Hosting meetings and events in a world affected by COVID-19 has required major adjustments, especially for planners and venues. Venues require to focus on the following areas: health and safety protocols, tech solutions, and most importantly safe food and beverage handling.
In this post, we take a deep dive into safe meetings and events. We will explore how organizers can fully equip the venues with the tools and resources needed to keep meetings and events heading back in the right direction.
Before we get started, it’s important to note that hotels and venues should stay up to date on all local, state and federal guidelines to ensure that all protocols are being met in order to host safe meetings. We understand that there is a lot of uncertainty because of COVID 19, and the health of your team and attendees must always be a priority.
Create a plan and communicate it with all your stakeholders
Create a crisis communication plan that will assure your partners and attendees that you are taking COVID 19 seriously and sharing how you will follow all the guidelines.
The best place to create and share your event plan is on the webpage of your event. Your first stakeholders you will communicate with are your attendees. Create and share a transparent plan which outlines what they can expect and answer the questions they might have about attending your event. Create an internal communication plan that details the action plan and process.
Maintain an updated log
Another way that you can let your attendees, partners, and speakers know that you are taking COVID-19 seriously is by maintaining an updated log. You can also include contact tracing in your update log. You can maintain an updated log on your event website:
- Add time and date to your updates to demonstrate that you are actively monitoring the situation.
- Share local information from local health officials.
- Share the latest updates of the ready plans.
- Direct your audience to other updates.
Proactively update your attendees
Maintaining an updated log on your events website will help provide answers for attendees, speakers, and partners who are looking for more information about your events. Plan on sending regular updates by emails, social and push notifications. Updates even include the change in executing the event.
Few best practices:
- Share the latest update on the status
- Reiterate the readiness of your plan
- Direct your audience
- Update everywhere
Making a move to a virtual event
While in-person experience is an irreplicable part of events, if it’s a choice between having a part of the event virtually or not having one at all, most organizers are choosing to move things online. This year, the industry made the shift in a matter of weeks after the start of a pandemic. Virtual events in Montreal have become more and more innovative, experiential, dynamic and immersive over the course of the last year. Choosing the right platform, creating the right content, integrating state-of-the-art technologies and API integrations, rolling-out spontaneous segments and including door step deliveries are all ways to captivate and engage in the virtual space.
Creating a hybrid event
Many industries are shifting from physical to hybrid/virtual events. These hybrid events will bring virtual and in-person together, in a new format that allows event organizers to pivot safely back live experiences while still realizing the benefits of the digital space. The overall industry sentiment is that hybrid events will play a big role in the future which is why many Fortune 500 clients are moving towards the hybrid event model.
Harness your digital presence
We require event marketers to create an influential strategy for all your attendees. Strategizing your virtual and hybrid event on social media can attract more audience and can help you in filling your organization’s pocket with more attendees and followers. Hence harnessing your presence through a digital medium is easier and allows for a successful event. Influencer engagement is also key to help drive up event attendance.
Wrapping up
There is no denying that COVID-19 poses a serious challenge to the events world. Revenue has been lost and more losses will be seen in the coming months. Yet there are a few names in the industry who are enjoying the turn up with their creative skills and updated market requirement.
But here is the thing, in our conversation with the event professionals, even among those who have had to virtualize, postpone, or cancel their events there is still an unflappable belief in the power of events to build the communities and serve as a valuable channel for driving business outcomes.
The event industry has hit a roadblock. They are turning things around with making events successful through the virtual channels. Eventure is one of the biggest players in the event industry, which is currently running many successful virtual and hybrid events. Eventure will take your requirements and help you convert your dream into reality.