Emilie Barta – Hybrid Event Consultant, Audience Engagement Specialist, Virtual Emcee – designing visually stimulating, engaging, and interactive hybrid events to unite the online and the onsite audience into one cohesive group

Photo courtesy of Carsten Knoch

I am very happy to see the perception of hybrid events shifting from “what are they” to “why do I need them?” I feel like we are getting the word out on what they are, but we still need to work on why they are valuable. Let’s face it, hybrid events are a new concept, most associations and conference organizers find them intimidating, and some technology glitches need to be worked out. But I believe that attendees will forgive the hiccups in the learning process AS LONG AS their needs are met and their concerns are addressed.

In that respect, here is why associations and conference organizers should add a virtual component to their conference, conclave, congress, meeting, event, trade show, etc. and create a hybrid event:

–hybrid events increase the size of your audience since you now have both a face-to-face audience and a virtual audience…in this case two is better than one

–hybrid events extend the reach of your conference to a global community since you are now streaming information over the internet…not only do you pick up attendees from far away who would never consider attending your event, but you also pick up attendees you never even knew existed who just “happened upon” your virtual component

–hybrid events give those unable to attend the ability to still participate in your conference…we all know that “stuff happens” and sometimes people are not able to attend an event in person, so giving them access through a virtual component (since something is better than nothing) shows them that you appreciate their interest and still want to provide them information and education

–hybrid events allow for “collective-knowledge,” so more people involved in your conference means more idea-sharing and brain-storming…think of how much more can be learned and accomplished by widening your audience since networking and learning from your peers is one of the biggest advantages to having a conference

–hybrid events provide footage which can be archived and re-purposed for further education and promotion…websites and video do not have an expiration date, so you are able to use what you recorded indefinitely and in many different ways; think of the good-will you will generate if you pass the content to others for their own personal and professional use, and then think of even how much more exposure, and possibly revenue, you will get as a result

–hybrid events enable year-round, never-ending conversations and interactions…since you are building a new web-based community, this community can continue to interact well after your event physically ends

–hybrid events create new sponsorship opportunities and more publicity for your sponsors, advertisers, vendors, supporters, etc…especially since there is a much wider audience, a much longer time frame for exposure, and the ability to expand your reach exponentially through social media and word-of-mouth “sharing”

–hybrid events create new revenue streams for your association/organization…although a virtual component cannot demand the same price as you would charge your face-to-face attendees, fees can be collected for registration and continuing education credits

–hybrid events show that your association/organization is forward thinking and on the cutting edge of technology…you want to constantly service your members, so prove to them that you are always looking for ways to advance your organization into the future by taking advantage of developing trends and strategies

–hybrid events convert virtual attendees into face-to-face attendees at your next event…we all know that there is nothing better than meeting someone face-to-face, shaking their hand, reading their body language, and sharing information and stories right next to each other, so use your virtual component to create a feeling of “I have to be there next year”

Long live the hybrid event!

**Please note that this is a revised and updated version of an article originally posted on 4-20-10**

Copyright 2011. This article may be shared or referenced as long as the source is cited and linked. No portion of this article may be copied or reproduced without express written permission by the author.