There’s no question, the pandemic has forever changed the meetings industry. As live events resume, there will be a lot of familiar elements, but many new ones as well.
A recent Associations Now article from caught our attention, as it pointed out a few meeting trends that developed during the pandemic, but should be here to stay. (Read Top Pandemic-Inspired Meeting Trends to Maintain.)
Hybrid Events
Many events will embrace a hybrid approach to welcome in those that are unable to attend in person, or maybe just want to check out a new educational opportunity without having to leave their home or office. Check out some of our recent blog posts on how to welcome in your virtual audience:
- Planning for the Hybrid Experience
- Hybrid Meetings: Welcoming your Virtual Audience
- Digital Publishing Solutions for Virtual Events
And don’t overlook ways to create connections between your exhibitors and virtual attendees. A daily email newsletter developed for the virtual audience may attract advertising interest from your sponsors.
Digital Content
While we still believe that print publications will add value to conferences, the immediate concern about “touching” and preference for social distancing creates new opportunities for digital publishing. These may include:
- Morning and afternoon email newsletters, to remind attendees about what’s coming up.
- Digital show dailies, so they can check out the latest conference coverage on their personal mobile devices.
- Micro-sites focused on conference news.
These are cost-effective ways to reach your audience while also creating unique advertising and sponsorship opportunities.
Check out these blog pots for a few more ideas:
- Enhance Virtual Sponsorships with Content Marketing and Digital Advertising Opportunities
- Live Events: Using Digital Publishing to Offset Attendance Implications, Post-COVID-19