Due to the COVID-19 spread, most events were canceled. As an alternative, many companies replaced face-to-face events with online events. Companies like Facebook, Microsoft, and many more were the first to announce that they would only organize large in-person events once they improved the situation. However, many organizations plan to transform their seminars, conferences, and more into a virtual format.
Wondering how to organize your first event online and meet the demand of the present market? Creating an online event with EventZ or an app similar to Eventbrite is simple. You need to follow essential steps to organize an online event and simultaneously make more ticket sales. However, there are many things that you need to consider when organizing the online event; explore the article to know which are those.
What is Event Planning?
Event planning is a simple guide for all components essential to organizing an event. It coordinates these aspects against SMART objectives and timelines. To identify the timeline, you’re recommended to have a workback schedule from the event date.
Your event planning can help you track and serve best for the day of your event. Perfect event planning covers the same essential aspects regardless of the event size.
What are the Main Features of an Event Plan?
Event planning is the core of launching the entire event; hence, ensuring it covers all the fundamentals is crucial. These include:
- Event objectives and goals;
- Responsibilities of event organizers;
- Volunteers training;
- Budget;
- Setting up event date;
- Master plan for an event;
- Decide event location;
- Use the right software to organize the event;
- Event marketing;
- Sponsorships.
The list goes on and on; event organizers need to consider many things while organizing the event online. Things become more tricky when it’s your first online event, right? Thus, we have listed everything here to help organize your first event online without facing any hurdles.
Step-by-step Guide to Organize a Successful Event Online
Online events are happening in the digital space; you do not have to secure an actual venue, find a caterer, set up venue design & theme, and event elements; you have to think about organizing an in-person event. Compared to traditional events, online events can be organized with few resources.
However, that doesn’t mean that virtually mounting an event does not come with unique challenges for the event organization. As online events happen in the digital space, event planners face challenges in keeping their attendees engaged.
Attendees are often surrounded by many distractions, from poor internet connection to noisy neighbors, etc. Hence, if you fail to plan an event while keeping all these factors in mind, it may fail.
So, what easy steps do you need to follow to create a successful event? The key to organizing a successful event online is more challenging than you think; there are many tips you need to consider; let’s explore them in-depth right here.
Planning Before the Event
Before an online event organization, an event planner must define the event’s purpose and what you must achieve. Identify the audience you want to target to decide the event’s purpose.
Think about how you aim for an audience to interact with the online event and what you want to gain from the organized event. Ask yourself a few questions before organizing an online event:
- Who is your target audience?
- How and where do you advertise an online event?
- Which event software will you use?
Finding answers to the above queries can help you organize a successful event.
Digital Invitations
Online invitations are the best option; they’re affordable, impressive, customizable, and eco-friendly. Using an event management app allows you to create personalized digital invitations, making adding a link to the online event registration page easier.
Schedule and an Agenda for the Event
Having an event agenda or preparing a schedule is essential. If you want your event to be engaging and productive, plan it smartly. Plan the trajectory for your online event; you can even take the support of specialists to set the agenda for your next successful event. Prepare a contingency plan and have an action plan. Whatever event type you are planning, organizing it without proper planning can result in many mistakes.
Managing and Inviting Event Speakers
The best traits to look for in event speakers include storytelling, presence, charisma, and eloquence. However, there is much more to consider when searching for event speakers. Don’t forget to pay attention to the speaker’s time zones. Choose a time that would be convenient for each one, including the audience and speakers.
You can watch speakers’ social media presence, knowledge of event tech, and ability to engage with the event software and audience. Ensure to have a stable internet connection in managing event speakers, clear audio, engaging content, excellent video quality, and a presentable background.
Choose the Right Event Format
There are many ways to host an online event when it comes to finalizing an event format. These include:
Hashtags
You can start an online discussion by utilizing hashtags to ask questions. You can use lots of tools to perform this activity, this includes Discord, Slack, Twitter, etc.
Social Stores
Using social stories to start an online discussion is the best option. Most social channels include stories. Many platforms enable visuals, messages, videos, and more with a broad audience instantaneously. You can add filters, stickers, special effects, etc., conduct polls, and ask questions. However, you can host an influencer and tag others.
Webinars
A webinar can be viewed and shared afterward. Think of a webinar as a real-time class or workshop where participants can ask questions if enabled. Some webinar platforms include Demio, 6connex, Livestorm, Crowdcast, WebinarNinja, YouTube Livestream, and Zoom.
Social Livestreams
Every social channel now comes with live video features. However, with live streams, you can quickly boost the chances of engaging with the audience. Live streams drive more engagement than videos, showing attendees and comments in real time. A few platforms that you can use to go live include Facebook Live, TikTok, Instagram Live, LinkedIn Live, YouTube Livestream, and Twitter Live.
Conferences and Networking
You can use platforms that provide sophisticated tools and impressive features like chat rooms, live Q&A, live streaming, polls, etc. A few examples are Brella, Vfairs, HeySummit, Hop In, Run the World, and many more.
Creating Your Online Event Content
Organizing online event content is essential for delivering an outstanding event experience to the attendees. Don’t make mistakes in creating content. Also, be sure to think about pre-event content. Content before, during, and after the hosted event can do wonders for you; it also helps to make the online event experience unique. A few ideas for creating online event content are as follows:
- Make and share fun videos that match your online event topic, theme, or goals;
- Capture the attention of your audience by generating research. You can conduct polls or surveys and share the results online;
- Make hype around the work and upcoming presentations to promote your speakers. This is a perfect way to represent the online event and ensure content is built around the speakers.
- Share what your audience wants to say. When your targeted attendees take the time to make content about the online event, embrace it and enable others to know by showcasing it online.
Choosing the Perfect Software and Platform for Your Online Event
Once you have prioritized the online event needs, it’s time to choose the right platform and software for your online event. Make sure that the event ticket-selling platform consists of all essential features, and make the selection depending on what you want to achieve through the online event management software. Find which event management software helps you meet your requirements.
Promote the Event
Use the snappy messaging ideas; it’s time to make some promotional materials. To find out where the attendees hang out, you can manage registrations through a ready-to-use platform such as Eventbrite, landing pages like Facebook, and LinkedIn’s event functions. Make images through websites for social network postings, email reminders, and newsletter mentions.
Make a Final Call
Remember to send a final reminder email to the attendees a few hours before the event begins. Also, log in to the platform a few minutes earlier to give the speakers administrative permissions. Remember to hit records, ensure to mute all attendees, and remind the attendees to get their questions ready.
Are You Ready to Organize Your First Successful Event Online?
Organizing an online event can be a complicated process. Like other events, creating the event online needs time, guidance, resources, and, most importantly, proper analyses to help you organize a successful event online. With this guide and strategy, you can have what it takes to make a successful event online.
Remember, planning an online event requires you to have impressive and feature-rich event management software. If you don’t have it, then it’s time to develop event ticket-selling software. The feature-rich app makes it easier for you to engage the audience and achieve your event goals effectively. Contact us today to know how much it costs to deploy an impressive solution for creating and managing events online.
Frequently Asked Questions!
1. What is the first step in organizing an online event?
The first step is to define the event’s purpose and goals. Understand your target audience and plan how you want them to engage with the online event.
2. What is the significance of digital invitations for online events?
Digital invitations are cost-effective, customizable, and eco-friendly. They make it easy to share the event registration link with potential attendees.
3. How do I create an effective event agenda for my online event?
To create an engaging event agenda, plan the event trajectory, seek input from specialists, and have a contingency plan in case of unexpected issues.
4. What should I consider when inviting event speakers for an online event?
When inviting event speakers, consider factors like their storytelling skills, presence, charisma, and familiarity with event technology. Be mindful of time zones and technical requirements.
5. What are the different event formats for online events?
Online events can take various formats, including webinars, social livestreams, conferences with networking features, and social stories with hashtags. Choose the format that best suits the goals of your event.
6. How can I create engaging content for my online event?
Engaging content can be in the form of fun videos, research findings, speaker highlights, and user-generated content. Consider creating content before, during, and after the event for a well-rounded experience.
7. How do I choose the right software and platform for my online event?
Select a platform based on the needs and goals of your event. Ensure that the chosen event management software has the necessary features for ticket sales, registration, and audience engagement.
8. What are some practical ways to promote my online event?
Promote your event through social networks, landing pages, email reminders, and newsletters. Find out where your target audience hangs out and create promotional materials accordingly.
9. What should I do on the day of the online event to ensure its success?
On the event day, send a final reminder email to attendees, grant administrative permissions to speakers, record the event, mute attendees, and remind them to prepare questions.
10. How can I make my first online event successful?
To ensure your first online event is a success, plan meticulously, choose the right software, create engaging content, and promote it effectively. Prioritize attendee engagement and technical preparedness.