Share what you know with millions of people
Focus is the best place to turn what you know into remarkable content
0
What is important to know about trends with virtual events?
What are some trends to look out for in 2011? (Question from the Focus Marketing Roundtable: The Next Generation of Virtual Events and Digital Communities)
Events
- Dos and Don'ts of Small Business Marketing May 29 @ 11 am PT
- Lead Nurturing 202: The Next Generation May 31 @ 11 am PT
- The Tricks to Paid Media June 6 @ 11 am PT
- Display Advertising for Brand Awareness June 20 @ 11 am PT
Related Activity
3 Answers
1) From discrete events to persistent communities.
Events are scheduled throughout the year, but a community is active and engaged 24/7/365. If you're able to sustain a persistent community, then your "annual event" becomes a "big thing" within a continuum of "things". Meaning, you no longer have to send email blasts to your list of 10,000 - instead, you simply let the community know - and the community then promotes the event on your behalf.
2) Hybrid events are a win/win.
Complement your physical event with a virtual component and you significantly extend your event's reach. In fact, the virtual component serves as a great marketing vehicle for your physical event, as it allows participants to "try before they fly".
3) Integration of social.
Whether they're virtual or physical, social media has become a core component of events. Virtual event platforms can further enable social by integrating social networks directly into the platform. This encourages additional engagement from virtual attendees, all while keeping them within the environment. Direct integration also builds a richer engagement profile, since the platform can capture how active attendees were in social networks.
4) From "virtual" to some other name?
On the "meta" front, some of us have been discussing whether "virtual" is the right term to describe these experiences. Stay tuned ;-)
1. The best-received events are the ones with live content
2. Hybrid events are becoming a standard requirement for some markets
3. Content is more important than 3d/Immersive/Heavily graphic platforms
4. Social media is absolutely an integral part of the mix
I agree with Dennis and Greg 100%. I would add a few comments...
1) Engage the audience using Q&A, polls, group chat, integrated social stream
2) Games with relevance to the event goals are a great way to add some fun with tangible impact to your virtual event
3) Consider multiple platforms for your event. For example a virtual platform is a perfect vehicle for engaging a loyal audience but consider adding a non-authenticated vehicle (i.e. live streaming a selection of content into Facebook, Blogs, Event Web Site) to engage the peripheral audience and possibly convert to the more loyal audience.
Regards,
Dannette
Answer This Question