It’s not the event that matters to your online attendees but rather the experience. This concept has become more prevalent in people planning their virtual events or attending virtual events created by others.
For this reason, there is a certain level of pressure for organizers and planners of virtual events to provide memorable experiences through these mediums to keep their audiences engaged long after the event is over.
Here are 15 virtual event ideas for your next online event.
Build Unique Immersive Environments
Remember when you used to get excited about watching Saturday morning cartoons? Like you would get up early on your own free will with no outside influence so that you could watch them?
Or how about those video game marathons where all your friends would come over and bring their controllers and a big-screen TV? Or how about going to the movie theatre with your friends and chowing down on popcorn while you watch a new release together?
These are all immersive environments. They make us feel like we’re more involved in whatever it is that’s happening on-screen or whatever event is taking place. If you can recreate even some of these feelings online, then chances are more people will want to attend your virtual events.
One example of an immersive environment would have live polls at your virtual events where attendees text their choice for which answer they believe is correct directly from their phones. People love this because they get instant gratification by seeing who’s right, plus it makes them feel as though they are there.
An alternative would be to host a live chat with your virtual speakers and give people the chance to pose questions directly. This breaks down the barrier between attendees and speakers/celebrities, which doesn’t usually happen offline.
Virtual Concert
One of the biggest things you can do is create an environment where it feels like there’s an event going on in front of your audience, even if it’s just for a few minutes.
A great way to accomplish this would be by having a virtual concert at your event so that everyone has something fun and exciting to focus on during those slow periods between main events or entertainment acts.
Virtual Trivia Night
Another great way to keep your audience engaged and entertained during those slow periods would be by hosting a trivia night. Some websites offer free trivia games and quizzes that you could incorporate into your event as a fun activity between the speakers or after the end of the live concert.
Another option would be to host an online Jeopardy-style game where your attendees submit their answers using text messages, Twitter DMs, Facebook comments, etc. And whoever gets the most right answers in 30 seconds wins! This type of interactive quiz is especially perfect for virtual educational conferences.
Team Movie Night
If you’re hosting a virtual conference with several different sessions, there should be some time between them where people can go and grab a coffee, chat with friends, or maybe take a quick nap.
So why not host a virtual movie night during that time where everyone watches the same movie at the same time and then discusses it online after? You’ll find this to be much more interesting than watching something alone, and you might even make some new friends in the process!
Social Media Challenge
Social media has become an integral part of our daily lives that we now rely on it for information, news updates, and entertainment.
It’s safe to say that just about anyone would want to check out your event as soon as they hear about it, if only because of how many people talk about it on their social networks. That is, of course, if they can find your event on social media.
So why not make it easy for them to find you by hosting a social challenge?
Video Game Challenge
We’ve already established that most people won’t miss out on an opportunity like this if it’s hosted on social media. But after the fun and excitement of actually finding you there, what else do they have to look forward to? Why not try and engage them with an online video game challenge?
Several different websites offer casual multiplayer games to play in your browser along with others from all over the world. These websites allow you to select from a list of free PC games, browser games, MMOs, and even console games!
Virtual Gala
If you’re hosting a virtual conference that primarily focuses on career advancement, why not host a virtual gala where everyone can show off their new outfits?
People spend so much time worrying about what they’re going to wear during live events that they often neglect planning for events like this. And it’s understandable because there are so many other things you have to worry about when planning a live event.
But with virtual events, you can host pretty much anything you want! So why not take this opportunity to let everyone dress up as their favourite character and win prizes for the best dressed!
Speed Networking
Speed networking is another great idea that could be particularly useful for career-oriented conferences. Essentially, it’s just like speed dating, except instead of potential mates, people connect with individuals in the same industry.
And because conversations often go better when structured around common interests or experiences, this type of structure is perfect for an internet conference where attendees are unable to meet one another face-to-face before attending.
Gamify Connections
Gamification is simply taking elements from games and applying them to real life. But unlike virtual events, live events have a minimal amount of time to work with, so they have to make the most out of it.
That’s also why these challenges are more often seen at live conferences where you have face-to-face interactions instead of working on an app together from different cities or countries.
So if you’re hoping your conference attendees will become more engaged as the conference goes on, then why not gamify their experience by applying some points system? You could give them points for things like checking in at particular sessions, socializing, or even asking questions during Q&A sessions!
Pre-Event Chat Rooms
Some people might be a bit hesitant to create connections on social media before they attend your conference because they’re afraid of missing out. However, you can quickly soothe these fears by providing them with a way to chat with other attendees in advance.
Not only does this make the idea of attending the live event less intimidating, but it also helps them discover things about people who are attending that they might not have known otherwise. And if nothing else, most people would rather spend an hour or two chatting with future conference companions than sitting at home watching TV.
Add Sponsorship to Event Apps
If you’re hosting a conference that a large company puts on, why not have them add their logo to your live event app or website? Even if it’s just for branding purposes, your potential sponsors will love this type of exposure.
Host a Giveaway
If you want your conference attendees to feel more engaged, why not wager some prize on their experience? It doesn’t have to be something extravagant like a MacBook laptop (unless that’s what your attendees would like!) either; you could give away wine, chocolates, or even conference swag like t-shirts or mugs.
But that’s not all! You could also use the entry pool to guess the number of attendees attending (and whoever gets closest wins!) or choose a random attendee who will become the lucky winner. These contests are usually pretty easy to create in apps, so you won’t have to worry about any technical difficulties when it comes time for them to start.
Incentive Registrations With Swag
Many view virtual conferences as second-rate events because they don’t offer many physical giveaways and swag. But if your next online conference is centred around a theme, then why not use that theme as an incentive for people to sign up?
For example, if your event’s theme is fashion, you could offer a fashion accessory as an incentive for attendees who register before a specific date. And if you think about it, there are so many different ways that this idea can be applied to absolutely anything!
Post-Event Thank You Gift
Being thankful for your conference attendees should be done all year round, but you can enhance the thankfulness factor by sending them a small gift after the event has concluded. This could be anything from an ebook to a discount code or even just a handwritten note of appreciation.
Create Exclusive Experiences
Some things are just more fun when they’re private, so why not take advantage of the fact that virtual events can’t have physical limits? For example, what if your next conference was only open to the people who attended the pre-event meetup?
Depending on how early they could turn up, you could even start letting them into the main event space while everyone still has to wait outside.
Conclusion
Because people won’t be physically attending your virtual conference, you’ll have to rely on the live experience to keep them interested and engaged.
Luckily there are many ways that this can be done when it comes time for your guests to start interacting with each other, but if you don’t want a repeat of this year’s failed conferences, then here is a list of ideas that will help take “virtual” interactions from boring to phenomenal!
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