After two years of teleworking, the organizers of the event have adapted. They have become aware that their sector, among other things among those most affected by the pandemic, has not only changed its nature, but they have also discovered that hybrid and virtual events have some advantages that the organization alone cannot promote.
Hybrid or virtual event?
Despite all the benefits of virtual events, there is still great value in hosting physical events: the connections that come from physical contact promote deep engagement. But you don’t need to choose one approach and give up the benefits of the other: you can consider hosting a hybrid event.
A hybrid event gives you the best of both worlds: the benefits of a virtual event and an in-person event.
What does a hybrid event mean?
A hybrid event is a combined meeting in both face-to-face and virtual modalities. This allows for live dialogue between speakers and attendees, whether they join in person or online.
Two key components make a hybrid event:
What is the difference between a hybrid event and a virtual event?
A virtual event takes place entirely online and does not include a physical location: it is hosted within a 3D virtual area. The event and the topics covered take the form of video, both live and pre-recorded. All speakers and attendees meet remotely.
By contrast, a hybrid event takes place online and at a physical location chosen by the organizers. Speakers and attendees can choose to participate remotely or in person.
What is the benefit of hosting a hybrid event?
A hybrid event gives you the best of both worlds, combining the benefits of a physical event and a virtual event.
Reasons to host a hybrid event include:
- The possibility of extending participation to users who are not physically present;
- The opportunity to increase revenue and monetize through online ticket sales or use the hybrid event as a vehicle to generate leads. The expanded audience and new experiential level also create more opportunities to increase sponsorship revenue;
- Cost reduction: Virtual events generally cost less (in terms of time, money, and effort) than in-person events, for both organizers and attendees (who can avoid travel and accommodation);
- Increased networking opportunities: the main advantage of hybrid events is that it allows all participants, face-to-face and online, to communicate with each other and with the speakers.
Hybrid events open up a multi-directional flow of ideas and information that enhances the audience experience by making event content more relevant and fostering connections.
Within a hybrid event, all participants can communicate with speakers through video, chat, Q&A, and other interactive levers. Moderators can filter audience questions and contributions for speakers to respond to.
In addition, this type of event allows you to access and connect your speakers with a dispersed audience in different geographical areas of the world. This helps enrich the content of events and conversations with various perspectives. Other advantages of hybrid events include sustainability (relatively smaller environmental footprint) and flexibility (linked to connecting to the event in a virtual version at any time and from anywhere).
When to organize a hybrid event?
If you’re planning an in-person event or meeting, consider a hybrid approach, as virtual events are less expensive to plan and run (in terms of time, money, and effort). In some situations, a fully online event may be preferable to a webinar.
What in-person events could benefit from a hybrid option? These are some of the possible circumstances:
- You have a potentially large online audience for your event and are interested in attracting that audience;
- one of the purposes of your event is to generate business opportunities;
- one of the main objectives to be achieved through the event is to increase brand awareness;
The possible variations of a hybrid event
Here are some sectors for which it is useful to organize hybrid events.
- Marketing (major conferences, summits, expos, trade shows, product launches, panels)
- Entertainment (festivals, contests, award ceremonies)
- Hybrid teams and internal communications (hybrid offsite/onsite, quarterly kickoffs, sales kickoffs, training courses, workshops/continuing education)
- Education (hybrid courses, academic lectures, beginners, administration)
- Recruitment (job fairs, information sessions, panels, networking)
- Nonprofits/NGOs (galas, fundraisers)
- Members-only associations/groups (conferences, meetings, networking)
- Social gatherings (weddings, important parties)
The virtual event platform is your online location
However, a central element of all successful hybrid events is a virtual event platform. The hybrid event involves more than just live streaming a physical event – it unlocks interaction between all participants, those joining in person and remotely.
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Categories: Technology
Source: vtt.edu.vn