Virtual events have become increasingly popular, especially over the last couple of years. As more positions are offering remote, many businesses have a good mix of people working from home and people working in an office. How do you execute a hybrid team-building event that caters to both parties with these new norms? Here are 8 practical tips to help you plan a successful hybrid event.
1. Open Registration for Both Live and Virtual Events
Prepare details ahead of time for your guests, both in-person and virtual, for the events scheduled and inform both parties that this is a hybrid event. Open registration allows attendees to view both events and choose the attending option that fits their needs and comfort.
2. Create an Effective Plan for the Digital Event First
It’s much easier to create an event around a preset virtual one. Keeping the attention of a digital attendee is a little more complex than an in-person, so you always want to hold sessions or sections of the event in shorter segments. Once you have set the stage for the virtual, you can ensure the in-person one will work together well with the virtual.
3. Be Prepared with Material for Both Hybrid and In-Person
As with any digital event, you need to be prepared and ensure all slides, videos, or background information is ready to go and tested to prevent a poor experience for the virtual attendees.
4. Offer On-Demand Content
Having content available allows people from different time zones to view the material at any time. You can post content libraries filled with PowerPoints, keynotes, webinars, and videos that your attendees, both virtual and in-person, can easily access.
5. Ensure Safety is a top priority
With the way the world is today, be sure when you send out information material that the in-person event will be taking every precaution such as sanitizing before and cleaning during the event.
6. Hire an Emcee for both in-person and virtual
Having an emcee in both the virtual event and the in-person event that can work in tandem with each other is helpful to keep the event running smoothly. The virtual MC can help inform people what is next, direct them to virtual booths, interact with the virtual audience, and help increase engagement from virtual attendees.
7. Work to Create a Shared Experience
Whether you are hosting a hybrid survival race, or an astronaut rescue mission, both in-person and virtual attendees are a unique way to host an event, and you want to be sure to create an experience that they can share to elevate it. Setting up live polls, breaks, and sending a gift or snacks to the virtual attendees to feel a part of what the in-person attendees are being served.
8. Remain flexible
These days, it’s essential to have a backup plan as things can shift at a moment’s notice. Venues can close, tech issues can arise, or presenters can cancel. Having a plan alleviates the stress and pressure and allows you to remain in control and focus on the event at hand.
Conclusion
Hybrid events are more challenging when you have to ensure both participants remain engaged and can fully experience the planned event. Keep the focus on engaging both audiences, and the event will kick off without a hitch.