Everything You Need to Know About Virtual Exhibitions.
The importance of having a face-to-face conversation has its importance, but in these tough times of social distancing, online exhibitions and conferences have become more necessary than ever! But the question is how you can turn an interactive one to one event into a digitalized hub for connection and networking without losing its essence.
Suppose you are one of the many organizations, companies, or brands that have shifted completely towards the internet due to the restrictions of COVID-19. In that case, you might be wondering what steps you can take to ensure an amazing online experience for your guests and participants during an online event.
It might come as to surprise for some, but virtual events require as much care, attention, and effort as you would put in any physical event. You will have to plan for it, market it, get sponsors, get people registered, and most importantly, make sure that people are having the time of their lives!
What is a Virtual Event?
A virtual event can be described as an event where people experience an event’s content through the internet on their screens. Even though the idea of virtual events is not new, but it is gaining extreme popularity after COVID 19 due to SOPs and social distancing restrictions.
The key to success is adapting to new technologies, and this is why all major organizations have shifted towards online events instead of canceling them.
Hosting a Virtual Event
When it comes to online exhibitions, the best and the most beneficial thing about them is how vast it can be. These digital events let people connect from different places in the world, and if you look into it, you might find out that networking through a virtual event is way more efficient and beneficial as compared to a physical event.
Here are a few reasons to host a virtual event:
Ease of access:Â Since the event is being held virtually, people from all over the world can easily participate from the comfort of their homes.
Expenditure:Â Even though you need to put in the same amount of effort in a virtual event, brands and companies can save up money on setting up physical booths, eateries, and travel accommodations.
There’s no other option: Due to COVID-19, companies are unable to hold events and conferences. Digital exhibitions allow them to hold their events virtually instead of canceling them.
What Elements Are Considered Important When It Comes to Virtual Events?
A virtual experience is organized around the material, interaction with participants, and context. A virtual interaction should include a combination of interactive and pre-recorded material, according to Forbes. The components that make up a digital event can be structured as:
- An aesthetic event website
- Event registration through forms or any other means (easy to
understand and fill) - Live presentations (Speakers, Presenters)
- Interactive Q&A session
- Recorded content (To view later)
- Gamification and Entertainment
- Feedback surveys
Make sure that you provide proper documentation of the schedule, contact information, and anything that your participant’s guests might want to know since it can be very frustrating for the attendees to figure out who they should approach If any queries.
Advertising and Marketing:
The timing of your marketing strategy holds an incredibly special place in the success of your virtual exhibition. If you start way too early, your audience will lose interest, and if you start too late, you won’t be able to get people to make out time for your exhibition, or even worse, you might not even reach all of your targeted audience.
There will be situations where you’ll have to make a quick change and cancel the event or make it interactive are your choices. It turns out, if you have the right technology and equipment, making an event digital isn’t that challenging. All you need to do is structure a plan and carry out the tasks one by one. Adapting to new ways is the key to success, and digital exhibitions are a big step towards innovation.
Even though the shift towards the internet has brought many changes, virtual exhibitions are the biggest of them all and are surely not going to fade away anytime soon. If you want to maintain a prestigious image of your brand or organization, you need to adapt, improvise, and get in the game!