2020 has become the year of digital reality, the year when everything is going remote and virtual more rapidly than ever, fueling the demand for virtual events as never before. Though it seems to be a bit challenging task for those who are unfamiliar with the technical nitty-gritty, the pandemic has made Virtual events- a necessity for everyone, requiring everyone to gear up for the same. 

An event ends up being amazingly helpful in the marketing process, encouraging face to face interaction with your buyers, assisting them with setting up a substantially more intimate relationship with your brand.  Live events and conferences have always been a prominent part of the marketing process, which has now been replaced by Virtual Events. As the pandemic has constrained everybody to remain at home, making it hard for them to organize live events, people are preferring the Virtual events over the physical ones.  

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the first virtual event was held in July 2020 by the International Association of Constitutional Law and Alma Mater Europaea university, calling it a “unique round-the-clock and round-the-globe” virtual tour event, including 52 speakers from 28 nations. Virtual events empower the companies to promote their brand or conduct a business meeting or conference at the comfort of their desk. The virtual event is the buzzing trend, and with the pace at which its demand is growing in the market, it is very clear that virtual events are not going anywhere, instead will continue to be equally useful in the coming years. 

What is a Virtual Event?

Virtual Event is not a new concept; you might have attended many by now. If we go by the definition- A virtual event is an event that is conducted over the web, empowering the people to interact virtually, instead of arranging a meeting over a physical location. Virtual events can be of numerous types such as –  Webinars, Virtual audio/ video conferences, live streaming, or Hybrid events

Having a huge resemblance with the physical events in terms of performance, Virtual events can be an excellent choice for the brands to conduct their business chorus at utter ease and efficiency. But before you shoot your virtual event, it is necessary to acquaint yourself with the most important elements of virtual events.

The virtual event almost requires the same elements as the physical event, however with a slight variation. The most important thing to conduct a virtual event is a flawless internet connection as well as a fluid running event website which is not the case for physical events. 

Physical events do not rely on an internet connection or some website. It can be conducted offline by gathering the desired people at a place. Though you need to prepare for both virtual and physical events, the virtual event, having distinct requirements because of  being conducted on the web, needs different elements to run, such as- 

• An authentic event website or channel
• A full proof live presentation content
• Flawless audio and video devices
• A sound platform for live interaction
• The facility of live polling
• A backup of the content
• Interactive video conferencing

What makes Virtual Events promising for the future?

The primary rationale of virtual events is the same as the physical one that is to connect with the attendees and convey the organization’s message to the ideal candidates/ people. There are multiple types of virtual events, each having its fair share of pros and cons, which you need to consider while choosing one based on your business agenda. Virtual events are the future of the marketing world, and the features that make Virtual Events promising for the future are as follows-

• Virtual Events are Accessible Anywhere and Everywhere

The best thing about virtual occasions is that it doesn’t tie you up to a particular area to collaborate with your client and the other way around. You can do this virtually without the need of being physically present at the event venue. This diminishes a ton of issues both for the customer as well as the company and their employees. With the virtual events, all you need to do is register on the website and join in the meeting through the link. 

• Virtual Events Perfectly Fits in Your Budget

You need to make numerous arrangements to organize a physical event, such as deciding a venue, appointing staff, arrangements for travel, hotels, and food.  All these arrangements have a cost associated with them, which cannot be avoided, making it a comparatively expensive process. On the contrary, Virtual events, being conducted online, proves to be extremely budget-friendly, hence you need not worry about all these expenses.

• Virtual Event Technology is Upgrading

With the introduction of advanced technologies like AI/ML, holographic, virtual stage, as well as the 5G network, the virtual event has also climbed up to a higher level, making it more convenient for the people to conduct more interactive and informative events for their audience. 


For instance, people can use simulated conference applications to interact with the audience during the virtual event. Also, with the help of virtual stage technology, invented by Microsoft, you can blend the video of the speaker with a desired real-time interactive background image, making it more comprehensible.

• Virtual Events leads to More Reachability

Attendees and their opinion play a crucial role in the success of an event, contributing to the decision-making process of the company. But what if your attendee had to stay back home due to some reason and could not reach the event? You will be less of an opinion. Virtual events prove to be extremely helpful in such situations allowing your attendees to attend your event at their comfort.

• Virtual Events is Always Available

  The availability of Virtual Events is probably the main motivation behind its taking off prominence. Unlike Physical events, Virtual events can be organized whenever desired. The availability of physical events depends on numerous factors such as weather conditions, traveling, time constraints, or a situation like the pandemic when you are bound to be at home and cannot travel to the event venue. 
  

  If something goes wrong in any of the conditions, the availability of the physical events cannot be promised. Virtual events come out to be extremely handy in such conditions, being always available as long as you have an internet condition.

Wrap-up

Virtual events are unquestionably not going anywhere, and the reasons are very clear in the article. It is expected to grow even more in the coming years. A study suggests that the global virtual events market size is expected to grow at a CAGR(Compound Annual Growth Rate)  of 23.2% from 2020 to 2027. 

So, if you also want to conduct a successful virtual event for you or your company, start with preparing a full-proof and effective plan. And to do this, first of all, you need to understand the requirements of your attendees as well as your agenda very clearly.  There are a few factors worth considering during the planning process- 

• What will be the type of the virtual event- live, pre-recorded, or a hybrid?
• Does your event agenda match the expectations of your attendees?
• What are the backup plans in case of connectivity issues?
• Should there be any guideline for the event, if yes, have you prepared any document for it?
• Will you be charging fees for the event or will it be free of charge?
• What will be the duration of the event?