The events industry already showed that hosting large meetings in the foreseeable future implies setting expectations for both live and virtual experiences. This means understanding the needs of a hybrid audience and making sure that both in-person and virtual attendees know how to make the best use of technology. But since event planners are increasingly becoming more comfortable running virtual events, let’s draw attention to how to offer safety to in-person audiences.
The question of how to operate live events in a safe environment has already received attention in our blog, during one of the industry’s attempts to get back to business. Indeed, vaccination and testing strategy is predicted to bring the events industry some very needed stability and long awaited normality. But while that doesn’t happen, let’s try to understand where to start with safe meetings.
The events industry recovery is getting more and more dependent on event technology solutions and has required major adjusting – especially when it comes to maintaining and merging virtual features. And event organizers are becoming steadily aware of how technology will shape events in 2021. In turn, venue owners can focus on a few key areas in order to provide the requirements for safe meetings and events: health and safety guidelines, social distancing protocols, lead capture digital tools and contactless registration processes and check-ins.
Virtual event platforms have grown in popularity and features, with specialized options for nearly every type and size of event, as well as every budget. And although it’s not expectable that any organizer will want to leave out the benefits that virtual has brought us so far, digital tools can help event organizers complying with public health measures in live and hybrid events. How? By fully equipping attendees and exhibitors with the right event technology resources to connect safely with each other.
Besides that, one of the first things your guests will want to know is what health and safety guidelines you have implemented in your event venue. So, you better keep these ideas in mind to guarantee that you’re aligned with your public’s perception about safety:
1. Go hybrid and start by holding your next event with distributed audiences, allowing fewer but qualified visitors to attend in person, while giving virtual access to the rest of the world (take a look at these 5 tools to create a memorable virtual or hybrid event);
2. Make registrations and ticketing processes digital, faster and simpler to avoid crowding your venue;
3. Ensure safe in-person experiences with contactless & paperless interactions;
4. Promote social distancing and crowd safety by monitoring real-time numbers per session and receiving automatic capacity alerts;
5. Measure engagement that comes from hybrid audiences within an all in one event management platform;
6. Manage onsite activities effectively by accessing the number of established interactions between attendees and brands;
7. Think digital first and don’t dismiss keeping remote viewers engaged while also meeting the needs of in-person participants. Remember, a great in-person event in the future will always benefit from virtual audiences – not only for budgeting and accessibility reasons – but mostly because having a lower density of people attending in-person will automatically make your event safer. If you think of it, virtual audiences are one of the reasons why hybrid events will thrive in the events industry.
Before talking about hybrid & data driven events, it’s crucial to realize that technology will be the norm and will definitely help event organizations setting a basic structure to making a successful hybrid event. Learn more about our ID Tech-based products and how technology can work for your next event, by allowing you to digitize face-to-face interactions and processes.
