Commercial Integrator July 2022 - 10

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AV BRAINS & BRAWN
Keep your virtual events 45 to 90 minutes,
if possible. Research suggests that, in
normal circumstances, it typically takes
fewer than 30 minutes for someone to start
daydreaming or become disengaged.
Online events make disengagement even
easier: You can watch/attend and still
answer emails and browse open tabs on
your computer. If you're in the offi ce, it can
be full of distractions - everything ringing
phones, to foot traffi c around you, to the
internet being at your fi ngertips.
The holy grail is to fi nd ways to keep virtual
attendees paying attention. Of course,
the perceived value of the topic and the
quality of the presenters are key. The ability
to interact with the presenters via online
Q&A, live polling, etc., can also help. But
even in the best of circumstances, it's still
not the same as being there in person.
Although it might seem counterintuitive,
research shows that virtual events actually
The Contractor / Integrator's One-Stop Shop For Audio, Video, & Lighting Equipment
drive attendees to physical events. The fact
is that most people prefer physical events.
In a recent survey, 77% of respondents said
they were " inspired to attend a physical
event aſt er going to the virtual one. " When
one subject matter expert was asked why,
they opined, " Because it simply is the case
that the experience at an in-person event
will always have the je ne sais quoi factor
that a virtual event does not have. "
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10
Commercial Integrator JULY 2022
A Natural Evolution
Combine live events and virtual events -
although typically not in equal amounts -
and you have a hybrid event. It sounds like
a natural evolution of live and virtual, and it
is. Although potentially the best of all solutions,
it does have challenges. Planning
hybrid events is signifi cantly more complex
than planning live or virtual ones. It is a
balancing act. You must plan two events in
one, and you must consider both groups of
participants. Hybrid events require you to
create two distinct experiences, using the
same content in diff erent ways to attract
attendees. You must amplify what is best in
both live and virtual and, at the same time,
you must address the challenges that each
one poses. A single glitch in either area can
severely impact overall event quality.
To sum up, in-person events were the
only option up until about 10 years ago.
People were, and still remain, most comfortable
in those environments. Thanks
to COVID-19, everything changed, and
events went virtual. It took some time for
many to acclimate themselves, but we
now know that virtual (if done right) can
work well. Thus, it must remain in the
event mix. Live events provide benefi ts
that virtual cannot; likewise, virtual fi lls in
some of the blanks that live events fail to
tick off . Hybrid events, meanwhile, have
the positive attributes of live while off ering
the reduced attendee expense, reduced
attendee time investment and broader
reach of virtual.
As I prophesied in my original article, it
is not an either-or situation. Instead, it has
become " and. "
Alan C. Brawn, CTS, ISF, ISF-C,
DSCE, DSDE, DCME, is the
principal of Brawn Consulting.
commercialintegrator.com
http://www.fdwcorp.com http://www.commercialintegrator.com
Commercial Integrator July 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Integrator July 2022
