Nth Degree Trade Show and Event Marketing Blog

When conferences transition to virtual events, what happens to the sponsors and exhibitors? They are still a critical part of the event’s ecosystem but now have an uncertain role in the new format. Many of our clients have long-standing relationships with sponsors and exhibitors who know the event just as well as the people planning it.

Virtual events are currently becoming the way of the world during the challenging times of COVID-19. The information overload created by the quick shift to virtual can make the process challenging. How do you find the right provider to fit your needs and deliver a seamless experience?

A well-executed education program is the thread that unifies attendees at any conference. Nth Degree has a department dedicated to speaker and education management and we’re working hard to ensure success for both our clients and their audiences in the current climate. Let’s take a look at some of the ways we prepare speakers for a virtual event, and how it’s different from a face-to-face environment.

The shift from in-person learning to digital requires a different strategy and approach. Let’s take a look at some of the ways we’re approaching learning in a virtual setting and the tactics we’re brainstorming to keep the audience engaged.

Like you, I’ve read dozens of articles about what changes will be made to enable large shows to return – temperature checks, rapid testing, cleaning procedures, social distancing rules, etc. But I haven’t heard anyone talking about the impact of these changes on exhibiting companies. 

We’re living in extraordinary times. No roadmap. No contingency plan. I think we can all agree that the changes are uncomfortable and have disrupted the natural flow of our everyday lives. For those of us in the events industry, this is more than a disruption — it’s an upheaval of our businesses and plans we’ve been working on for months. As we scramble to get creative and come up with new ideas to ensure success for our clients, we’re also wondering if this is this the new normal. Are live events going to be a thing of the past? I don’t think so; in fact, I think they will evolve into something even better than before.

Covid-19 has fundamentally changed how we conduct business, especially the business of events. Much of the industry made the shift to virtual almost immediately and that shift is expected to persist through the fall. Although the decisions to go online were swift, they weren’t easy for many companies. How will potential attendees react? What impact will this decision have on a brand? What skill sets do we need to deliver an engaging digital experience? Scary stuff. However, we have realized that, despite the challenges, Covid-19 has presented us with an amazing opportunity to build larger audiences for our programs than ever before.

In the post-pandemic world, people will emerge from their homes and venture back out into society. They’ll visit friends, favorite stores, and re-opened restaurants, but will they step foot on an airplane? Will they buy concert tickets? Attend a conference? There’s no doubt our world will look different in the months or years to come. We may even get that extra elbow room on airplanes that we’ve longed for as modified social distancing becomes commonplace.

A pandemic hit. Cities closed. Large gatherings were no longer allowed and every event across the nation was forced to cancel, postpone, or go online. As a result, event planners have had to take a step back and reevaluate what events will look like in the coming months and years. What is the right approach, or what steps can we take, to get events back on the calendar? How do we safeguard aspects of the event that were already in motion during the pre-pandemic planning period? Is this an opportunity to test new waters?