A guide to creating hybrid events for 2022 (with Examples) |
At one time when we used to live events in person ... then COVID-19 struck. The result was that many companies as well as creators scrambling to redesign their online events.
Virtual events can offer lot of benefits but many participants feel like they're missing the most important element of face-to-face interaction. It's true that trying to recreate each and every element of a physical event in the digital space isn't working very effectively.
What's the solution? Hybrid Events!
Hybrid events blend in-person and virtual experiences, offer creators and attendees flexible solutions, and can easily be used to create different forms of content. What's that?
Let's explore how you can create an awesome mixed event.
This article...
What is the definition of a hybrid event?
11 tips for creating incredible hybrid events
2. Make use of virtual media to help promote your in-person events
3. Bring your live members virtual
4. Invite your virtual friends to live
5. Make sure you have plenty of time for networking and space
6. Create discussion questions within the community
7. Make sure that you keep the spirit going after
8. Give more options of content
9. Determine your technology needs
10. Test, test Test, test, test
What is a hybrid event?
It's the first step. Hybrid events allow people to join your event in-person or virtually, or some combination of both. This truly gives the best of both worlds.
Get Your Free Trial Credit card not required.
Advantages in hybrid-based events
Let's look at the advantages of having a hybrid event, and how it could be the ideal choice for you and your attendees!
Simple
Today more than ever is it easy to hold events that are hybrid due to modern technological advances. Hybrid platforms allow event planners the ability to design and host spectacular events that can be connected by software. Hybrid event platforms that are the best are equipped with innovative features that allow you to design an event that connects in-person and online experiences in a seamless manner.
Flexibility
If you are hosting an event with a hybrid format, you have room to personalize. Your guests can enjoy the opportunity to experience a completely new event tailored to suit your preferences. Many hybrid event platforms offer numerous ways to interact with attendees and have more flexibility of how they wish to interact, including using online chat, such as questions and answers, voice chats, polls, surveys, and more.
Hybrid event are great for everyone because they give participants a choice of how they will show up. As an example, for attendees who show up in person, a hybrid event lets them leave the venue but still be able to interact on the internet.
If you frequently travel, have hectic schedules, or can't afford to attend the event live It gives attendees the opportunity to attend virtually.
Price
In terms of the flexibility of hybrid events, they also allow you to be flexible with your price. As an example, you could offer a $100 fee for people who attend in-person and $20 for virtual attendees. Naturally, there is limitations on the number of tickets you can sell to the public at a live event due to limit on capacity at the venue, but you are still able to sell unlimited tickets for the online portion.
You can basically offer two different products at the same event! You could even offer bundles and packages (e.g. you can purchase four tickets for the cost of three tickets, or if attendees purchase the digital item along with the ticket to the event, they get access to your online community free) This gives you the possibility of unlimited possibilities!
Make sure the connection is active
Connections and enthusiasm don't need to end once the event ends. It brought people together that were eager to attend the amazing event you created.
Why not keep those connections going with the help of an online community? A community can help people maintain connections and create new ones. Additionally, it can provide them with new opportunities (both professional and personal). Members can communicate with each other, your content, and with your company. On top of that you'll let them be the first to know about your next gathering and have a place to communicate their excitement!
Can be recorded
Even if registrants can't attend your event because they're sick, needed to work late, or they decided to take it easy following a tiring workweek You can give them a way to experience the experience of your occasion.
Due to the power of hybrid platforms for events, you can easily capture your event and allow the attendees access. So, they are able to replay the event at their own schedule.
Get Your Free Trial No credit card required.
11 ways to make amazing hybrid events
Now that we've gone over the reason why hybrid events are beneficial, let's go through how to actually create one!
1. Choose your preferred mixture
The initial decision to make is how you can effectively blend virtual and physical elements. You need to make each individual experience excellent, but combine them to give everybody the greatest experience. You can, for instance, successfully combine both in-person and virtual attendees in break-out sessions. At the start of the event it is possible to have everyone in attendance (virtual or in-person) participate in a poll.
Also, think about how virtual attendees are able to connect, for example, an in-person keynote speaker once they've delivered a talk.
Facilitate engagement and connection to everyone. It isn't a good idea to have anyone feeling like they got the short end of the stick or feeling like the event wasn't catering to their needs.
2. Make use of virtual media to help promote your in-person events
If you're trying to get the word out about your special event, then it is necessary to promote it. Why not use your virtual presence to promote not only the online side of the occasion but also its in-person aspect? Make use of social media to your advantage. Create content about your event through pictures, words or videos for marketing purposes. Use social media or even begin your own blog or YouTube channel to tell your story to build your audience, and then promote your event in the most effective way you are able to.
If you're selling the training course or an eBook, a webinar or even an occasion, if your audience likes your style of speaking and the perspective you offer, they're more likely to purchase what you're selling to them.
But remember, you do not have to devote all your energy and time using social media, or even get millions (or perhaps thousands) of followers to market your event hybrid. There's no need to be an illustrious celebrity such as Oprah to get noticed. You just need to build an image and then make your followers excited!
Another option to advertise via the web is by creating an online group. It's a great feeling to be a part of a community as people are wired to being social creatures who crave connections.
Community is about the joy in the purpose, energy, and purpose that comes from being part of something greater than yourself, working towards an end goal that is common to all, developing abilities and becoming better as well as a place in which people can feel vulnerable to challenges and come up with solutions. Communities are a great space for promoting your event as hybrid because people trust you (plus they're your number one supporters who will be thrilled about the services you've got to offer). ).
3. Bring your live members virtual
Remember how we talked about blending the in-person aspect with the online component? It's time to look at the ways you can keep those who are in your living rooms to be engaged.
In between talks, you get your in-person attendees to answer questions using an online polling service (e.g. Slido). It is possible to use questions for an icebreaker (getting everyone warmed up for the occasion) You can also present them using an array of fun questions at the end of the evening, or collect feedback after the ceremony. Your goal is to generate an atmosphere of conversation and engagement between the audience and yourself.
While the event is taking place, you can also invite attendees in person to join an on-line chat. In this way, they are able to talk about their experiences, interact with each other and the virtual guests, and inquire about any issues they may be able to ask during the chat.
You can, of course, have part of your event held online. Perhaps some of your guest presenters aren't able to attend on the spot, but they could present online -- you can do an interview, presentation, lecture, and more all virtually!
Get your free Trial No credit card required.
4. Bring your virtual members live
In the same way that you'd like to get your in-person attendees on the internet, you'll want to reverse the process and get your virtual members live. We don't mean getting them in-person (because that would defeat the point) however, ensure they engage by engaging in live-streamed content, so they really feel like they're part of the action!
How? Make use of live streaming in your favor -- whether it's in the context of main stage events, such as presentations, keynotes, or even lectures delivered by a person who is well-known. It can also be utilized for small-scale events, like online workshops, discussions break-out sessions, or webinars.
As with your in-person attendees Virtual attendees are able to respond to questions and engage in real-time with open Q&A sessions which offer opportunities to increase discussion and interact. Being an event organizer, it's also important to ensure that the virtual participants will be given as much weight and attention throughout the meeting as the questions of in-person guests.
Think about having an emcee or host of your virtual audience to recap the most important moments and alert virtual attendees on what's to come. You can even record and broadcast the excitement of what's happening in real-time so that your online attendees feel like they're in the actual room.
5. Find plenty of networking space
Give virtual attendees an chance to interact with the keynote speaker by ensuring that you have enough time available within your speaker's schedules to interact with attendees.
You might want to block off some time during the event (and perhaps add time after) that is reserved to network. In order to do this, you can have designated spaces (both in person as well as online) for networking. Participants can be asked to add their names and job title, their accounts on social media, as well as some other information about themselves in chat rooms online to help get the connections rolling.
6. Make discussion topics within the community
Speaking of having dedicated spaces in which members of both online and live can meet, a fantastic location to have this interaction is inside your online group! This is great for everyone, no matter if they're in their home, or in the real world.
Below are some fun questions you can ask your participants:
- What's a challenge you're currently facing?
- What is an amazing result for you?
- What's your one-word concept for 2022?
- What inspires you most?
- If you could use an enchanted wand to make an additional hour of your schedule, what could you do?
- Where's the most beautiful place you've ever been?
- What achievement are you most proud of?
Based on interests of the members you could also create various subgroups within your community. You can also use different types of content in order to draw members in these groups, such as:
- Surveys (e.g. "What percentage of your time are you spending on getting organized and reviewing your objectives ?")
- Fill-in-the-blank questions (e.g. "The reason why I do networking is because of _____," or "I never quit my house with _ ")
- Use word-limits to ask questions. (e.g. "What's the first word you would like people to consider when they see your brand ?")
- Ask questions with time constraints (e.g. "Based on what you learned in the past at this event, what's one thing you're planning to do now?")
The main thing here is to post questions that keep your participants thinking and engaged.
You can get this book of 1,000 discussions questions free of charge on our Mighty Community!
7. Make sure that you keep the spirit going even after
Once the event has ended You can keep the spirit alive! The energy, the excitement, the sharing, the enthusiasm and the enjoyment can continue running. There's a lot you can accomplish to keep a thriving community.
Here are some good examples to maintain the momentum:
- Create a spotlight for members It could happen as a live interview of several participants (panel panel discussion). In the case of coaching a group they could be asked, "What's the most effective approach to reach new clients? ?"
- Let your members share their experiences -- invite one new member each week to blog about their experiences and the things they have accomplished. Naturally, your participants appreciate hearing from you but they'll also be thrilled to read stories about one another.
- Hosting an event that is live -- this could be the form of a seminar, demonstration, webinar, workshop or even thought of leadership.
- Provide Weekly challenges.
- Create a book or podcast-based discussion that is that is related to the interests of your community.
Another benefit of maintaining the excitement is that it allows you to create excitement for the next hybrid and virtual events!
8. Provide more content options
Another method to keep your clients engaged is to provide various types of material. Because your members are already acquainted of your business It will be it is much simpler to provide them with additional services and products down the line.
Below are some suggestions of the things you could cost for:
- Memberships (great method to foster community and the ability where members can interact with each other)
- Recorded videos
- Livestreams
- Boards of discussion, blogs survey, polls and discussion boards
- Digital downloads (PDFs, ebooks, audio files, customizable templates)
You can also expand your hybrid event into mastermind groups online, online courses, and more. You can use recordings of the sessions (e.g. speakers) or recordings of stories and experiences of attendees too. You can turn this into a powerful piece of content is chargeable separately.
There's an array of options to diversify your content, and charging for the content. You can even offer members who have attended your event discounts for an online course or ebook. Be aware that this is a marathon, not an event that is a sprint. Once you have a better understanding of your members, you can modify the content for them.
9. Find out what your needs are in terms of technology
Your hybrid event needs to go off without an issue. That means you need to get the tech side of things in order (like audio and video streaming ).
Here's a list of things to consider:
- Audio recording: be sure that your audio recording is clear and crystal clear. You also need your video and audio recordings to be synced.
- Mics: Your attendees shouldn't be straining to hear the conversations of your guests So make sure that you have proper microphones that are wired (whether they're on their own or connected).
- Video quality: choose equipment with high-resolution. Don't settle for low-quality video that is difficult to make out while you're stream recording and streaming for the attendees.
- Engagement apps (e.g. Slido) ensure that you integrate easy-to-use apps (this is important for those who are less tech-savvy) that have rich interaction and features for engagement.
- Community app (e.g. ): ensure you have a dedicated community space where attendees can go to interact with others, exchange their storiesand build relationships (before, during, and after the event).
- Tickets: To track registrations it is possible to use registration or ticketing software. It ensures that all information can be accessed from one location.
10. Test, test and test
When you've figured out the technology and tools you'll need to host your event It's now time to check these out! What you don't want to happen at your event is something (on the technical aspect) that goes wrong, which could have been easily avoided.
It is recommended that you conduct a trial run of your hybrid event a few days before to make sure that everything runs smoothly, and also to provide you with security. Get two test attendees one online and someone in person. So you'll know that the video quality is to standards, the PowerPoint presentation that you designed is working, the attendees are able to connect to any application as well as the audio quality is crisp -- you do not want your speakers to become obscured, or even worse, not audible.
No matter what equipment you're using, ensure that the guests and you are familiar with the equipment. That way, if there's a problem in the course of your occasion, it's easy to troubleshoot. Since you'll be pulled in multiple directions throughout the event's hybrid nature, you might want to look into enlisting the help of whether from friends or professionals (e.g. videographer) to ensure everything runs without a hitch and allow you to focus on the most important thing ... the attendees.
11. Pick your favorite platform
The next thing to do is choose the platform you'll use. Let's look at 4 options quick.
is an all-in-one platform that gives creators an extensive collection of native functions and tools to design appealing and engaging content. It has great online learning solutions that integrate seamlessly with memberships, communities as well as hybrid and virtual event.
Here are some additional benefits to choosing for your hybrid event
- Easy-to-use RSVP announcements.
- Create interactive discussion boards, polls, as well as Q&As.
- Write articles or live stream on Your Mighty Network, and post made videos.
- Send direct messages to participants and create reminders, so that nobody misses any information.
- The ability to connect is always available through a robust mobile application (available for both Android as well as iOS). It is ideal for people using the app to complement their in-person experience or as their main way to engage in a complete digital experience. There won't have any issues with high-quality.
A Mighty Network offers the best combination of information and connectivity for your hybrid event , and also giving you the option to expand the event into a vibrant community site, membership website or online classes along with many much more!
Get With a Free Trial No credit card is required.
Accelevents
Accelevents is a platform for events that comes with a variety of features so you can hold your hybrid events. It's a reasonably priced solution (their basic package for a one-time event is $500/event or you can purchase unlimited events at $125/month, which is billed annually) designed for mid- to large-sized enterprises.
Accelevents allows businesses to incorporate live streaming, include immersive live polling as well as Q&As. It also lets you create interactive expo booths -- perfect to auction.
Even though this technology advertises its capacity to create connections among attendees with fancy features like AI-based matching but there's really no way for attendees to maintain connections once the event is finished.
Hopin
Though this hybrid platform was developed recently and is a great alternative for the fresh and budget-conscious event organizer looking to have the traditional conference experience. With Hopin, organizers can create different types of tickets, make use of the system's centralized registration feature that is available for both online and in-person attendees, and take advantage of their marketing tools via email. Hopin is also a great source opportunities for participants to connect during an gathering (connection tools, roundtables virtual break-out sessions for groups, and more ).
Hopin will attempt to replicate the feel of an in-person occasion, which means it's lacking many of the elements that make the virtual experience distinct. While the platform is affordable, they do retain a percentage of ticket commissions (even on their "starter" pack , they pay 7percent commission, in addition to charging $99 per month billed annually ).
If you're looking to see if you can host an event that is hybrid They offer a no-cost trial (although you should note that the event length is limited to 2 hours ). You will receive 100 registrants, and they take 15% of commission on ticket sales).
vFairs
vFairs is a fairly robust hybrid event platform that is designed to large corporations and universities to host conferences, workshops exhibitions, trade shows and many more. This platform allows you to live stream footage of the event to your web-based crowd, offers immersive virtual venues that allow you to connect in-person and virtual participants via text messaging as well as audio/video conferences. vFairs does have a mobile app where attendees can check-in to the event, network with other attendees, as well as interact with booths of exhibitors.
What vFairs is lacking is in their user experience. The platform isn't customizable, and the integration isn't seamless.
In general the hybrid platform can be useful for companies with a large number of employees.
Hybrid event examples
After we've gone over all the aspects of coordinating a hybrid event and we're ready to look at a few examples! These two examples initially focused on events in person prior to the outbreak, shifted to online the course of and are currently giving attendees a mix of experiences.
The Outwild Hub
The Outwild Hub is a social network which has a monthly membership that is paid and events for people who wish to make outdoors an integral part of their life. They have an online community, as well as live and virtual activities.
- What they provide: Outwild Hub members get access to an online community, an annual speaker series, workshops series and access to live events. They also organize online-only activities (community gatherings or workshops, keynote talks). They connect live events on the internet by providing recordings of the presentation.
- Who should join: anyone who is interested in spending more time outdoors, however, they aren't sure of which way to go about it. It's for individuals who want to make big shifts in their lifestyle. The community also assists people who were forced to relocate during the outbreak to find new friends and enjoy the great outdoors with others.
Within the Cut
The Cut is an online community that is open to BIPOC creatives who want to break into the television or film business (just as the host, Rae Benjamin, had gone from full-time graphic design to acting as a script manager on "The Witcher").
What they provide: A no-cost online community in which aspiring screenwriters can network and learn about opportunities or mentorship opportunities and receive helpful filmmaking advice and techniques. The site is a place where artists meet to design virtual writers' spaces. It also offers members to get lifetime access to webinar replays (for a fee) and online training courses or even writing retreats in person.
-Who should join: BIPOC creatives who want to be a screenwriter in Hollywood. Those who have discovered entry-level jobs but are not sure what to do next in order to transition into a more lucrative career. They are open and unfiltered to help demystify the world of entertainment.
Conclusion
We hope you're feeling at ease and eager to organize an event with a hybrid that works, now that you know the advantages of events that are hybrid, how to actually run one, and the essentials will be required to achieve success.
Speaking of what you need ... while we have covered a variety of different platforms for event management, this one is the best choice for balancing cost, customization and functions for in-person and virtual attendees. Come try it out at no cost!
Start building your community for events today!