Learn how negotiating with hotels and venues has changed drastically in the last few months. More agreeable cancellation terms, deposit schedules, and no attrition are just a few of the tips that AMI President, Todd Bludworth shares in this AMI Executive Update.
Virtual events have been growing in popularity, but the COVID pandemic has really created an environment where they fill an important role – keeping participants safe. Of course, that is only one benefit of virtual events. Others include the ability to reach a wider audience, reduce travel expenses, and lower overall event costs.
The necessity of online events has forced technology to become more accessible but has also crowded the space with events happening daily. This popularity means your events must now find a way to cut through the noise to get participant attention and action.
Here are 5 tips to promote your virtual event to have it stand out:
For most online events, the goal is to get people to participate in the event and engage with the call to action the event was designed for. Once you know your participants’ goal(s), determine how to promote the event in a way that drives the achievement of that goal. Create a platform that offers testimonials, steps, and inspiration towards obtaining desired results and encourages engagement.
Plan your marketing strategy for building up to the event, to remind participants of the offers during the event, and in post-event follow-up. Continually remind participants of what’s in it for them.
Be sure potential participants know what to expect from the event. It needs to be of high value in their eyes because unlike a physical event where they invest time and money to sit in a chair, they need details that will get them to engage.
Explain how panels, Q&As, or breakout sessions will work so they know how to interact. Share schedules ahead of time so they understand what they will be getting out of the event, and/or individual sessions.
Participants will feel more satisfied after the event if their expectations are met, so be clear and specific in order to create that for them. Remind the attendees why they signed up and what they will get from the event and do it early and often – then deliver on that.
Use anyone and everyone involved in the event to help promote it. Word of mouth is important here, so make all links and promotional information easy to share. Consider discounts or contests for participants who share the event and increase registration.
Create marketing collateral for speakers, hosts, and even attendees it’s a no-brainer to invite others. Consider your power partners who may want to attend the event and promote it to their customers as well.
Use your event hosts, speakers, and industry influencers to attract participants and help promote the event far and wide.
Virtual events are more successful when cross-promoted, so using strategies that allow for that is ideal. Co-branding, affiliate partnerships, and influencer sharing will help your event have the attendance that will make it successful.
Think bigger
Use segmented lists to speak differently to those attending with different desired outcomes. For example, an event for the writing and publishing industry may attract attendees interested in learning about the craft of writing and others how to get published. These would-be writers.
However, publishing companies may also attend, looking for the next great writer. Editors may attend looking for clients. How you market to each will be different and each segment can be leveraged for different goals while also increasing participation.
Track results
Too often event promoters are busy with details and forget to track how they attracted participants in the first place. If you want to follow up, and/or want to repeat the same or similar event in the future, knowing what worked and what didn’t work will save you time and money.
Set up your events ahead of time to track information – you can review it after the event during debriefing. It will be working the time spent being proactive from the start.
If you are looking for support in creating and managing a virtual event, learn more about how AMI can help, here.
As the meetings and live events industry slowly begin to open, corporations are creating protocols to maintain safety among staff, clients, and vendors. We spoke with several American Meetings Network, Prime Supplier Members – organizations at the forefront of the Meetings and Events Industry – about the steps that they are taking to welcome business back.
Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, Nevada
Ceasars Entertainment is known for some of the most prestigious gaming brands including Caesars Palace® and Harrah’s®. With over 55 resorts across the US, the 80-year-old brand is young at heart, continually innovating its luxury accommodations.
Caesars Entertainment has created a saftey protocol for their multiple properties, although they can vary based on local authorities. This protocol includes:
Atlanta Airport District, Atlanta, Georgia
Ten miles from Downtown Atlanta, the Atlanta Airport District is keeping their website up-to-date with the constantly changing information for residents, visitors, businesses, and hospitality partners. Their COVID Resource page lists important information on restaurant offerings, business openings and health and safety guidelines including:
The ATL Airport District has also been building marketing collateral showing guests wearing masks, checking in, and participating in activities. This helps create expectations that normalize safety procedures while allowing business to resume. Marketing has shifted from making sales to communicating safety.
“Everyone wants to re-open and everyone is proceeding with caution because safety is the biggest priority.”
Kristin Schneider, ATL Airport District Convention and Visitor’s Bureau Director of Sales
San Mateo County / Silicon Valley, Palo Alto, California
The San Francisco Bay Area has long been known as a popular tourist destination and has pledged to be “Reopened & Ready” for visitors and residents alike. Moving through reopening means staying informed and in compliance with local authorities in order to prevent the spread of disease. 
San Mateo County and Palo Alto hotels, businesses, restaurants and attractions are following safety and sanitation standards that include:
Businesses and individuals alike are asked to take the pledge to following these guidelines to keep each other safe to allow for continual reopening of the city. A dedicated web page has been designed for housing updated information on changes, including openings, reclosures and county information and guidelines.
Brazilian Court, Palm Beach, Florida
Staying on top of CDC and local guidance is part of every plan, and Brazilian Court is no exception. Increased frequency of cleaning and sanitization is also another best practice adopted by the historic Spanish Colonial luxury property.
Training associates in following CDC guidelines has been paramount. Focusing on COVID-19 awareness, proper hygiene, and personal protective equipment, and giving guidance to stay home if sick has been prioritized.
In addition, the following guidelines are in place to meeting local laws and guidelines:
Each city is truly dedicated to re-open as quickly as safely possible to restore tourism, fun and economy back to the places they love. We remain cautiously optimistic and are pleased to see so many suppliers preparing to return to live, in-person interactions and establish a new normal for health and safety.
In the Face of a Global Pandemic, AMI is Innovating a Path for Clients Worldwide
AMI’s CEO Andy McNeill talked to Affinity Inc Magazine about how AMI was among one of countless organizations forced to reevaluate its offerings in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic by increasing their virtual offerings, while still offering world class live meeting services.
Changing with the times
Right from the onset of COVID-19, AMI has demonstrated a willingness to rethink their client offerings in a way that highlights community focus onto socially relevant initiatives. For McNeill, flexibility in business has meant working with industry leaders to help develop comprehensive education programs and promote public awareness of COVID-19 when live meetings return. It has also shown up in its work with clients.
Recently we have seen events cancel as quickly as dominoes lined up and tipped over. Many of these event organizers, vendors, and venues lost money and likely future business. While in-person events will make a comeback, this pandemic has opened many eyes to the benefits of virtual events.
In fact, with technology in place to allow for remote work and virtual conferences easier than ever, it would not be surprising to see more events be scheduled on a virtual platform. Although virtual events are being conducted in greater numbers lately, so are new problems arising around quality, managing participants, and avoiding hackers.
What are the best practices, then, for creating quality virtual events? Here are our suggestions:
Every good event starts with a strategy for success. Virtual events should use professional organizers familiar with running virtual events as their expertise is invaluable. Knowing the right questions to ask and understanding logistics from lessons in hindsight, will help your event go smoothly, even if unforeseen issues arise.
Branding and marketing your virtual event is just as important as with a live event, but the methods to reach your target audience may differ. Using technology to manage enrollments becomes critical to ensure attendees have everything they need to make the event memorable and successful.
During the event, the platform used to conduct the event must be able to accommodate all the event requirements including webcasting, managing participation, and analytics. Technology is the “event staff” in these meetings, and managing it can be a bit more specialized.
Vendors, entertainment, and affiliates can all still be involved with virtual events, and making this happen smoothly will require advanced planning for seamless integration. Just because the event is virtual, doesn’t mean you have to give up the parts of an event that make it amazing.
Make sure attendees understand the benefits of a virtual event and play those up to increase benefits. These benefits could include:
AMI is a trusted virtual and live events provider offering strategy, planning, and delivery for your next event of any size.
