Creating Engaging Virtual Events and Conferences

Summer Discount: 33% Off
Free Lifetime Workshop Updates

Regularly $300, Now $200

Workshop on Creating Engaging Virtual Events and Conferences

(Can’t attend the live workshop? No problem. All workshops are recorded and we’ll send you the recording, workbook and any supplementary materials within a couple days of completion after we’ve had time to edit the recording.)

This is a new workshop is led by Susan Finch, co-producer of 15 B2B podcasts for the Funnel Radio Network, CEO of Binky Patrol – a successful, national 25 year 501c3 that relies 100% on sponsors and volunteers. She is also a keynote speaker, 35-year+ marketing professional, Interim CMO for several corporations. She is joined by an online event specialist, Michael Daniels, who has been instrumental in coordinating virtual conferences and events globally for several companies and organizations. They are also joined by Trade Show Magician, Scott Tokar, who will demonstrate a way to engage your online audience and give the host a break. Scott is an award-winning magician, and official Member of Inner Magic Circle, as well as the CEO of Corporate-Fx — a talent agency specializing in trade show and business events.

This course will give you ideas and specific roadmaps for rethinking large in-person meetings, conferences, and annual events while keeping your attendees engaged, and your sponsors supportive all remotely. As we are all looking for a new positive way to achieve the same goals, product and event success, we need to be flexible and fluid to meet the needs, while still surprising, delighting, and having an event that people will share and talk about for months to follow. This course will dig into the structure, as well as the logic for setting up systems that work for everyone no matter what their role is. Are you a sponsor left out of the exposure at regular events and now need to create something on your own? You will get ideas here, as well — perhaps you’ll pool teams and resources with other friendly sponsors/exhibitors at events that are not planning on transitioning to a virtual version.

As a bonus, at the end of this course, you’ll be able to download checklists and a set of recommended products for each scenario, the lists covered in the presentation, and more.

Points that will be covered, as well as skills taught:

• Giving you ways to lock down the ultimate goal of the event beyond, “because we used to have an annual conference and now have to do it online.” Determining how far to go with this event.
• Determining the team needed to pull it all off internally, or deciding when to contract with an outside company.
• Giving your sponsors added incentive to participate, added exposure, and results.
• Determining how far to go with this event as well as helping you decide the venue or venues for your online event experience.
• Equipment and staff need based on various hosting scenarios — indoor, outdoor, multi-location indoor, multi-location outdoor, or a combination.

Getting started:

1. Timing and resources needed
2. How big of a team for each scenario.
3. How to promote before and after the event.
4. How to widen the net since location is no longer a barrier.
5. What is free, what is behind the gate, what is a bonus?

Steps for you as the hosting company:

1. Agreed upon goals for this event to build momentum for future events.
2. Types of sponsors and how much do you want them to participate.
3. How big of a team do you have, and do you need to bring in outside help?
4. Decide how many locations and the length of the session or event.
5. How interactive do you want it to be?
6. Will there be a cause you can all get behind as an added benefit of your event?

During the event:

1. Control room needs
2. Comment wrangler
3. Recording B roll on location
4. Outtakes/bloopers/epic fails
5. Engaging with the audience in attendance online and onsite.

After the event:

1. Shout about it on social and how that looks.
2. Thoughtful, intelligent editing — your secret weapon! You want them to like the replay enough to share it out and to trust and appreciate you, too.
3. A tidy package for the sponsors and direct participants and what it includes.
4. “Send me the link to your post, I’ll promote that out for you.”
5. What were the results?
6. What was the feedback — did you ask for feedback from sponsors, ‘exhibitors’, participants, and attendees.
7. Review with the team, participants, vendors about what went right and want needs to improve or change for the next version of this event.
8. Write up a recap about the event, mentioning speakers, memorable moments, quotes — a public debriefing of sorts so people will not want to miss it next year.

Regular maintenance:

1. Do all the relevant venues know about your event, including forums, private groups, professional organizations?
2. Have you added it to your own website and is it easy to find?
3. Do you have your prior list of attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, speakers, and when was the last time you communicated with them?
4. Do you have a subscriber list for RSS to email so you can send regular updates for upcoming events and past events results?
5. Keep them interested. As you nail down details of the next event, begin to trickle it out to build excitement and encourage sharing of your event.

Key takeaways:

• After this course, you will be able to determine the logic and goals of your event.
• You will also know how to choose the right venue for your event and whether you want to include free portions of the event, invite sponsors to host a portion, including demos and more.
• We will cover the list of prep-steps so you start successfully.
• To keep the momentum and future attendee list building, how to create steady content leading back to your public event content, and how to keep your sponsors on your “super fan” team.

Who the course is for:

Marketing teams of all sizes, thought leaders, those who regularly speak on stage at conferences, sponsor events, host annual events, exhibit at expos, and conferences. Marketing professionals who have been handed the task of “rethinking our annual meeting” for the company and don’t have any idea where to start.

Instructor: Susan Finch
Guest speaker: Michael Daniels

Special offer from our sponsor MountainTop Data: Workshop attendees will receive $1,000 in free B2B data credits for attending.