Creating Your First Virtual Event

The Pivot To Virtual.

The pivot to virtual in 2020 brought on the most wide-reaching and significant change to the events industry for many years. Event organisers who had previously never even considered running an event online, quickly found themselves having to familiarise themselves with a whole new set of suppliers, timelines, and software. All whilst working remotely and having to coordinate and motivate a team from a home office. It’s a testament to the resourcefulness and dedication of those who work in the industry, that many virtual events were a great success, often reaching far wider audiences than normal and filling the content gap brought on by the cancellation of live mass participation events.

Supporting the organisers and their event producers, there was a huge network of virtual event platforms, streaming providers, and engagement tools, all offering their services and the promises of making a virtual event a fully immersive and engaging experience for attendees.

Whilst technology offers a huge range of new opportunities to organisers, it also has its many pitfalls. If a speaker’s audio is crackly, their video blurred, and their presentation unreadable, this will seriously impact an audience’s engagement levels. What has become clear to organisers is that using the right streaming company for virtual events is the key to ensuring all goes smoothly on the big day.

Can’t I Just Use Zoom?

Before the pandemic hit in early 2020, companies using Zoom or other video software for the majority of their business meetings were probably in the minority. But as more and more businesses sent their employees to work from home, using such software became the norm. We’ve all experienced the drawbacks of running meetings online – crackly audio, Wi-Fi that drops in and out, presentations that don’t load properly, and a mute button that just refuses to stay off. These all impact the efficiency of meetings and often more time is spent troubleshooting tech issues than is actually spent discussing the original purpose of the meeting!

Businesses want to make sure their employees have few issues when meeting online, so normal operations can continue as much as possible. If it’s vital that business meetings continue as normal online, then it should be even more important that a virtual event runs as flawlessly as possible. This is where a video streaming partner can make all the difference for an event organiser.

Not Just A Platform, But A Partner Too.

A video streaming partner, like event.video, is one of the most important cogs in the virtual (and increasingly, hybrid) event machine. A streaming partner provides far more than just a platform to broadcast content.

• They know the running order of the event inside and out and will advise on the best way to structure an agenda to ensure that the content remains engaging, and attendees have the flexibility to engage with the sessions they’re most interested in.

• They ensure that before the event, all speakers have been properly checked so that any Wi-Fi, audio, lighting issues, etc. are corrected well in advance to avoid any issues on the day.

• Their expertise with the vast range of online event platforms and broadcast software means they can adapt to any event and ensure the event runs seamlessly on the day.

• Their calm heads and wealth of experience take the stress away from organisers so they can focus on running the event – and any streaming issues (or missing speakers) can be quickly and quietly mitigated with almost no impact on the audience experience.

So Do I Need A Video Streaming Partner, Like event.video?

If you’re planning on running a hybrid or virtual event in 2021, then the answer is an absolute "yes!" Making sure your attendees are engaged and come away from the event with a positive experience, leaving them wanting to return the following year, is paramount to the success of a virtual or hybrid event.

Partnering with a video streaming company like event.video will vastly improve the quality and attendee experience of online events. If you’d like to find out more about what we can offer, don’t hesitate to get in touch!