The best video conferencing software can be tailored to support virtual events in your business, in both internal and external capacities. Virtual Events are gatherings of people who mostly share a similar interest and profession, primarily conducted online. Participants of Virtual Events learn, interact, and discuss their interests in a virtual environment. These range from conference calls with a handful of people to a live broadcast with hundreds of thousands of participants. The Virtual Events industry is still being introduced to newer techniques and platforms. A platform’s range of valuable features makes it a good choice for Virtual Events.
Organizations need clarity regarding their goals to ensure the success of their Virtual Events. This helps them identify the features they need in their Virtual Events platform. For an event like this to succeed, sufficient promotional efforts are required. Here we will explore the different types of Virtual Events, the opportunities they bring for organizers, and how to compare video conferencing systems for these events.
What is a Virtual Event?
Changing work and interaction models urges the growing masses to switch to virtual networking. Virtual Events serve as networking and learning platforms for brands, attendees, presenters, and influencers. Virtual Events can be the simplest to attend, with access obtained by simply logging into your social media accounts. They can also be complicated, requiring access to specific video conferencing. It depends on the preferences of the creators and the attendees so it's important to understand virtual event best practices and nuances to create the best events online for your company. Virtual Events are an excellent platform for sharing ideas, learning, and networking virtually.
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What are the Types of Virtual Events?
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Virtual Events have become a staple in the corporate sector and quite crucial in the academic world. An increasing number of organizations seek to conduct awareness programs, compliance training sessions, and online seminars for their employees. These events are a highly convenient method of hosting presentations and courses. Some of the major types of these Virtual Events are:
Live Webcasts
Live webcasts and town halls enable businesses to build and maintain professional connections, as they are focused on nurturing the company culture. These types of Virtual Events align and update the staff about the different workflows and facilitate bringing together like-minded people. Through live streaming and on-demand video clips shared in real-time, attendees enjoy networking, and their privacy is maintained by only allowing limited access.
Virtual Conferences
Virtual conferences allow attendees to obtain opportunities to access informative events remotely. In these Virtual Events, everything from panels to keynotes and breakouts to networking events is conducted entirely online unless it is a Hybrid Event (more on that later). Virtual conferences can range from being passive to being highly intimate and engaging. Sometimes, this type of Virtual Event incorporates more than one stream, making them a ‘multitrack event.’
Webinars (Web Seminars)
“Webinar” is a portmanteau of “web seminar,” and these are the most common types of Virtual Events. Webinars can find potential attendees via social media news feeds, emails, and old-school banners. These types of Virtual Events generally process as a real-time video meeting, with participants' interaction limited to submitting questions for a Q&A session at the end of the webinar and responding to polls. On-demand webinars offer a more passive experience, but that is always an option for those who prefer.
Virtual Onboarding Fairs
Business owners require robust onboarding programs to ensure the right hires are made. Virtual Onboarding Fairs enable them to do just that and boost their productivity by training newly hired team members via rich interactive tools.
Hybrid Events
Hybrid events offer a combined experience of Virtual Events with the in-person element, leveraging both benefits to cater to a broader audience. This means geographic distances of insufficient physical space no longer act as limiting barriers.
Online Classes and Training Sessions
While the world experienced a global shock as the pandemic hit all over, and initially, both businesses and academics suffered, soon we were up on our feet. This was all thanks to Virtual Events that enabled online classes for students and training sessions for professionals. Such virtual courses range from traditional school and college-level education to workshops and certifications. The instructors guide students as they can conveniently interact and collaborate. This enables the proper evaluation of the student's understanding of the topic so that instructors can proceed accordingly.
What are the Opportunities for Virtual Events?
Virtual Events present numerous opportunities for the organizers to capitalize on and grow their reach. These include sponsorship opportunities, tapping new customer segments, additional access and value for delegates, and improved revenue from on-demand streaming. Virtual events build employee engagement and can be very beneficial across these other facets of your business.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Organizers can find great sponsorship value, and so can participants by having the content available online even days after the actual Virtual Event. Having sponsors means videos and content can be uploaded for as long as it is relevant while promoting their products and services.
Reach New Audiences
Brands can target previously untapped audience segments and significantly increase their customer reach via Virtual Events. This means getting across to prospects who might previously never have attended such an event due to time and financial constraints and the limiting factor of travel costs.
Improve Program Content and Outcomes
Since speakers for Virtual Events often need to pre-record and upload their presentations ahead of the event, this gives them a chance to evaluate the quality of their content and improve it if needed.
How to Compare Video Conferencing Systems for Virtual Events
Depending on the nature of an event, if a video conferencing system seems like the best choice, here are the features that it must have to be the best virtual event platform for enterprise or SMB.
User-Friendly Interface
Since your chosen virtual events platform will be the primary touchpoint for your participants, it needs to be simple to navigate with a user-friendly interface to ensure a seamless experience.
Accessibility
The platform must offer the right features that make it accessible to a diverse audience. These features could be multi-lingual support, closed captioning, etc.
Customization
The platform should be customizable so that you can modify it appropriately to represent your brand and provide an experience tailored only for your attendees.
Technical Support
When it comes to Virtual Events, the likelihood of technical issues is always on the higher side. Ensure that your chosen platform offers a good support team for technical assistance if and when needed.
Engaging Features
It should encourage your attendees to the network by including collaborative or conversational features.
Sponsor-Friendly
Virtual Events monetization is vital but complex, so a system that supports sponsors is handy.
Comparing the best video conferencing software for Virtual Events is a great step to ensure you choose the best available video tools for your online events or webinars. Reading video conferencing system reviews can also help you understand which systems and features are best and most used for Virtual Events.
