10 Engagement Strategies for Hybrid Events and Virtual Audiences
Virtual audiences are prime audiences today - so has your event been designed to engage and connect with them in new, exciting ways?
Emceeing and keynoting over 150 virtual and hybrid events has given me a lot of experience and insight into what strategies work when uniting virtual and on-site attendees for hybrid events - and as a partner for my clients, meeting planners and friends, I wanted to share some of my favorite strategies with you!
TOP TEN
Check out some of my tried-and-true engagement and emotionally connective strategies below:
During the event:
SPEAK THEIR NAMES! Emcees and keynote speakers, C-suite leaders and board members alike should acknowledge the names and locations of virtual attendees while on stage. Say hello and call on them personally. Getting this info from surveys, registration lists and the chatbox can be helpful!
CHAT THEM UP! Use the chat feature to address questions and interactions posed from the virtual audience, connecting it in-person. Whether asking their location or asking for an expectation/goal from your event, the chat can be utilized for high-quality interaction AND data collection. Invite the on-site event audiences to chat, too, and see who is attending virtually.
SAY HI! Take a moment and ask the in-person audience to wave, smile, make some noise and say HELLO to the at-home audience. Your production company can handle the tech for this, just ask!
RELAY QUESTIONS, LIVE! Have the emcee or an event team member on hand to relay questions quickly and seamlessly to on-stage speakers. This can be done through an earpiece or adding it live to the confidence monitor on stage, or just by adding an extra mic in the audience! Bonus tip: Use the event platform to funnel ALL questions through the platform, whether in person, on-site or virtually attending, it’s another way to connect the 2 audiences!
BRING THE FUN! Incorporate fun social media videos, contests and posts that encourage interaction between the virtual and in-person attendees like this one from my cybersecurity emcee client, Connectwise, based on Vogue's 73 Questions series. Whether you’re playing trivia for prizes, scavanger hunting sponsored by a VIP, or polling from stage using Mentimeter.com or similar service, the fun is out there if you plan it!
Networking:
MAKE SPACE! Have the emcee host a pre-event virtual happy hour to get to know each other - whether it’s a month before the conference, a week before your event, or the day before/morning of, the more opportunities to connect, the more connections made!
SHOW THE WHOLE CREW! For the networking portions, Q&A and/or fireside chats, live stream the chat board onto a video screen for the in-person audience. Think the Brady Brunch or Hollywood Squares style - creating the same experience for all attendees, no matter where they are.
GET + STAY ACTIVE! Be active on the app during sessions and in hallways during breaks. Show what’s going on there to interact with the at-home audience.
NOTCH UP THE FUN! Create sincere interactions with fireside chats, Q&A's and behind-the-scenes segments, not just “hi and bye” or pre-scripted content. THINK: Reality TV with an educational, professional spin - what would YOU watch?
GATHER NEWBIES! Have a meet and greet for 1st timers and title it something fun, like “Rachel - your emcee BFF”! This way, everyone feels like they have a friend.
However you want to engage attendees, wherever they are attending from, where there is a will, there is a way. Print them out, make a mental note, and PLEASE use these tips at your next event - your audience will thank you!
Want to chat about ideas specific to your event and goals with Rachel? Tap into her hybrid event emcee experience and schedule a call today by emailing hi@rachelsheerin.com