How to Run Engaging and Effective Online Events

Content

• To keep your audience’s attention
• To establish new contacts
• To increase loyalty
• For monetization
• To rally the team

To keep your audience’s attention

Real-time illustration of presentation

One of the best ways to make information more understandable and memorable is to have a visual accompaniment to your presentation. However, a high-quality and well-researched presentation is not the only way to achieve this goal. You can also resort to creating illustrations in real time; this involves a technique called digital live scribing.

A professional artist will help illustrate the speaker’s speech right during the narration. So, the graphic image of the presentation will not only convey the information but also boost your audience engagement. 

Musical pauses

Conducting an online event does not mean abandoning the entertainment that usually accompanies offline events. For example, it is not necessary to do away with musical accompaniment to a business breakfast if the event is being held online.

Such a meeting element would enable you to relax for a while, switch over to something else, and increase guest engagement. You can simply play records of several compositions or invite a professional. For example, it could be a famous pianist, who would also connect online and play a couple of pieces, or a performing musician who would delight the audience with popular tracks. 

Physical and psychological stress release

Lately, people are more and more concerned about physical and mental health. So, this kind of de-stressing activity is a good way to benefit the event participants.

In addition to musical pauses, you can provide 10-15 minutes for a short workout (for example, for breathing exercises) or for meditation. This would enable listeners to rest, clear their thoughts and be able to proceed to the next part of the presentation with renewed strength. 

You can include a short presentation by a nutritionist or spine health expert, whose expertise will certainly be of interest to office workers.

Famous moderators

It’s not so easy for a listener to get distracted at an offline event. In an online event, however, all the listener needs to do is switch to silent mode and open that browser tab.

Not only entertaining presentations, but also a talented moderator (presenter) can keep things interesting.

One advantage of virtual events is that speakers can present from anywhere in the world (of course if you have a good Internet connection). So, attracting renowned experts is becoming easier.

Do your research to find out which suitable speakers are available, interested and able to energize your audience and create a captivating atmosphere.

Event gamification

This modern toolkit for online event platforms allows you to create interactive content right during the meeting. You can run a small quiz, a survey, ask for reactions, expressed emoji, and so on.

These tools will not only maintain engagement, but also help gather feedback. For example, using a poll or a chat, guests can tell you what the conference is missing or the things they find particularly useful and interesting.

To establish new contacts

Speed meetings

Getting to know representatives of other companies is much more difficult in online events than in face-to-face meetings. Nevertheless, networking, or gathering of useful contacts, remains a business driver.

In order for guests to get to know each other, you can arrange the so-called speed-networking, or quick meetings. Participants pair up in virtual rooms, where, for a short period of time, they talk about themselves, their work, and, most importantly, exchange contact information. After the short conversation, they move on to the next virtual room to meet other event guests.

Thematic meetings

You can attract the attention of potential partners or colleagues with the help of thematic meetings. These include discussions where guests share their opinions and judgments on a particular topic. 

This format is especially suitable for online events because it facilitates networking between like-minded people who would probably not meet in real life. 

Meetings can be about any topic that is relevant to your company’s business. For example, if you’re into tourism, the event could be about the need for travel insurance. Inviting experts to speak on your chosen topic could be a nice bonus.

Communication before and after the event

One of the perks of online events is that they can attract visitors not only during the event but before and after.

When planning your event, you need to provide a way for guests to communicate, for example, chat.

We recommend opening a chat shortly before the event, explaining the gist of it while adding, for example, musical accompaniment (people can chat, get to know each other, share news while music is playing).

Chat and music should be left for a while after the event, so that the audience could exchange emotions, know the impressions of other guests and feel like they are at an in-person meeting.

To increase loyalty

Gift with home delivery

Prior to the event, try sending guests a small gift that will be useful for or associated with the upcoming meeting. For example, a home fragrance that has always been in the office, a lunchbox with a healthy snack to be eaten during the lunch break, or branded laptop headphones.

Such gifts will have a positive impact on guests’ overall impression of the conference. Some may even want to share their impressions on social media, which will raise awareness of the event and the company.

Giveaways during the event

Giveaways are a good way to boost engagement, especially when it comes to an online event.

Prepare some bonuses. These could be coupons and vouchers from a sponsor, promo codes and certificates from your company, and many other things.

Bonuses can be given to guests for participating in the event and for a targeted action, such as the best question or activity in the chat. The main thing is to explain to participants in advance how to get a gift and also take care of logistics.

You can ask participants to take pictures with the prize and send the photos to the organizers. This way, you get a portfolio that can be used to announce future events. Just don’t forget to get permission to use such photos.

Similar creative ideas help to increase the company’s visibility and attract participants and customers. So, it will benefit both guests and organizers of the event.

Complimentary gift after the event

Apart from souvenirs given before and/or during the event, you can send a gift afterwards. This is a good way to thank guests for attending and to remind them of the company once again.

You can prepare a letter with useful materials (brochures, stickers, checklists, a program of upcoming events), give a promo code with a discount on the company’s services or a gift certificate.

For monetization

Sponsorship ‘windows’

Offline events are often associated with sponsorships. You can also invite sponsorship companies during online events.

For example, you can offer to hold a short online live stream on the topic of the event or arrange a discussion club, moderated by a representative of the sponsoring firm.

Note that it’s better to involve only those companies that may be of interest to participants and overlap with your business segment. Otherwise, you will only cause confusion and risk getting negative reviews.

Advertising spaces

Online events can be monetized with advertising spaces where interested companies can post. If the platform allows, banners and pop-up windows can be placed on the event platform. This is a great way to include additional branding opportunities for affiliates.

Banners, for example, can be placed at the top of the screen during presentations, while pop-ups are better suited for breaks between sessions because they are more distracting.

Ads can be used to display current offers and links to the advertiser’s website so that guests can read detailed information since the size of pop-up windows and banners is usually limited.

Branded transitions between speakers or slides

When transitioning between slides, speakers, or topics, don’t miss the opportunity to include sponsored branding. During presentations, you can add branded slides bearing company logos or products.

Keep text to a minimum and emphasize the partner’s value; choose images that best reflect the company.

Apart from the partner slide content, be sure to agree on when and how often this content should be displayed during the event.

To rally the team

Master classes

Online workshops are great when holding an event for employees who can’t meet in real life but want to spend time doing activities together.

Cooking workshops, flower transplanting workshops, scrapbooking – there are more than enough options. All you have to do is find an expert and invite all employees to join in. Ideally, all the necessary props for the master class should be sent by courier. This way, your employees won’t have to spend time preparing. If this is not possible, make a list of everything you need, indicating where you can buy certain items (for example, with links to online stores) and send it as early as possible, so that everyone could have time to prepare.

During the workshops, participants will not only be able to learn something new, but also communicate with each other on informal topics.

Quizzes

Quizzes are yet another idea that can boost the positive atmosphere in a team.

Team-building quizzes help participants strengthen their teamwork skills, find solutions under force majeure situations, sharpen their thinking skills, increase their reaction speed and sense of responsibility.

Adding a few questions about the company and employees to the quiz would be a useful idea. Just don’t use predictable questions like “what year was our company founded?” Instead, dedicate the question to the bun that’s been in the office refrigerator for six months, an old office plant that has even been given a name, or the most successful business deal with a client.

Such questions would unite the team, enable employees to relive funny moments and remember why they love their jobs and colleagues.

Movie night together

During the pandemic, people got a little bit out of the habit of going to the movies; but online cinemas have gained enormous popularity. After all, you don’t have to leave your house to spend an evening watching a movie.

So why not have a movie night with your coworkers? Vote on a movie of the week and invite everyone to join in using a link.

In the chat, feel free to discuss and comment on what’s happening, share your emotions and impressions. Evenings like these would help you discover another side of your colleagues and really make friends with them.

If the idea is popular, you can make movie night a regular event, and then have discussions as part of a movie club.

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A combination of different formats would diversify your online meetings, help increase your virtual audiences, capture and hold the attention of your audience, and get your events talked about. 

Moreover, if the online experience is vivid and memorable enough, participants may well attend your future offline events.

Of course, online meetings are important for remote teams, when employees are located in different cities and even in different countries and cannot often see each other in person. Shared activities would help create the feeling of presence, rally the team, and allow employees to feel the reliable shoulder of their colleagues.