4 Reasons Why Your Event Should Go Virtual

You might be hearing a lot about virtual events right now, but you're probably left wondering what actually makes virtual events so valuable? Well we're here to break a few of the benefits down for you.

1. Data

Virtual events offer true marketing intelligence. This is because by nature they're extremely measurable. Companies can easily learn:

• Which sessions were the most popular
• How many people attended
• How many attendees were live
• What touch-points they engaged with and for how long
• What they watched and downloaded
• What they purchased
• They're real-time reactions to new product launches

Just about every attendee action can be easily tracked and analysed. Sadly, the same cannot be said for traditional offline events, where the ROI is harder to track, and customer data, engagements, and interactions are harder to measure and analyse. 

"This is incredibly rich marketing data which simply isn't possible with traditional offline events"

2. Content

You can significantly extend the shelf life of your content. Unlike traditional offline events, your content doesn’t stop being valuable once the online event is over. Videos, concerts and performances can live on as a branded, searchable experience that can continue to drive engagement.

Virtual events allow you to get creative. With an online-only experience, you can play with content formats, bring in additional influencers and guests, and engage your audience in a measurable way.



3. Audience Collaboration

The days of passive audiences are over. Audiences are more likely to engage with brands and organisations when it’s a two-way conversation.

Virtual events are a perfect way to allow audience involvement, from:

• Real-time competitions
• Live polls and quizzes
• Hashtag challenges
• Live streamed cosplay competitions
• Interviewing attendees during live streamed sessions
• Getting a large group involved in a dynamic chat room

"You Can Create A Dynamic Feedback Loop Through Live Streaming That Brings You Closer To Your Audience"

4. Social Media Integration

Unlike traditional offline events, social platforms integrate seamlessly into virtual events. Why is this important? Because consumers are now collaborators. It's been shown that brands experience 4x higher click-through-rates for user generated content.

Not only that, but brand engagement rises by 28% when audiences are exposed to a mix of professional content and user-generated content.

Bearing in mind that over 70% of today's entertainment consumption is streaming, it's extremely important to incorporate live streaming into your virtual event in order to collaborate with your audience.

"User generated content is at the forefront of virtual events"

So those are the top four reasons why your event should go virtual. If you want to be able to have extremely rich marketing data, clear ROI on your event efforts, collaborate with your audiences and even extend the shelf life of your content, then virtual events should be a definite strategy for you this year.