As in-person events make their way back and hybrid ones appear on the horizon, event organizers need to understand the audience differences that are now more visible post-pandemic. Returning to the old ways won’t cut it for younger generations, which will become the core attendee base one day.
It’s clear that many marketers must do more with less this year, with many industries still suffering from the effects of the pandemic. This analysis explores where US marketers will invest this year from a resource perspective, covering both in-house staff and external contractors.
Even as in-person events reemerge, companies must still use online event solutions they’ve already invested in. They must also fine-tune them or seek new ones as they move into hybrid events. We’ve seen interesting lessons so far among companies that have learned how to master these platforms.
The pandemic completely disrupted in-person events as marketers froze their spending. This analysis explores where event dollars shifted to in more detail, marketer perceptions around when in-person events will return, and what virtual events must do well in the meantime.
When the pandemic hit, companies froze, diverted, or eliminated marketing funds slated for in-person events while other marketing activities either paused or went forward. This analysis explores where these event dollars will go in 2021, and to which marketing activities B2B will allocate budget.
Content helps define a successful virtual event, as does how it’s created, delivered, and absorbed. Understanding how to best weave the content together can help teams lay a foundation for success. Here are some key paths to follow when thinking about the content mix for virtual events in 2021.
Virtual event experiences provide a much wider array of metrics than their in-person counterparts. Understanding how to interpret that data and create new benchmarks to measure success is critical. Here are some key paths to follow when thinking about benchmarks for virtual events this year.
Understanding how companies changed the organizational structures of their events, marketing, and sales teams in 2020, and what skillset gaps they hope to fill this year, will help others plot the road ahead for events in 2021.
Understanding vaccine deployments, geographic differences in health and safety regulations, the mindsets of attendees, and the budgets of sponsors and exhibitors will help event organizations better prepare for what unfolds in 2021 and 2022.
Virtual events don’t need to have substandard attendee engagement and networking experiences compared to preceding in-person equivalents. Here are some critical practices to follow when thinking through facilitating audience engagement in the shift from physical to virtual events.
