WORK / LIFE : FRESH FORMULA

TWO YEARS AGO , COVID-19 prompted the Santa Fe , New Mexico – based cloud accounting software firm Sage Intacct to go virtual with Sage Transform , its annual 4,000-person conference where accountants mingle and learn new skills . But late last year , with people yearning for face-to-face networking , Sage Transform went hybrid . Some 2,000 people convened in Las Vegas in early November , while another 2,000 joined online . Organizers planned 100 in-person breakout sessions and delivered livestream and on-demand content to remote attendees , along with branded notebooks sent in the mail .

“ Tons of people are tired of traveling to events and appreciate that they can consume content online ,” says Rachel Heller , senior event content manager at Sage Intacct . “ But just as many are itching to go back in person .”

The inevitable peaks and valleys of the pandemic , which prompted a spate of cancellations in winter amid the rapid rise of Omicron , are far from over .

The much-anticipated annual Consumer Electronics Show ( CES ) saw only 45,000 in-person attendees in Las Vegas in early January , down from its usual 170,000-plus participants . The World Economic Forum postponed its annual meeting in Davos to early summer . And the Sundance Film Festival went almost entirely virtual , without the annual crush of film fanatics to Park City , Utah .

And yet , event planners are able to take it in stride , armed with new tech tools and key insights they ’ ve gained over the past two years . Hybrid events — in which some attendees participate in person and others join online — offer opportunities to rethink business conventions and the potential to engage conference-goers in entirely new ways .

Ensuring remote participants feel included

About 50 % of corporate event attendees believe that hybrid events are the right format — even beyond the pandemic — because they offer the benefits of in-person attendance with the convenience of virtual participation .

Hybrid events allow more people to participate since an airplane ticket and a hotel room are not requirements . “ It makes an event more accessible , and it can bring new folks into your community ,” says Sage Intacct ’ s Heller .

Heller and her team used the RainFocus event platform to integrate in-person and virtual elements , paired with the CLEAR app to verify COVID-19 vaccination status for in-person attendees . They planned 100 in-person breakout sessions and delivered livestream and on-demand content to remote attendees , along with branded notebooks sent in the mail .

Jenny Burke , chief marketing officer at Shared Assessments in Santa Fe , says it ’ s critical to choose a host and concierge who are available to virtual attendees via chat throughout an event . During livestream Q & As , the moderator in the room should coordinate with the virtual moderator to make sure questions are split evenly between in-person attendees and those joining online .

Virtual moderators should ask questions in the chat to engage participants and encourage activity — where are attendees logging in from ? Who ’ s a first-time attendee ?

Shanee Kraus , manager of HP ’ s Experience Lab , which is responsible for organizing and hosting big events , notes that the inclusion of far-flung participants also means accounting for their different time zones . Even before the pandemic , the Experience Lab produced separate , synchronous events for audiences ( including some 50,000 HP employees ) by setting up studios for panel discussions and presentations in several continents so participants could tune in live during their own business day .

“ It ’ s not an American , European , or Asian event ,” she says . “ It ’ s a global event .”

Connecting attendees near and far

Hybrid events aren ’ t as simple as broadcasting what ’ s happening in the room . To give everyone valuable content and foster connections between in-person and virtual attendees , event planners have been tapping into new technology and tools to create a cohesive experience .

Don ’ t think of it as two separate forums , says Kraus . “ It ’ s one event where you ’ re connecting everybody .”

Kraus suggests choosing one robust event platform that works for both in-person and virtual attendees . The best ones have interactive features and opportunities for networking . She uses Canapii , which offers features that mimic the feeling of networking and mingling ; and Hopin , which has built-in email marketing tools , a registration feature that gives insight into attendee preferences , and a networking component where participants can link up for one-on-one video calls . Pigeonhole Live is another app that provides Q & As , polls , chat , reactions , and surveys .

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