In 2020 more than ever, an event (whether physical, virtual, or hybrid) has to become a genuine experience to be truly successful. And what better experience than having fun and sharing a friendly moment at an event? How do you keep your attendees or clients engaged during your events, whether they're in person or online?
Laughter (or failing that, a smile) as an experience
There are many ways to surprise your audience, if the tone of your event allows it, to make it more fun for everyone. Nothing helps people absorb information better than an emotional connection to your event. If your event is an internal one, motivate your teams to take part by promising a friendly, informal moment. Here are a few examples of initiatives we've spotted:
- Through your speakers: they might be relevant, but do they check every box? A speaker's sense of humor helps energize your event and guards against drops in attention. Don't hesitate to bring in comedians (take a look at the Paname Comedy Club to see today's talent in stand-up shows) to liven up your events! (Plus, it keeps you young and in the loop on new comedy talent).
- Through playful games that add a bit more involvement to events: for example, at a trade show, you can organize your booths and workshops so that each visit earns visitors points. At the end of the event, attendees can check their score and possibly exchange their points for gifts! Everyone comes out ahead: your visitors tour more booths than usual, leave happy with a gift and a positive feeling, with a bit of nostalgia for that old school-fair atmosphere.
- Through organizing a costume event (ideally with a specific theme): the tone becomes offbeat, and people are happy to play along with a day that breaks from the ordinary. It's actually easier to talk about serious things when the atmosphere is light. Similarly, this makes it much easier to take the first step in meeting new people (and of course, you don't need a full costume, one accessory can be enough).
Can you be funny on a video call?
The need to turn an event into an experience applies at least as much to your virtual and hybrid events. Given the number of virtual events on offer since March 2020, you need tricks to keep your attendees engaged. Since fatigue and boredom are naturally more common behind a screen, you can make up for the lack of physical human interaction with:
- Virtual role-playing games: virtual interaction can start, for example, with an icebreaker round to loosen up the mood and get to know attendees better, so the event ultimately feels like a less anonymous experience. For this, you can use quizzes on Kahoot, virtual blind tests, and other group games that energize and entertain employees who can sometimes feel the isolation of remote work.
- Virtual happy hours at the end of events: at Digitevent, at the end of video conference meetings (lockdown life), we enjoyed spending 10-15 minutes with a drink in hand talking about something other than work, to unwind and open up the conversation to more personal topics.
- Challenges: have you ever tried a virtual escape game? Nothing is more fun for building team cohesion! Many games like "Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes" help improve communication while giving your teams a challenge (in this case, a set amount of time to defuse a virtual bomb).
- Or, even bolder, by inviting a comedian into the web conference! The idea is simple: what if comedians came to make your events more fun? A New York startup did just that: Laugh.Events. Many employees find their work meetings boring. So the company wanted to create a brand new format: they call it LaaS (Laugh as a Service), a play on the SaaS acronym. This idea can apply to companies of any size and (almost) any type of event.
Re-enchanting everyday life and linking work to positive emotions
The first half of 2020 loosened social ties within most companies and had an impact on team motivation. Video conferencing platforms and endless meetings undermine team morale.
The very purpose of an event is to fight against this! HR teams therefore have a new challenge: re-enchanting the work experience and rebuilding connections between employees despite remote work and social distancing.
The importance of keeping your attendees engaged no longer needs proving: engagement is a direct driver of how well information is absorbed. Even internally, your employees' engagement will build a shared memory of your event and help cement your company culture, even virtually. Your goals need to be clear: whatever your audience (clients, prospects, internal teams, etc.), you need to deliver quality content in a playful way and an informal setting.
At Digitevent, we love events because we believe human interaction is a source of fulfillment, and events are the ideal playground for innovating and offering new experiences. Our mission stays the same no matter the context: helping you organize memorable event experiences.
Send us your boldest initiatives, we'd be delighted to share them and highlight them to the community of event organizers! :-)
(Careful, if you're expecting too much laughter in the room, don't forget to provide masks!)
Unrelated (but to keep you happy after this article), we love this sketch:
