Virtual Event Management

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VIRTUAL EVENTS VS. IN- PERSON EVENTS WHY HOW
TO HOST AN ONLINE EVENT
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With rapidly increasing business needs and
business expansion globally, the conferences are
held either virtual events or in-person events,
which are ubiquitous. Conferences are a huge
part of the professional ecosystem. It is not for
nothing that professionals and organizations show
up in the events, travel long distances, and pay
hundreds of dollars in travel and lodge. Why
would they spend their precious time from
morning to evening for several days? The obvious
answer is to meet others from their industry,
listen to experts, and to network with peers. The
eventual outcome of events is to generate value
for stakeholders. Virtual Events or In-Person
Events There is, however, a better way to do
this. The world is changing rapidly, and there
are a lot more virtual events today than ever
before. In-person events can surely be a great
way to meet, tie-up, and network, but are they
the most effective way? This question was never
more pertinent today than ever before, with the
coronavirus pandemic taking its toll on
gatherings and human to human contacts. The
renewed focus of digital alternatives to events
has its source not just in COVID-19 but a host
of other factors. Businesses and governments
today desperately want to minimize the carbon
footprints to tackle climate change. The best
solution to these problems without obstructing
the rhythm and pace of activities is the virtual
events. Why and How of Virtual Events Why virtual
events? It is easy to answer why when we
understand what we mean exactly by virtual
events. It is a large online event with
multi-session that may include webcasts and
webinars. At its most basic level, you can think
of it as a virtual environment where multiple
people interact. They are as great as in-person
interaction except actually being physical. You
get to meet people, interact with them, form
associations, and network. Different Types of
Virtual Events There are different types of
virtual events, depending on different goals.
There are virtual conferences and virtual open
days. Virtual trade shows and virtual benefit
fairs are still other types of virtual
events. Virtual open days are practical
alternatives to physical university open houses.
Students get an opportunity to learn more about
potential academic institutions so that they can
make an informed decision. Virtual conferences
are like conventional conferences that include
one or more sessions. The participants attend
sessions and streams conducted by thought leaders.
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Virtual career fairs are online job fairs.
Employees connect and interact with job seekers
in a virtual environment. The potential
employers interact with prospects in the same way
as they do in a career fair. Virtual trade shows
have an advantage over traditional trade shows in
that they break the geographical barrier of
distance. The attendees from all over the world
interact with hosts and sponsors in real-time. A
virtual benefits fair uses the online medium that
connects employers and workers to communicate
about the benefits provided to the workers. It
leverages the power of technology to scale up
the employers' maximum reach to make the
employees more informed on compensation. Advantag
es of Virtual Events There are several benefits
of virtual events. They can be as flexible as you
need. You just need the right platform to host
it. Moreover, it drastically reduces the costs
associated with holding a physical event. It may
cost thousands of dollars a day for venue hire
alone that doesnt take into account the cost of
food, drink, and accommodation for speakers.
While physical venues have limited seating
capacity, you can host several thousand attendees
in a session online. The engagement of the
attendees at virtual events is far greater than
physical events with tools like live chats, QA,
polls, and several others. The virtual events are
environment friendly. There is a zero-carbon
foot-print with these events as against the
physical events. These events are reliable. You
dont need to cancel them for the reason of the
weather or lack of attendees. In addition to all
these, you also get comprehensive analytics and
reliable data such as the number of attendees,
questions asked, and other hard stats. How to
Host a Virtual Event Here are the steps to host a
virtual event. First off, decide upon the type of
event a single session webinar or podcast or a
multi- session event. This decision will
influence the type of platform you will
need. Choose a platform depending on your needs
and the type of support and functionality you
require. Also, decide whether you are going for a
free or a paid model and ensure your model
supports payment if you are going for a paid
model. You may have to choose the event
environment for which you have to work closely
with your provider. You can discuss the details
with the provider that may include several things
like sponsorship, branding, and sessions on
offer. Choose your speakers. You can attract a
large audience depending on the speakers. This
information may have to be put on your
promotional material. You may have to choose your
date and time carefully, taking into account
audience and speaker availability.
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