Events & the Apocalypse: Go with the stream

I guess we could describe what we’re living through as (what feels like) somewhat of an apocalypse; granted we all thought we’d be looking like Lara Croft and Rick Grimes but instead we look like Bridget Jones getting over her breakup and Chuck Nolan- you’ve seen the memes, they’re funny because they’re true.

The restrictions that have been brought on by the current pandemic have drastically affected several businesses and industries.

One of these is the events business. 

Events are an awesome way of bringing people together, giving brands a voice or image, raising awareness, inspiring and educating audiences.

But how is the events business adjusting and transforming during this ‘apocalypse’? 

Instead of canceling or postponing, we’re seeing a major shift of in-person events transforming to virtual online experiences.

Global examples

• Microsoft announced that all their events will be held digitally until July 2021, including one of their largest events of the year, its annual developer conference, Build.

• Likewise, Facebook’s F8 developer conference that was scheduled for May, will also be held digitally. This will include locally hosted videos and live streams. 

• In March, Salesforce was one of the first companies to transform their in-person conference, World Tour Sydney Reimagined, into a live virtual experience in only a couple of weeks. The whole conference was streamed online. A lot of this content is still available to stream on-demand.

• Scheduled for May, Consensus 2020, is one of the major cryptocurrency and blockchain events organized by Coindesk. The entire event will be streamed online with live Q&A, 1-on-1 video & chats and it will host leading industry speakers from around the world.

All these shifts of on-location events to virtual experiences are opening up new ways of interaction and simultaneously having a very positive impact on the environment, meaning this could be a transformation that’s here to stay. 

We could be looking at a complete digital shift or the hybridization of events to come, so a combination of smaller in-person group events combined with a larger online presence for the masses.

What are the benefits?

1. It’s cost-effective
2. It’s environmentally friendly
3. No more physical or participation limits 
4. No geographical limits
5. Reach a mass international audience

How could it work? 

• Opt for either a live stream or hybridization with a combination of pre-recorded and live material

• Set up a landing page to host your event. This can be ‘recycled’ for your next event, so it’s a great investment

• Film a welcome or introductory video. The purpose is two-fold:

1. Promote it on social media prior to your event
2. Introduce the program to your viewers before they enter the live stream

• Create a digital campaign to promote your event; pre, during and post. How?

1. Pre: Promote the event and send users to your landing page to sign up if it’s a paid event.
2. During: Use social media to ‘live broadcast’ a snippet of your event and send users to the landing page to join. As you would with an in-person event, create a unique hashtag for users to use in stories whilst they are participating. 
3. Post: Boost all the work you’ve done by showcasing your successful aftermath. Upload your material to your YouTube channel. 

• Provide a chat group through a tool like Slack to give attendees the opportunity to chat and network. Create channels for each speaker where they can ask questions.

----

Do you have an upcoming event you were thinking about postponing? 

Perhaps we can help. 

Our in house forces have come together. Together with our development team at Tabs & Spaces, our production team Drama Llama has set up a Live Streaming Service. 

Check out their work here and get in touch for more details!