option to join the event from the comfort of their own home and still engage with the content and network with new people.
While at the end of a fully in-person event, attendees often leave and have to wait to engage with post-event materials. With a hybrid event, the online platform is capable of hosting session recordings available for re-play almost immediately. Attendees can be sure that they won’t miss out on incredible content and stay engaged throughout the event extending the value of tickets and event participation.
There are many ways to make an in-person event more sustainable, starting with moving a portion of your attendees online. Even cutting a small amount of your in-person attendance will reduce your environmental impact.
So how do you choose the right type of event?
The answer depends on many diffferent factors including scope, audience size, interaction, and event goals. To make the right choice, you will have to weigh a number of different options. Our team can help make the transition easier for you and help analyze the best approach for success for your event.
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