The ‘ins and outs’ of Hybrid Events

The ‘ins and outs’ of Hybrid Events

by | Corporate, Virtual Events

What is a Hybrid Event?  What are the mechanics of a Hybrid Event?  How do Hybrid Events work in practice?

All good questions and although Hybrid Events have been around for a while, and are most definitely here to stay, there’s a lot to know!  Here’s the lowdown from Procreation HQ on what a Hybrid Event entails, the ‘ins and outs’ of Hybrid Events and how we deliver them successfully for our clients.  Also, here are some answers to frequently asked questions surrounding the topic which is close to our heart!

The definition of a Hybrid Event

At Procreation we like to simplify this definition; A Hybrid Event is an event that can include everyone, no matter where in the world they may be.  This could be at home, in the office, in an exhibition hall or in a live face to face main plenary session, and they’re all connected to the same event, same audience, and same content simultaneously.  Hybrid Events are an incredibly powerful way of including every single person, without restriction, and just with an internet connection.  This huge power to drive inclusivity is why they are so popular, and also why they’re the event format now and for the future.

How do Hybrid Events engage attendees?

Hybrid Events expand possibilities to increase audience participation.  Hybrid Events not only increase audience sizes by including multiple locations, but allow for multiple functions to improve discussions and interaction.  “But HOW?” we hear you ask… Well… here’s a few examples.

A session can be delivered live, in a room, to attendees in that room.  Speakers can be physically in the room with this audience, contribute remotely via video link from another location, or usually a combination of the two.

The same goes for the audience.  They can be in the room, at home virtually, in an office, and from multiple locations around the globe.  The beauty and simplicity of the Hybrid Event model?  They all engage and discuss the same content, at the same time.

This engagement can be via live polling, word clouds and Q&A sessions which can be moderated and facilitated as any live event would be, but the audience is not limited to just those who can be there in person.

Hybrid Events engage

Endless possibilities of Virtual Events

Hybrid Events are born from an ethos of positive collaboration.  Breakout rooms can be set up in the same fashion as what’s been described earlier in addition to a core track that might take place in a Plenary Session.  Breakout discussions, best practise sharing and education and learning knows no limits with a Hybrid Event.  The Event simply needs to be managed professionally, well planned for and for Production and Crew to be in place to ensure each element goes without a hitch.  The audience can be anywhere in the world and engage with specific live content all at the same time (and this can be translated simultaneously too.)

Exhibitions are a hugely untapped and exciting opportunity for organisations who use the Hybrid Event model.  Most business professionals would agree that personal interaction at an exhibition stand can be one of the most valuable interactions that happens at an event.  According to Statista (2021), 81% of survey respondents value face to face interaction with potential vendors as very, or extremely, important.

With a Hybrid Event, the stand and exhibitors can be physically in the room, with this supported by a virtual stand managed live by additional team members who can be located anywhere in the world.

Picture this, an exhibition in Paris, with two staff on the stand to talk to delegates.

A stand with Digital capabilities that allows these staff to demo products/services to the people in the room.

Now imagine a Chinese or German attendee, who can’t make it to the exhibition in person and who don’t speak French.  No problem.  A Hybrid Event solution can allow attendees and staff to log into the Hybrid Event digitally, from New York or Shanghai and interact as they would in person.  Your potential reach increases greatly, and the possibilities really are endless.

How to use Hybrid Events

In summary

Meeting Spotlight’s recent survey concluded that “73% of Event Planners Expect Hybrid Events to Be More Common in the Future.”

We’re 100% inclined to agree.  While Virtual Events are considered by many as a temporary solution during the Covid era, the benefits that the Hybrid Model now offer are numerous. Organisations are using Hybrid Events to improve collaboration and inclusivity, engage wider audiences, increase their capabilities to share content and drive better conversations and all in a sustainable way.  If you’re not onboard with Hybrid Events now, you will be involved in them in some way in the future.

For more information on “Hybrid Events” please contact the team at Procreation and we’d love to chat further!

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How to use Virtual Events in Education

How to use Virtual Events in Education

by | Education, Virtual Events

How can you get the most out of Virtual Education?

Hosting educational events and learning opportunities virtually has become a well-established and go to format for many years (even more so since the Covid-19 pandemic), but how can you get the most out of Virtual Education?  We all know that this format works well but how do you set up a learning event that ensures an organisation can engage students and enhance learning outputs?  Now that’s a question!

With over a decade of experience helping our clients to do just this, here are some tips on how to approach Virtual Learning and Educational Events and maximise the interactivity and impact of your agenda and format.

Create interactive, engaging content and opportunities for feedback

There are so many ways to use Virtual Platforms to help not only engagement and enjoyment of the education on offer, but to test knowledge, promote feedback and ensure that students are retaining as much information as possible.  I mean, that is the objective of all education after all?!  Here are a few examples:

Polls

Excellent for both “Who wants to be a Millionaire” style Ask the Audience spot tests and also in a more informal and fun way to change the pace of a session or create a break in a chunky piece of material.  Having these tools built into our platform makes this easy peasy to set up (and don’t forget the data is also available immediately and post event for organisers.)

Virtual Events - online polling, interactivity

Pre-records, role play and live video

Video content, either pre-recorded or recorded during the session itself, can be used in that same session to test student’s knowledge, recap previous topics or used in role plays which are proven to be a hugely valuable way to learn (read more in this article by Harvard). In addition using pre-records is an excellent way to ensure a consistent message across training programmes (although we would always champion live interaction wherever possible!)

Virtual Event live streaming live video

Competitions & leaderboards

Adding a bit of competition into learning environments is often very beneficial as demonstrated by the harsh but powerful quote by Pallavi Kishore “Failure is the best teacher.”  There are many ways to do this, using gamification amongst other methods…  Here are a few of our favourites: Scavenger hunts, time challenges, mini tests and polls, feedback and live Q&A’s.  This list is absolutely not exhaustive, and there are many other ways to integrate competition into educational programmes but these are certainly in our top 10.  Read some more ideas  here . in an interesting article by Edarabia, the Middle East’s top educational guide.

Virtual Event leaderboard

Feedback & peer interaction

It goes without saying that feedback, discussion and group working is a huge part of how humans learn.  Virtual Platforms can carve out specific ways for groups of students, not limited by geography or language, to interact and learn together using breakout rooms, chat boxes, live video streaming and much more.

“To get students to apply their knowledge to a given problem, to reflect on issues and the views of others, to illustrate the relevance of theoretical ideas by placing them in a real-world context, and to illustrate the complexity of decision-making.”

Harvard University

Virtual Education is a powerful tool for organisations to roll out specific content to both global and national groups of students or employees, in a consistent, methodical, yet creative way.  For large organisations, specific content can be rolled out in the same way, across many locations either simultaneously or as part of a larger, regular programme.  Language and location are not barriers;  different locations and languages actually enhance the potential for students to learn more and develop deeper understanding of the content.  Knowledge sharing between peer groups is unrivalled in a Virtual Environment.

In summary, keep it simple but don’t be shy to be creative.  Online learning can take place on a massive or a small scale virtually with ease, and is focussed, fun and incredibly engaging.

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How can you measure Event Success and ROI?

How can you measure Event Success and ROI?

by | Corporate, Virtual Events

How do you measure an event’s success?

What data can (and should) you capture and how can you use this to quantify successful areas of your event?  What statistics can you use to identify areas for improvement?  These are all big questions!  And where’s the best place to start?…

Virtual and Hybrid Events provide opportunities to measure, analyse and improve the user experience which are unparalleled elsewhere.  ROI and user experience analytics might sound techy and complicated terms but in reality these analytics are clever and ingenuously simple (that’s the good bit!). When you set up your Virtual Event in the right way you can use these metrics, and results, to make your events best in their class.  Let us take a look at how…

ROI and KPI’s

Every finance director loves a statistic – quite rightly.  You need to know the money you’ve invested in an event is well spent.  But one of the difficult things when you’re creating something, well, creative, is to attach numbers and statistics to it and to make that success quantifiable.  Event organisers can feel when an event went well, but it’s important to be able to illustrate this in clear, undeniable black and white facts to other stakeholders too.  It might sound complicated and daunting but – this is the fun bit – it’s 100% possible and straightforward.  The key is to approach it correctly from the beginning and work out the stats you need before you start designing the event itself.

Event ROI - set objectives

First step: Get your objectives and KPI’s straight

Define how and why you are running your event and the desired output and outcomes.  Once you have these objectives outlined you can decide which KPIs you’ll use to measure them.  Your KPI’s will be the things you can measure which illustrate your objectives in a statistical way.

It’s simple really.  Here are some examples…

  • Educational event: Here you will likely be looking specifically at knowledge or confidence on a content topic, peer to peer networking and test or assessment results.  Example KPI’s: Poll results, speaker Q&A’s and results from gamification you build into the event.
  • Sales conference: You are likely to want to look at things like new prospects, networking, conversations, customer needs analysis and ultimately conversions and sales revenue.  Example KPI’s: New contacts, qualified leads, pipeline figures, orders taken, revenue, and chat Q&A.
  • Product launch event: Here you are likely to be looking at user and customer opinions and qualitative feedback. Example KPI’s: Polls, website and social media engagement and Net Promoter Scores. (There are some more great ideas here).

Second step: Work out the KPI’s you’ll need

Here is a list of some great KPI’s that can be used to analyse Virtual Event success.  Not all will apply to every event, obviously, you’ll need to make sure the KPI’s for your event are unique to your event and measure your objectives as outlined in point 1.  But, here’s a great starter for ten to get you thinking…

 

  • Registration numbers
  • Attendance numbers
  • Live polls
  • Clicks
  • % of game zones used
  • Types and methods content consumption
  • Social media engagement
  • Audience Q&A
  • Online search traffic
  • Breakout attendance
  • Exhibition stand interaction
  • Revenue generated
  • Feedback surveys
  • Hot spots
  • Chat rooms
  • Net promoter scores
  • Gamification results (i.e. Leader boards)
Virtual Event ROI - KPI's

Third step: Run your event and collect your data

Once you know what data you need, set up your event to include a dashboard for stakeholders to be able to see that data.  This can be done before, during and post event and should be collected and analysed post event.  The sky’s your limit and dashboards can be made to suit the requirements of the event and stakeholders.

Fourth and final step?  Analyse your results

Once your event has finished and you have collected your data, now is the time not only to measure your results and work out your successes, but also to analyse areas of improvement and change.  Those who are best in their class will look at continuous improvement throughout all of their events, and the key?   The stats that help you do this…

Virtual Event ROI - analysis

It’s clear that Virtual Event are fantastic at providing data led insights that can drive much positive change within an organisation, and also be a direct route to customers, staff or other relevant audiences.  For more information on how to approach metrics for your Virtual or Hybrid Event, get in touch or read more on our Metrics page.  Either way we’d love to hear from you.

Procreation HQ

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What is a Hybrid Event and how can you use them?

What is a Hybrid Event and how can you use them?

by | Virtual Events

How do Hybrid Events work in practice?

Over the last year, as Virtual Events and online experiences have become an everyday ‘normal’ experience for many, there has been a lot of chat around the topic.

Hybrid Events, Live Events, Virtual Events, live broadcasts… what exactly are they? How do Hybrid Events work in practice?  How (and why) are businesses using these forms of communication?

To better understand the new Hybrid Event event space lets roll back the clock a few years. Before the pandemic a large part of our business was delivering Hybrid Events, in fact we built our first virtual platform and interactive Web App back in 2013. In a similar way the world is identifying a need now, we saw back then the need for merging live and online audiences as one, in order to successfully deliver events for many of our pharmaceutical clients. The Pandemic has forced the live event experience into change, but this change can be a positive one, opening up many more possibilities for event organisers and businesses alike.

How do Hybrid Events work?

Here we take a look at the ins and outs of the Hybrid Event, its definition, and the hidden power of successful utilisation of the Hybrid Events for a variety of purposes.

How do you define a Hybrid Event?

According to Wikipedia “A Hybrid Event is a tradeshow, conference, seminar, workshop or other meeting that combines a “live” in-person event with a “virtual” online component.”  We would go one step further to insist that the ‘virtual’ component comprises a live audience who can engage with, and influence, the content in real time.

How does a Hybrid Event actually work?

As described above a Hybrid Event is a Live Event, with an in-person audience and a virtual audience.  How it works totally depends on the type of event, the set up, the production, the content and many more factors. The ‘Live’ Event element is just that – live – but is also made available, in real time, to an audience at home, or elsewhere online.  This may be via a series of live streams, meetings or webinars with other forms of content such as presentation slides, polls and live Q&A and is hosted on an online platform that the virtual audience accesses securely online via a personalised log in.

“Hybrid events create an inclusive environment for live events. They extend beyond the conference room, inviting the audience to comment, question, vote and interact in real time whether sitting in the front row or attending virtually at home from anywhere in the world.”

Matt Francis

CEO and Founder, Procreation

Our top four ways to use Hybrid Events successfully

1. Use Hybrid Events to boost attendance and increase external audiences

Hybrid Events are 100% inclusive.  Audiences are not determined or restricted by geography.  Therefore, a B2B or B2C external event’s attendance can be massively boosted if it is turned into a Hybrid Event.

Those who could not attend in the flesh (for various reasons) can still attend online and engage in a way that provides them with huge value.  Ticket revenue can be improved and the quality of discussion can be enhanced with more feedback, greater interactivity, deeper conversation and varying viewpoints.

2. Use Hybrid Events to improve inclusivity for internal audiences and foster company collaboration

Cost, workload, departmental operations and travel time are all major factors that influence an internal events strategy, and impact who will be on the invite list.  From a sales kick off to an internal training course or annual conference internal events can be a cause for unrest within the workforce.  By making these Hybrid, all employees can be included, their opinions heard and acted upon and company culture enriched as a result.  According to Willis Tower Watson,  companies with effective communication strategies see 47% higher total returns to shareholders. That’s a statistic not to be sniffed at. (This great article by Staff base includes some other great insight too.)

Engage audiences Hybrid Events

3. Use Hybrid Events to increase sponsorship ROI

It will come as no surprise that offering sponsors new ways of showcasing products, branding, content and getting in touch with attendees directly will make a huge positive impact to sponsorship ROI. Live Events which also have a Hybrid Event element can reach wider audiences – tick (see point 1).

They can engage those audiences in new ways that Live Events cannot (and in ways that complement Live Events.) What’s not to love?

4. Use Hybrid Events to reduce environmental impact, but achieve the same objectives

As we’ve seen during the Covid Pandemic, and when international travel was banned, people could still get together, meet, collaborate, work, and succeed, virtually.  No, it isn’t quite the same in terms of experience and Virtual Events will always have a place, but there is also most definitely a place for Hybrid Events too.

If an event’s objective can be achieved using a Hybrid or Virtual Event format and the travel cost (and environmental impact) of that event is reduced, then that proposes a huge upside.  Over 100 of the world’s biggest and most influential Global organisations have pledged to become carbon neutral.  This illustrates the importance and commitment to reducing the impact of how we operate, and this trend is only going to pick up pace . Visit The Climate Pledge website for more info.

Environmentally friendly Hybrid Events

But what about an example?  EDUCATION.  Training events, internal up-skilling events, staff development programmes and much more.  Online, rather than in the room.  The discussion is tracked, easy to access, content is available on demand and live, and the cost to the business and the environment is massively reduced compared to training face to face.

In summary

Hybrid Events can be simple, they can be complex, but they undoubtedly provide an inclusive aspect to Live Events that is becoming increasingly valuable.

For more information on how to make your event Hybrid, get in touch with the Procreation team today.

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How to get the most out of Virtual Experiences

How to get the most out of Virtual Experiences

by | Virtual Events

How can you get the most out of Virtual Event Experiences?

You might be about to host your first Virtual Event or maybe you’re just considering including Virtual Experiences, Events and Hybrid Events into your overall communications and event strategy?

Either way, before you get started, it’s important to plan ahead and consider the key elements that will help you make your Virtual Experience a success.  As an event organiser there’s a LOT to consider, but Virtual Experiences offer some phenomenal opportunities too.  Here’s the Procreation HQ list of top tips to think about when planning your next (or first) Virtual Experience…

What are your overall objectives?

It might sound obvious, but make sure your objectives for the overall event are defined, written down, and have SMART goals attached to them. This means that you can tailor the whole event approach, end to end experience, audience and content to achieve just that.  No event is hosted ‘just because’ – there will be a key reason why this is important, and what you’re hoping to achieve, so write it down (then you’re more likely to stick to it.)

Who is your audience?

With a Virtual Experience or Virtual Event the world really is your oyster!  Virtual Events know no boundaries, so think about the target audience as a type of person and don’t worry too much about being restricted by geography.  The great thing about Virtual Events is that attendees can attend no matter where they are.  It’s who they are that is more important.  Our tip?  Put a strategy in place to attract your desired audience using excellent, valuable content and a clear event value proposition.

Who is your audience?

What does your content look like?

There are SO many options to create and showcase exciting, engaging content with Virtual Experiences.  From peer to peer networking, gamification, live streams, polling, presentations, interactive Q&A, simultaneous translation and much more – the list really does go on.  Think about your branding, presentation style, personalisation and registration process too; this all contributes to an excellent memorable, experience for your attendees.

Will you offer networking opportunities, and if so how?

Networking at Virtual and Hybrid Events is excellent.  It’s as simple as that.  Virtual Networking often encourages the most introverted of attendees to ‘put themselves out there’ in a way that they perhaps wouldn’t be so comfortable doing in person.  From scavenger hunts, to personalised challenges that promote learning and fitness, networking options are plentiful.  Maybe networking isn’t something you’ve been able or confident enough to do at a Live Event in the past.  Well, now’s your opportunity.

    Virtual Event custom branding

    What about sponsorship?

    Sponsorship is a great way to include additional (and highly valuable) content.  Having a Virtual Event sponsored (either the whole event overall or an element) can add a new layer of value for attendees as well as hosts and organisers alike.  Virtual Event Sponsors can provide personalised content, opportunities for valuable interaction and provide excellent learning opportunities.  Sponsors can also bring a larger, or more targeted audience.  If approached cleverly and strategically sponsorship can increase registration numbers, revenue and event value.

      What analytics will be available and how will you use them?

      It will come as no surprise that Virtual and Online events provide a level of analytics that is unrivalled Face to Face.  These analytics can not only be a useful sales tool (in the right context), but can encourage real behaviour analysis and drive innovation.  Using this information is crucial to understanding delegate engagement and identifying areas for improvement, in turn creating better virtual events and experiences, and more importantly overall business growth.  Read more about metrics here.

      How can you use Virtual Event analytics?

      But what about the attendee perspective?

      Running an event is important, but a lot of us attend these types of events too.  How can attendees get the most of these amazing experiences?  Here’s our list for that part!  Procreation’s top tips for attendees to get the most out of Virtual Events, Hybrid Events and Virtual Experiences…

      1. Give yourself a dedicated space

      We’ve all worked from home (the juggle is real), but aim to be able to concentrate, when you need to. Set up a workspace, with some daylight and fresh air (where possible) that helps you feel awake and focussed (we love a good window view…).  The key components?  A good chair, good lighting, good internet connection – see some more here.

      2. Let others know you are not available

      In the same fashion as if you were attending an event or training in the flesh, let others know you are occupied. Put your out of office on, delegate important tasks, arrange cover.  This way, you can focus on the content 100% and get the most out of it without interruptions (oh, and put that phone on airplane mode). Some great tips on why Out of Office is SO important from Forbes.

      3. Set boundaries and allow break times

      While it’s very well to say it’s good to shut yourself away, the blur of lines between home and workplace have a huge impact on fatigue. Give yourself dedicated times to get up, walk around, get outside, drink plenty of water, and give your eyes (and brain) a break.  Set boundaries with those you share a home office/home/office with, so that during your focussed time, that it is just that.

      Make sure others know you're unavailable

      4. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

      We can’t stress the importance of that!  So important to do and so easy to forget.  We love a simple water bottle with times on to make sure you to drink enough throughout the day, but there’s some great tech here if you’re the type of person who needs a bit more of a nudge.

      5. Split screens

      Someone once said “Once you’ve used a split screen, you won’t go back” and this couldn’t be more true.  It’s hugely helpful if you’re trying to type and watch at the same time.  While this is NOT a necessity and some people like a good old fashioned pen and pad, some thrive with a split screen set up during a Virtual Event.

      Use split screens for Virtual Events

      Virtual Experiences are here to stay and we believe will become an integral part of almost all organisations.  Contact us for more information on how to approach this exciting format of communication and the endless possibilities.

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