How to Improve Hybrid Events for the Virtual Audience

Photo by Ivan Samkov from Pexels

I recently participated — virtually — in a hybrid conference. I was very curious, of course, to see how it went because most observers of the conference world expect some version of what I saw to become the future of the meeting business. Everyone wants to know: what’s the model going to be? What works and what doesn’t? How do we surprise and delight both in-person and virtual attendees?

After 2 half-days and a number of speeches, panels, and discussions, I’ve got a few preliminary conclusions about the virtual end of the hybrid meeting.

1. For virtual attendees, watching and asking the occasional question is not participating. I felt like a second-class citizen, unable to follow fully what was going on in the room, where it seemed that the in-person attendees were both learning more and having more fun than I was. Just watching the action virtually, even though the level of energy, moderation, and speaking in the room was quite high, was not enough to make me feel a part of the action. At minimum, I think organizers need to have breakout rooms for the virtual attendees and a bigger role for them to play.
2. There are going to be technical problems. I presume the technology will improve, but currently, even with the latest software and an entire tech team on the case, there were still mics that didn’t work…